Well I have the same issue. I want to work on em this winter, but will have to put em outside after curing. I just don't have the room inside. So it will be a test to see if they survive. I'm in TN. Many say they leave theirs outside year round with out any probs.

Kathy

Well, this is the first year I've had totems and plate flowers, and I'm in the northern part of VA, so I took mine in to be safe. I get so attached to them after I make them that I don't want to see them break in the freezing temps if they get water in them. I do have one that I'm going to try outside, but it will be on the front porch and not in the rain or snow, so I'm thinking it should be OK. All the others I've stored in buildings that aren't heated, but I'm thinking its more the precip that ruins them than just the cold.

My totems have been outside for the past 3 years and doing fine; sometimes they are completely buried in snow and ice. I haven't had any problems. I love the look of them in snow; very pretty!

I'm in zone 5 so we get lots of cold and snow. I leave my totems outside all winter and so far so good. I use Lexel for my adhesive and make sure they cure completely before going outside. I think that is very important. With Lexel it takes two weeks to cure...probably less with silicon...not sure since I don't use it.

Now my BBs come inside for the winter because they can crack otherwise, depending on what the ball is made of (I guess they are not all made the same). I just store them inside my unheated garden shed. If you are painting them, they should cure for at least 30 days before going outside. If you are doing a mosaic, then probably a week is good.

I have my plate flowers out and two fell down as the ground froze and the wind picked up. Strange its almost like the ground was too rigid and didn't have give. Dh helped me to reinforce the "stems" with rebar. I want to leave them out as I think they will look beauteous and I just don't have the storage!
kathy