recommendation: container garden, part 4 of 4 - where to plant

Part 4: Where to plant?
(Find Part 1, What to plant, here)
(Find Part 2, How to plant, here)
(Find Part 3, How to pretty up the pots, here)

This past weekend I finished up my project and boy oh boy am I happy with the result! After all the planning, potting, painting and pondering, I realized I had to do something more with my pots than just let them sit in a pile on the deck. It looked a little messy. Hubby and I were at Meijer getting a trellis for the side of the house and he pointed out the store's genius way of displaying their flowers on sale. And so simple! Wood planks and cinder blocks. That was IT. Some displays had a built rack for hanging plants too but the only extra requirement was 3 planks and some nails.

After days of researching folding plant stands that were turning up beautiful but $100 (pretty, no?), I knew I HAD to do this project. I lucked out because I was able to save on wood costs because my parents had a bunch of old flooring in the basement. If you were to do this on your own, decide how big you want it to be and Home Depot or Lowes will cut the wood for you so its the perfect size for your space. Wood will be about $2-5 each plank so up to $50 for the project but I'm positive you can find cheaper wood somewhere - lumber yard? Yard sale? Side of the road? Look around. Cinder blocks were $1 each, so for me, the project cost $12. How?!?!

I feel like the project was pretty self explanatory - stack 4 cinder blocks on each side, put the planks across, stack 2 cinder blocks on each side in front, put planks across. Done. You can paint it, stain it, or just let it be as is. I took the three extra pieces of wood and stood two up in the cinder block slots and nailed one (with 3 nails on each side) across to hang lights or hanging plants. (And I did this whole project while hubby was taking a nap, GO ME!)

Here are my before, inspiration, and after pics! Enjoy!

BEFORE:

INSPIRATION:

AFTER:

Hope you enjoyed this series! I can't wait for things to start growing, its so satisfying knowing that you did it yourself! Happy Spring/Summer and have a fun Memorial Day weekend!

recommendation: container garden, part 3 of 4 - how to pretty up the pots

Part 3: How to pretty up the pots?
(Find Part 1, What to plant, here)
(Find Part 2, How to plant, here)

I've been on the hunt for cheap containers! This was a project I was excited about but I wanted to keep it inexpensive. I had a lot of leftover pots from last year but needed even more this year. I found two GIANT faux wooden pots (they are metal) at Salvation Army for $8 each. A steal considering pots of that size at Home Depot were $25+. I bought three lime green plastic pots at Home Depot. Other places I saw pots at great prices were: Meijer and The Dollar Store (not sure how good they actually are, but price may be worth it). I originally bought some at Kmart but later returned as I realized their prices actually weren't great and Meijer was less expensive.

My plan was originally to get tons of pots and spray paint them lime green but honestly, sometimes its just not worth the effort.

The price to buy them already green at Home Depot was worth it (they are plastic) vs the price of buying terra cotta pots and spray painting them - the terra cotta color plastic is the same price as the green. And also I was a little nervous about committing to lime green for ALL of my pots. The brown pots are fine, why paint over them? I did however buy some glossy white spray paint just in case I change my mind as white is a little easier to stick with.

Boring or classic? I used it on two terra cotta pots from my grandma's collection and some old izzy bottles (vases for outdoor space). No picture of this (yes, I am too lazy to walk outside right now) but the pics in the linked tutorial are close, mine just didn't come out as milky because I used gloss paint vs satin. As always, spray paint rules: don't spray paint in a windy spot, always put down a tarp or newspaper, wear a mask or bandana, gloves and spray paint comfort grip are helpful!

Spray painting done, plants planted, what's next? Plant markers!

I found colored popsicle sticks at a garage sale, 100 for 50 cents. Spray painted with some chalkboard paint, used Galaxy Markers (markers that write on dark paper or surfaces, they are like paint markers) to write the plant and poof, instant (and adorable) markers! I had so much fun making them I have a ton extra now (I might have been a little spray paint crazy that day), so I'm thinking about posting some on Etsy next week!! Why not?

Here are some other pictures from the spray paint and garden marker project, enjoy!

I know the question you are all dying to ask... what are those wood planks under the pots? Well... Next up - where to put the pots...stay tuned!