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Friday, May 13, 2011

Simple DIY Planter Boxes



Last month, I found several of these CD storage crates and my local GW.  


They're pretty much a dime a dozen at the thrift shops.  If you're unable to find them there, try your local craft store.  I believe they're only a few bucks in those shops too.

Once you have them in your hot little hands, the next step is to stain them (if they're naked wood).  You'll need to do this so that once you distress the pieces, there'll be something dark to peek through.  I was using Minwax Dark Walnut, but I found a better color, which I'll be using from now on.  It's still Minwax, but it's the Ebony shade.  Anyway, when you do this step, just brush it on with a foam brush and leave the piece to dry for a day or two.  There's no need to formally stain (you know, wiping and then reapplying) them since I'll just be covering it in paint anyway.

After the stain has dried, paint the whole thing in your favorite paint.  Once that's done, sand the piece down and adorn with you favorite little real (or fake!) houseplants.  



paint -  Folk Art in Turquoise


 paint - Folk Art in Fresh Foliage


I think these would be great for a teacher's gift.  Wouldn't it be a sweet gift with some seed packets and some gardening gloves tucked inside?


Linking to:
FFA @ Sassy Sites
Feature Yourself Friday @ Fingerprints on the Fridge 
SNS Special @ Funky Junk Interiors 
Sunday Showcase @ Under the Table & Dreaming 
Think Pink @ Flamingo Toes  
Motivate Me Monday @ Keeping it Simple 
Met Monday @ Between Naps on the Porch 
All Things Inspired @ All Things Heart & Home
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest
Show & Tell Fri @ My Romantic Home 
We Did It Weds @ Sew Much Ado
Under $100 Link Party @ Beyond the Picket Fence 

33 crafty peeps said:

  1. Those look beautiful! I love the colors, great summer colors.

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  2. I absolutely LOVE the green box...super cute!

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  3. These are beautiful! I love the colors!!

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  4. HEL-LO! LOVE these. Love the colors your chose and everything about them. I've never seen boxes like that at my craft stores around here, but I'm sure going to be on the lookout now! :-)
    Happy to be a new follower!
    ~Bec
    www.littlelucylu.com

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  5. P.S. I pinned these on one of my Pinterest pinboards, too! :-)

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  6. Super cute! I'll have to be on the look out for some of these!

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  7. Oh YUMMY COLOURS!!! Your link caught my eye instantly on a linky party!! Great transformation!!

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  8. Very cute idea! I love anything that you can put a plant inside of!

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  9. These are adorable, thanks for sharing.

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  10. Love the colors!
    Visiting you from Sunday Showcase.

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  11. These are really awesome!! I love how you took something plain and boring and made it eye-catching and colorful!

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  12. I love this! I'd like to invite you to post it on Masterpiece Monday at Boogieboard Cottage. The link will be up all week, I hope you can join in. Have a nice week, Mary :O)

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  13. How cute!! I haven't talked to you in a while. I'm catching up on blogging & love what you're doing! JenT

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  14. FANTASTIC!! I love the way they turned out....especially the vibrant colors and the distressing....nice job!! I would love it if you would link this up to my Marvelous Mess party....each week I pick one project to feature on my sidebar!! Here is the link: http://marvelouslymessy.blogspot.com/2011/05/marvelous-mess-13-and-features.html

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  15. These look lovely, the colours are great! You wouldn't believe how difficult these are to find in the UK!

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  16. LOVE these! Especially the green one! Thanks for giving the information on staining, painting, etc.!

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  17. I love them!
    Will try as soon as possible and thank you for sharing all the instructions.

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  18. Very colourful planters! Love them.

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  19. Awesome! I love these and the gardening seed idea is wonderful.

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  20. I love these boxes. I really like the colors you chose. Lovely.

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  21. These are gorgeous - love the colors!

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  22. Adore! The colors are so summery and fun!

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  23. Loving your planters and their colors. I see these at the local Goodwills but never thought of using them as planters! Thanks so much for sharing this at The Shabby Nest!

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  24. Great colors!!! What a great idea!!

    Too cute!!

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  25. Wow, those look so good! I swear I just saw some similar type things at Homesense.

    I love that you can pick your own colours. Very cute!!

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  26. I hope I can find some of these, I haven't in ages! I want to do this!

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  27. love love love these so much!!!

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  28. These colors are fantastic, they make me smile :)! Thanks for sharing.

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