DIY Wooden Wall Planters (The Friday Five)

This has been a big week! First, I revealed (finally!) the guest bathroom makeover, and then I showed you how I made the reclaimed wood shelves there. Today, I’m going to show you how I made the DIY wooden wall planters!

And, since it’s Friday, and since I did this project in five steps, it is perfect for today’s Friday Five!

First, let me tell you how this idea came to me. I was inspired by the wooden shadow boxes on the wall in this photo, from Place of My Taste:

I found those wooden shadow boxes at Target.com, but Target.com was out of them and so was every Target in my area! FYI: they are $7 each, plus you still have to paint or stain them.

So then I got to thinking about how I could get the same look but (a) for less and (b) available ASAP! I thought about wooden bowls or trays as an idea, and I headed out to a thrift store.

I found these wooden bowls:

The set of four was … drum roll, please … $3.63! Score! Much better than $7 apiece!

OK, here are the rest of the materials you’ll need to make them:

Materials

I’ve included affiliate links here, which take you directly to the product I used. They cost you nothing, but help me fund the projects and posts you see here. For my full disclosure policy, please click HERE.

• Wooden bowls. Use ones with straight sides and a flat bottom – that way, they’ll hang flush on the wall and hold the planter inside easily.
• Magnetic planters – you can find these HERE.
• Succulents or other small plants.
• Potting soil appropriate for the plants you’re using.
• Small magnets like THESE.
• Hot glue gun or other strong glue (I like using hot glue here because it’s removable)
• Drill with bit for drilling through wood
• Screws
• Wall anchors
• Pencil
• Tape measure

Instructions

(1) Drill a hole in the bowl.

First, as with anything you find at a thrift store (or yard sale or salvage yard), wash the bowls. The ones I found had crayon on one of them and a few other marks on another.

After they are washed and dried, decide where to drill a hole to hang the planter. You want to put the hole near the top of the bowl, in the center of the bowl, to support it best. Mark the hole on the underside of the bowl and drill from the underside – that way, the side that’s showing won’t have any leftover markings or splinters from drilling.

Despite what this picture shows, you should hold the bowl tightly when you are drilling into it. I just didn’t have enough hands to do that and take the photo!

(2) Plant succulents in the magnetic planters.

Plant the succulents (or whatever plants you’re using) in the magnetic planters. Use a potting soil designed for succulents or your particular plant. Water well, and then dry off the outside of the planter.

(3)  Mark where the planter’s magnets will hit the wooden bowl.

A magnet, glued to the bottom of the wooden bowl, is what will hold the magnetic planters in place. So the next step is to mark where the magnets of the planter will hit the bottom of the bowl, so that you know where to glue your magnet.

Put the planter in the bowl the way it will hang and mark the location of the magnets with a pencil on the bottom of the bowl.

(4) Glue the magnet to the bottom of the bowl.

Glue the magnet in the spot you marked on the bottom of the bowl.

Believe it or not, this involves science!

Make sure that, when you glue the magnet in place, the side that attracts the planter’s magnets is face up! Magnets have poles – so you have to make sure that you have the opposite poles facing each other, or the magnets will repel each other and the planter won’t stick!

Hot glue the magnet in place on the bottom of the bowl (as shown in the photo, above).

(5) Hang and enjoy!

Find a screw that’s the size of the hole you drilled and a wall anchor, if you aren’t drilling into studs. Hang the planter on the wall and enjoy!

So, rather than costing $7 per planter (so, times 3 would be $21 plus tax), all three cost me $3.63 plus tax!

Pin it, because you know you’ll want to make ’em later!

To see the finished guest bathroom, please see THIS POST.

To see how I made the reclaimed wood shelves, please see THIS POST.

For more Decor Deals, please click HERE.