Introducing pots of plants or flowers to your home or outdoor space is an easy and affordable instant update. But it’s not just the flowers that can give your space the wow-factor, the pots themselves can make a really striking statement too.
From a simple lick of paint to covering the pots with fabric or lace, these ideas needn’t take long, but you’ll be surprised at the professional results you can achieve with very little effort.
So I’ve rounded up 7 of the most ingenious bang-on-trend ideas to get your creative juices flowing...so, what are you waiting for? Let’s go potty for pots!
Herb Pots
Pic Credit: Brit + co
Can’t tell your thyme from your tarragon? No worries, simply paint the name of each herb on the corresponding pot. Plus hand-painted lettering is everywhere right now, so another trend tick!
1 Take a selection of terracotta pots - you can either paint them with a grey wash, or keep them plain. Use a fine paintbrush and some white paint to write out the herb names - have a practice on a scrap piece of paper first. Treat the paintbrush like a pen to create the joined up sweeping motion of handwriting.
2 Add funky details to each pot with the white paint, either dots, scallops, zigzags or lines around the rim. Then, once the painted pots are dry, simply fill with soil and herbs, then display along the kitchen window. Now you can go all Jamie Oliver by grabbing your fresh herbs as you cook.
Fabric Covered Pots
Pic Credit: The Craftinomican
This is a great project for those of you who love fabric, but are terrified of using a sewing machine.
1 If the fabric you’re using is pale in colour, it’s best to paint your terracotta pot completely white first so the orange colour won’t show through.
2 Once the paint it dry, place the pot on the wrong side of the fabric, wrap it round the pot and cut to size. Make the piece bigger than you need as you can always paste the excess into the pot, and it’s always better to have too much than too little.
3 Apply Modge Podge or PVA glue to a section of the pot then press on the fabric. Keep applying glue around the pot, shaping the fabric as you go.
4 Cut a length of ribbon and attach it to the rim of the pot. You can paint the inside of the pot a matching coloured if preferred.
5 Leave the pot to dry completely before filling it with a house plant, or simply line three up on a shelf and use them as decorative items.
Feeling Ropey Pots
Pic Credit: Woo Hoo Home
For a more rustic look to your pots, simply wrap them with lengths of rope to add texture and apply a stripe of blue paint. This is a great project to cover old pots that have seen better days!
1 Take your old pot - it could be terracotta, plastic, a tin can or an old paint can, this technique works on anything. Starting at the top of the pot, apply some hot glue from a hot glue gun around the rim. Press on one end of a length of rope, wrapping it round pressing it into the hot glue.
2 Continue glueing and wrapping round the pot until you get to the bottom, snip off the excess and glue the end. Once the glue has dried, you could paint a stripe all the way around, either at the base, rim or middle of the pot. You could choose muted shades to tie in with the rustic rope, or opt for something much more bright and daring.
Marbled Pots
Pic Credit: Oh Joy!
Marbling is such a fun way of getting a really funky and unique design on your pots. This technique uses nail varnish to create the marbled effect, rather than inks, but you have to work fast before it dries!
1 Fill a disposable container (bigger than your pot) with room temperature water. Start to pour in your first nail varnish, pouring close to the water so to prevent the varnish from sinking. Add another colour or two, then use a stick to mix the colours, making patterns as you go.
2 Dip the base of a white plastic pot into the water by about 2”, lift out and leave to dry completely. You can use nail varnish remover on any mistakes you make.
3 Finally give the pot a spray with clear matte finishing spray to protect it. You could make holes in the pot and thread through lengths of rope to make them into hanging baskets.
Lacey Trimmed Pots
Pic Credit: A Beautiful Mess
This simple yet stunning way of transforming your pots using lace is a lovely idea for a wedding.
1 Wrap a length of lace trim around the edge of a terracotta pot, overlapping it slightly, then glue in place either using PVA or a hot glue gun. Continue gluing and wrapping lengths of lace round the pot, you can either leave gaps or glue them right next to each other.
2 Try different variations on each pot, sticking the lace vertically on some of the pots. Then use them to display a selection of cacti, like here, or fill with wild flowers and grasses for a more relaxed feel.
Rainbow Ripple Pour Pots
Pic credit: Dilly Dali Art
This is a great project to get the kids involved with as it’s such good fun and doesn’t require much skill! Watch out though, it can get messy!
1 Make sure your work surface (or floor) is well protected before you begin. Place a terracotta pot upside down on either some cardboard, lots of newspaper or a plastic tray. You can raise the pot up from the surface by placing a tin can underneath.
2 Using poster paint or acrylic paint in bottles, squeeze some of the paint over the pot so it oozes over the sides. Then do the same with another colour, then another, then another....the paints will start merging together to create new colours and a wonderful rippled effect.
3 Leave the paint to dry completely before turning the pot the right way up. These make great storage pots for the kids pens and pencils.
Going for Gold Pots
Pic Credit: Miss Renaissance
Metallics are bang on trend right now, as are neon colours so it makes sense to combine the two. Gold leaf has been used here, but you could use metallic spray paint instead.
1 Take four terracotta pots - vary the shapes and sizes as this will make the finished collection more interesting. Prime the pots with a coat of primer and leave to dry.
2 Give each pot a lick of gorgeous bright paint and leave them to dry. Use masking tape to create a triangle design on each pot, then apply some adhesive size to the masked-off area.
3 When the size has gone tacky, press a piece of gold leaf onto the area. Brush off any excess gold leaf with a soft brush. Then carefully peel back the masking tape to reveal perfect gold triangles.
4 Ta-da! You pots are now ready to fill with cool succulents and cacti for indoor use, or if you’d like to put them outside, simply give them a coat of protective varnish.
Tip: Place the pots on a tin can to raise them up, this will make painting them a lot easier and less messy!