Every holiday season I get lots of requests for quick and easy handmade gift ideas, and this year is no different! I joined together with a list of other talented bloggers to share some handmade holiday gifts. Even cooler, this DIY concrete planter was insanely easy to make and only took me one day! Ready to see how easy this planter was to make with the help of my friends T-Rex Tape? Let’s do this!
How To Make An Easy Concrete Planter
This post is sponsored by T-Rex Tape & contains affiliate links. For my full disclosure policy, click here.
I am obsessed with succulents – they’re just about the only type of plant I can keep alive. So, I wanted to make some easy concrete planters to gift a garden of succulents to some of my friends and family.
Even better, I was able to finish this project in an afternoon (which is great for my tight schedule). This really is a great project for beginner cement-workers! Here’s how I made mine!
What You’ll Need:
Tools
T-Rex Brute Force Tape
Mixing Bucket
Mixing Stick
Hammer
Chisel
Sander/Sandpaper
Rags
Materials
Rapid Set Concrete
1 Large Tupperware Container
1 Smaller Tupperware Container
Vegetable Oil
Water
Concrete Pigment (Optional)
Succulents
The Steps:
1. First thing I did was grease my Tupperware containers with vegetable oil. I lined the inside of the big one and the outside of the small one. The vegetable oil will help the molds release later.
2. Next, I mixed my concrete with water to make a pancake like consistency. I used a rapid set mortar mix with minimal rocks and debris. However, it sets very quickly, so I had to work fast. If you’re not comfortable woking in a 15 minute window, you may want to use something that takes longer to set.
3. I added some powder pigment to the mix to give it more of a blue/slate color.
4. Next, I poured my concrete mixture into the larger container.
5. After shaking the container to even out the concrete, I firmly pressed the smaller Tupperware container into the concrete mold.
6. I did not have a heavy weight that could fit into the small Tupperware and needed something heavy duty to hold the Tupperware container in place. Luckily, I’ve been partnering with T-Rex Tape who sent me their Brute Force Tape recently and it was perfect for this application.
I just added the tape to the smaller container and pulled it firmly over the larger one, making sure to hit all of the major spots. It even stuck to the parts of the Tupperware that were moist from the concrete mixture.
7. After letting the mold sit for about 30 minutes, I removed the tape and the small container from the mix. I used a hammer and a chisel to help release it, and then once it was loose, it popped right out!
8. I then removed the outside container (which came off much easier than the smaller one).
9. One thing I noticed was that the corners of my piece were cracked or missing because of the shape of my containers. So, I used some more concrete to fill them in.
10. After letting everything cure for about an hour, I used a sander and sandpaper ranging from 60 grit to 120 grit to remove the rough edges and knock down the ridge on the piece that was left from the Tupperware. This honestly took longer to do than the concrete took to set.
11. Next, I added my succulents! I was going to add a finish to the concrete, but loved how organic it looked without one.
It’s amazing what you can do with just a few simple items from your shed and your pantry!
Gift giving can still be special without breaking the bank or taking too much time out of a busy schedule.
Even better, this project is great for anyone experimenting with concrete for the first time!
Want to save this project for later? Make sure to Pin It!
Also.. make sure to check out some other creative handmade gift ideas from my talented blogger friends!
Addicted 2 DIY
RemodelaCasa
Jaime Costiglio
Anika’s DIY Life
My Repurposed Life
Ugly Duckling House
House Becoming Home
Can’t wait to see what you guys make this holiday season!
Love this! I attempted my first concrete project last year and failed miserably. 😂This makes me want to give it another shot though…30 minutes to set!?! Awesome!
Sam you may have swayed me to finally make something with concrete. It’s perfect and looks easy enough for this beginner 😉
woohoo Sam!
Your concrete planter looks fabulous. Lots of tips on your tutorial–love it!
pinning!
gail
Your planter is adorable! And I think it’s funny that succulents are the one plant you can keep alive. They’re the one plant I CAN’T keep alive! LOL!
Sam, this is so cute and perfect to give as a gift! I love working with concrete and never even thought about making something like this to give! Love it!
Thank you!
Tupperware forms is a such a great idea I honestly wouldn’t have thought of. Turned out great! I wonder how you make sure to get a concrete mix with minimal rocks and debris?
Thank you! Mortar mixes usually have very little rocks!
I have yet to try a project with concrete, but this totally makes me want to give it a go! Pinned
Great post, this project looks doable, even for a beginner. I think you could make statement planters to go beside the front door that would look great!
This is going on my “Projects to do during Virus Self-Isolation”, it’s a long list! Your instructions & pictures are well-done, simple and easy to follow. I would make two suggestions: drainage holes. Even succulents do better with drainage holes (use cut straws) and Second, curing. I’ve been told to drench the trough (after it’s dried) to allow the bad stuff to leach out.
Yesss! So happy you like this one!
Nice idea and as you said insanely easy to make! I love this rough finish. The only thing I tryed with concrete was some tealight holders and I think the next one will be a concrete planter. 😜 Thanks Sam!
You were right, this cute planter was so easy to make and looks great on the garden steps leading up to my patio. It’s funny, because I paid thousands of dollars for landscaping Victoria and to put the cherry on top all I need is $5 of concrete mix and 20 minutes of time. Now I wonder if this would be even easier if you just used cinder blocks as planters, but I don’t think that would look as nice.