Easy and Cheap Planters

I made these planters for each girl in my Girl Scout troop, as a Girl Scout Bridging party favor:

I started with a vase that looked something like the one below, except there was a curvy wave to the lip. The vases were $.79 at the craft store.

I used FolkArt Enamel paint to add two coats of green to the vase. The paint cost $2.00 for approximately five ounces. Instead of using a standard paint brush, I used a sponge to blot the paint. It created more of a rugged look. Most people would use a sponge paintbrush bought from a store; I used a piece of sponge foam I found under the sink to save on cost.

Next, I used a stencil to add the letter. I tried to tape the stencil to the vase, but the Scotch tape tore the green paint away. I eventually held the stencil on with one hand while painting with the other. I used purple enamel paint, which cost another $2.00.

I used a Q-tip from my bathroom to add the letter. The sponge was too big and kept moving the stencil. After I lifted the stencil, I used a wet Q-tip to move the paint around and clean up areas of purple paint which leaked around the stencil. The wet Q-tip will not lift off the dried green paint, but it will remove the wet purple paint. Be sure to clean up the letter immediately so the paint doesn’t have time to harden. Since the Scotch tape removed some of the green paint, I used a Q-tip to refill the gaps.

Finally, I bought some hearty, in-season flowers. The flowers in the picture are impatiens, and they were $1.08 each. I pressed the flowers into the vase and did not have to add dirt.

I spent a total of $5.87 per girl. The girls loved them. One mom has already mentioned to me that the flowers need to be replanted due to root spreading, but the presentation was priceless. Each girl received a personalized vase, and the plants are compact enough for easy replanting.