Ok so it’s no secret that I love a thrifty planter makeover. I can usually be found searching my local thrift store shelves at least once a week. I love the thrill of finding something with good bones and breathing a fresh new life and purpose into it. In this case, a DIY concrete pedestal.
This particular thrifty makeover was a little extra fun simply because I ended up using it for something completely different than plants. If I am being super honest I can barely keep plants alive so having an abundance of planters doesn’t add any value to my life or storage closet so my brain went another direction.
This is what we were staring with. A super basic thrifted planter. Nothing spectacular. It wasn’t jumping off the shelf at me screaming take me home or anything but it was a good, solid little planter that deserved a second chance.
So let me give you a little background on this technique before we jump in. I saw a reel from one of my favorite bloggers and DIY’ers My Vintage Porch and fell in love with the simplicity and quality of faux concrete transformations. I have even tried a different technique of my own using tissue paper to achieve a similar look in the past but if I am being honest I love this method so much more!
If you want to try out this finishing technique for yourself, here is what you need to grab the next time you’re at your local hardware store
Begin by testing a small area of your surface with this method before going all in just to get a feel for the application process. I started dabbing the surface of the planter with a t shirt rag and a small quarter to half dollar sized amount of crack filler on the center of the folded rag.
I repeated this process a couple of times, testing various amounts of crack filler until I found the right amount that left a raised surface behind. There are really a couple of ways you can go about this process. After the first coat of concrete filler there will be small amounts of the original surface still visible.
At this point you can make a decision to go over the surface a second time for a more authentic concrete finish or leave it be. For me, I wanted that heavy concrete look and feel so I chose a second coat, and I am so glad I did!
What really turned this planter into pedestal wasn’t just the finish but simply turning it upside down and styling with one of my favorite candles and candle rings from Roost and Restore Home made all the difference in the world.
