CRAFTS

Like many, my interest in garden books and catalogs peaks as the crocuses herald spring. While plotting color schemes and deciding what annuals to plant this year, I discovered a new book, The Practical Guide to Container Gardening , by Susan Berry and Steve Bradley, published by Storey Books.

In addition to answering down-to-earth gardening questions, it includes a brief, but very useful, section on decorating plant containers. The publishers have granted permission to reprint some ideas for decorating containers.

These simple techniques are a wonderful ways to easily add color and a patina to your pots. The finished, personally decorated contains will brighten up your own house and gardens. Filled with seasonal plants, they make wonderful gifts throughout the garden season.

Decorating Containers

There are many ways to brighten up containers, or to change their appearance to suit a particular scheme. You can opt for simple painting, using either flat emulsion and matt varnish for a non-glossy finish, or oil-based paint for a shiny appearance. Painting will help to transform disparate containers into a unified scheme, by using a range of toning colors or different shades of the same color.

If you wish, you can mix your own paint shades by adding artist's oil colors to oil-based paints, and acrylics to water-based paints. You usually need only a very little of the artist's oils or acrylics to color the paint, so proceed very cautiously and mix the colors first with a little white paint before adding to the whole tin. You can paint the entire pot, or you can coose to decorate it with surface patterning. Varnish protects the paint.

Painting Containers

You can achieve attractive and original results by hand-painting bought containers. Either paint the entire pot in one uniform shade or apply two or more colors in a geometric design. Stripes are particularly easy to create and can look very effective. For an even finish, use masking tape as a guide; for a random appearance, paint the stripes roughly by eye -- the rather wavy lines you create have a lively, decorative appeal. There is a good range of colors suitable for painting containers. The best colors tend to be those with white or black added.

Weathering a Pot

Most terracotta pots look more attractive when they have been weathered. You can speed up the natural weatheriing process by painting the surface of the pot with a layer of yogurt, which will attract the growth of algae and lichen.

Coat the pot with a thickish layer of yogurt and leave outside to dry for a week or so before planting it up. It will gradually acquire an attractive green patina.

See what you've missed If you've enjoyed this project, don't miss our crafts archive with projects including: You've Got Mail transforming an old shutter into a letter holder Bath Oils and Perfumed Skin Oils an economical beauty treatment Pressed Flowers and what to do with them Gift Tags and Wrap the perfect touch for that special gift and much more....

Return to top