• Home
  • Meet Kelly
  • My House
  • Contact

Kelly Elko

Love where you live - inspired decorating ideas

  • Eclectic Homes
  • Projects
    • My Projects
    • FREE Printables
    • Garden
    • Recipes
    • Tips & Tricks
    • Organization
  • Decorate
    • My House
    • Decorating
    • Outdoors
    • Christmas
    • Fall
    • Summer
    • Spring
    • Tablescapes
  • Life
    • Travel
    • Musings
  • Shop

A Dozen Unique Out of the Pot Planters

April 18, 2013  Garden | Uncategorized

Looking for creative planters? Here are a doze unique out of the pot planters that are sure to wow!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

You know I have a love affair with unique planters!

Here are some of my favorites and here’s to getting our hands dirty.

An armchair planter – all that’s missing is the ottoman!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Everything including the kitchen sink in these flowers planted in an old sink.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Forget dishpan hands – turn that washtub into a tree planter – oh yes!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Only Funky Junk Interiors would think to turn an old Mix Master into a planter!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Forget the tire swing – how about tire planters!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

I can smell the burgers … I mean the flowers on the grill.  Turn that grill into a planter like Cottage at the Crossroads did.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Who needs a bubble bath when they can have a bathtub planter!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Forget peddling and prop that bike against a tree and plant flowers in the basket like French Country Cottage did.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Vintage screen door trellis is such a fun focal point in the garden.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Turn that shovel upside down and turn it into a trellis for your favorite climber like Cottage in the Oaks did.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

An antique gas fireplace as a planter!

You’ll never believe what Beth from Unskinny Boppy paid for this beauty and you’ve got to see the rest of her fabulous mantel that goes along with it!

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

And of course my dresser planter wants in on the fun.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

My mop bucket planters say no to cleaning and yes to enjoying the garden.

12 Unique Planters - think outside the pot! kellyelko.com

Here’s to putting our fingers in the dirt and coming up with some unique ways to show off our plants.

What’s the most unusual thing you’ve ever used as a planter?

Sign up to get Kelly Elko's latest posts delivered right to your inbox
Your information will never be shared or sold to a 3rd party.

Share this Post!

1518 shares
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email
« Previous: A Spring Surprise in Romantic Homes
Next: I Scored at the Thrift Store – Vintage Plaque (and a vacation detour)! »

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comments

  1. kirby carespodi

    April 18, 2013 at 5:53 am

    I’ve got some to share this summer!

    Reply
  2. Jayne

    April 18, 2013 at 6:21 am

    Gorgeous collection, I love the shovel and the old screen door 🙂

    Reply
  3. Sue

    April 18, 2013 at 6:52 am

    What great ideas! I must confess, the bathtub is my favorite!

    Reply
  4. Mary Alice Patterson

    April 18, 2013 at 6:53 am

    Such creativity!! Love that screen door trellis.
    Mary Alice

    Reply
  5. [email protected]

    April 18, 2013 at 6:55 am

    Great ideas! The moss covered chair is amazing!

    Reply
  6. Heidi @ Decor & More

    April 18, 2013 at 7:16 am

    Ok, the moss chair is a little creepy to me, but I’m in awe of the vision there! Great post, Kelly — have a flea market to hit on Saturday morning, so now I’m armed with inspiration!!
    xo Heidi

    Reply
  7. Susan

    April 18, 2013 at 7:39 am

    OH! It makes me cringe to see the beautiful bathtub and dresser used as a planter!

    Reply
  8. Karah @ thespacebetweenblog

    April 18, 2013 at 7:57 am

    The bike with the basket planters is so pretty!!!

    Reply
  9. Jane @ Cottage at the Crossroads

    April 18, 2013 at 8:04 am

    Hi Kelly,
    Thanks for including our old grill that we turned into a planter. It’s still sitting in our flower garden, waiting for a little freshening up this spring! So many great ideas here. I can’t help but look at things now in a whole new way!

    Reply
  10. nancyeileen

    April 18, 2013 at 9:23 am

    Now I know exactly what to do with my grandfathers old screen door.
    I LOVE these ideas, thanx so much for the lovely inspiration!

    Reply
  11. Shari @ Turnstyle Vogue

    April 18, 2013 at 9:28 am

    I admit – I am pretty boring when it comes to planters. I go the traditional route. I’ll have to live vicariously through you and your finds. Guess I better fasten my seat belt! 🙂

    Reply
  12. Cynthia

    April 18, 2013 at 9:44 am

    What great ideas full of inspiration. Thanks.

    Cynthia

    Reply
  13. Jules

    April 18, 2013 at 9:45 am

    I love all these ideas! I currently have an attack of the dreaded little white fly in my yard. Once I get rid of those pests you can be sure that I will use this post as inspiration… I have my mother in law’s metal baby buggy… Can you imagine how cute that is gonna be with ivy and petunias? I can’t wait!!! Love people who think outside of the “window” box! xoxo jules

    Reply
  14. Thistle

    April 18, 2013 at 9:48 am

    LOL! I love that chair! With my luck….my kids would totally sit on it!

    Great inspiration today!
    karianne

    Reply
  15. Margaret

    April 18, 2013 at 9:57 am

    In various places within my yard I have an old school desk with moss growing out of the top, a wheelbarrow, some old rubber boots and a workboot, various old pots – the cooking kind, I mean and yes, I actually have a bathroom sink on a pedestal filled with and surrounded by flowers. Oh, I almost forgot a couple of washtubs, too! It’s very eclectic!

    Love these pics!

    Reply
  16. Melissa @ DaisyMaeBelle

    April 18, 2013 at 10:21 am

    What a great collection. I have an old shovel that is about to become a trellis! Life to the full! Melissa

    Reply
  17. vel

    April 18, 2013 at 11:26 am

    OMG, these are all awesome! I can’t decide which one is my favorite! That arm chair planter truly rocks as well as the mixer and tires!!!!! Love it! All I have to do now is try not to kill the plants once I find a unique planter! Ha! Have a “black thumb” you know! 🙂

    Reply
  18. Daune | Cottage in the Oaks

    April 18, 2013 at 11:38 am

    Thanks, Lovely Lady for including my shovel trellis! I absolutely adore the chair……it might be the next thing in our flower beds. =) We’ve also used an old headboard/footboard and planted within the frame. We called it our flower bed. {har. har.}

    Reply
  19. Beverly

    April 18, 2013 at 11:46 am

    What great planters. It is so much fun to take something and turn it into a planter. I am always trying to do that. Your dresser is awesome and I would not have thought to use an old mixer as a planter. The others are great too.
    Have a wonderful weekend,
    Bev
    @ Eclectic Red Barn

    Reply
  20. Funky Junk Interiors

    April 18, 2013 at 1:05 pm

    Sweet collection Kelly! You make me want to get out there and pull some weeds! 🙂 Thanks so much for including my mixmaster idea!

    Donna

    Reply
  21. Christine

    April 18, 2013 at 1:08 pm

    LOVE LOVE LOVE…

    Reply
  22. Marty Walden

    April 18, 2013 at 1:22 pm

    These are cute enough to actually make me want to go outside and plant! My husband would faint 🙂

    Reply
  23. Sherry

    April 18, 2013 at 3:04 pm

    What beautiful planting ideas, Kelly! I have a couple of old chairs I’m wanting to turn into growing yard art myself. I love the bicycle and your buckets up the steps are so sweet too. I am so ready to get my hands dirty…I can barely wait. Then after we can sit and admire our handy work while drinking that margarita!!! 😉

    Reply
  24. Nana Diana

    April 18, 2013 at 3:34 pm

    Love the planter ideas, Kelly. I do have an old bicycle that I plant kind of like that. I REALLY love the one with the galvanized pieces in the tree. xo Diana

    Reply
  25. Kerry

    April 18, 2013 at 4:01 pm

    Oh I just love the bicycle baskets and the old screen door trellis! So cute! I have a couple enamel colanders that are waiting for petunias. But here in Minnesota we are in a blizzard warning! My poor robins! There’s a couple inches of snow on my garden! Thinkin cozy fire and chick flicks on tv kind of afternoon….

    Reply
  26. [email protected]

    April 18, 2013 at 6:01 pm

    Oh my goodness! They’re indeed unique!

    Reply
  27. Leena Lanteigne

    April 18, 2013 at 7:31 pm

    So, so cute! I love the grill and the chair is fantastic! Also loving the mixer! Really, they’re all fabulous! Hugs, Leena

    Reply
  28. kay

    April 18, 2013 at 7:43 pm

    Love the unusual planters. One spring/summer I used little girl’s kitchen playthings, i.e., Easy Bake Oven, kitchen sink, refrigerator, doll carriage, highchair, wagon, hard plastic sizeable toys picked up at thrift stores.

    Reply
  29. Smallgood

    April 18, 2013 at 9:17 pm

    We’ve done galvanized tubs and a bike. I love some of these other ideas. The blender is too funny, but the grill is my absolute favorite.

    Reply
  30. Jesse B @ Scout & Nimble

    April 18, 2013 at 10:56 pm

    Love all of these ideas…but I am really obsessing over the pretties in the baskets. I have seen so much of it lately and they always look so unique. I wish this “frost” weather would hurry up and get behind us so I can get out there and plant! Jesse @ Scout & Nimble

    Reply
  31. KMcG73

    April 20, 2013 at 6:22 am

    Thanks Kelly – I about fell off my chair when I saw my washtub on the tree photo! I’ve posted on Hometalk, but that’s my first time seeing something of mine picked up in a blog – words can’t describe how wicked awesome that feels!!! Thanks again!

    Reply
  32. Barbara

    April 20, 2013 at 11:07 pm

    What great ideas! Your dresser planter is a great example of thinking outside the ‘POT”! Very fun!
    Cheers!,
    Barbara

    Reply
  33. Karen

    April 21, 2013 at 1:21 am

    Great minds think alike! I am cooking up something to share soon that I used as a planter. That chair planter is amazing!

    Reply
  34. Julie

    April 22, 2013 at 10:08 am

    That grill is so cute…love the green. All of them, very clever.

    Reply
  35. Carol T aka 1HotGran

    April 22, 2013 at 1:30 pm

    What a great post! Love them all, made me smile and the mixer made me laugh out loud since I suck at baking it would be a greater use for mine!

    Reply
  36. Olive

    April 23, 2013 at 8:23 pm

    I have used old aluminum light covers from the 60’s as planters. I am ashamed that I have an old claw foot tub at our old house in the yard empty. Love your blue chest. Olive

    Reply
  37. Hope @ Fairhope Supply Co.

    April 23, 2013 at 8:54 pm

    I once used a small crystal bowl that was shaped like a basket with a handle to plant a small version of ivy. My Mother in Law had a conniption when she saw it. I thought it was cute on my coffee table, and it didn’t hurt a thing.

    You have an inspiring collection!

    Reply
  38. Keeping It Cozy

    April 24, 2013 at 10:51 pm

    Great post! Love your buckets on your steps…

    Reply
  39. [email protected] Boppy

    July 11, 2013 at 1:47 pm

    Love these ideas Kel!

    Reply
  40. [email protected] Direction

    July 12, 2013 at 10:46 am

    LOL…These are so crazy! I love ’em!

    Reply
  41. Sarah

    March 30, 2015 at 11:38 pm

    The most unusual thing I’ve used as a planter is an antique Japanese toilet. It’s a rectangular trough about 24 inches long by 12 inches wide. It’s white with blue designs sort of a delph pattern. It doesn’t have a bottom on it, so I built a cedar box to set it in. It’s quite pretty all planted up!

    Reply
    • Kelly @ Eclectically Vintage

      March 31, 2015 at 11:07 am

      That sounds fabulous Sarah!

      Reply
  42. sharon

    May 7, 2017 at 9:34 pm

    Hi. I just love these ideas. I’m always looking for new ,easy & cheap outdoor ideas. Thanks.

    Reply
  43. Julie

    February 21, 2018 at 7:52 pm

    Love your planters. Gave me many great ideas. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Kelly Elko

      February 22, 2018 at 6:57 pm

      Glad you got some inspiration – happy gardening!

      Reply
  44. Fedup

    May 13, 2019 at 9:40 am

    Don’t ruin irreplaceable antiques for a trend

    Reply
    • Kelly Elko

      May 14, 2019 at 12:53 pm

      LOL – what about a falling apart piece of furniture. To each their own – basic bitch

      Reply
  45. Jeanine

    May 14, 2019 at 1:19 pm

    Thank you for the fresh ideas. My mom used her old green grill for her strawberry plants some twenty years ago. What is old is new again. I found a bed pan in the basement of our old house. It’s getting flowers in it.

    Reply
    • Kelly Elko

      May 16, 2019 at 5:02 pm

      LOL – I love the bedpan as a planter idea! It would make a cute birdbath too!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Think Outside the Pot - My Summer Porch - Kelly Elko says:
    April 25, 2021 at 8:03 am

    […] Dozen Out of the Pot Planters […]

    Reply

KELLY

About / Contact / Press
facebook twitter instagram google pinterest snapchat

Join me as I decorate my 100 year old home, scour thrift stores, create pretty things, putter in my peony and hydrangea filled garden, and mix up a mean cocktail all with a touch of sarcasm and a side of bacon - Cheers!



More About Kelly

Love where you live by mixing high and low, new and old to create a home that shows off your personality. My mantra ... simple projects equals more time for cocktails!
Subscribe for Email Updates:

Get in Touch

facebook twitter instagram google pinterest snapchat

I'd love to hear from you:
[email protected]

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · KellyElko All rights reserved. Site by WordPress Barista

Copyright © 2023 · KellyElko - 2016 on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Reject
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Sign up to get Kelly Elko's latest posts delivered right to your inbox
Your information will never be shared or sold to a 3rd party.
1518 shares