Check out the colour added to my garden by turning old rubber rain boots into flower planters!
In an effort to declutter (an impossible goal for me I’m affraid). We found some rubber boots that we no longer needed. Three pairs of wellies we don’t use because the kids outgrew them or we just realized even in the rain we have other footwear options we would rather wear. The patterns on two pairs were really cute and the third pair was a classic old black pair. Why not turn them into something fun!
For this project you will need:
- old boots
- rocks
- sand/dirt mixture
- soil
- flowers (real or artificial)
- drill or screw driver
- spray paint (optional)
Don’t buy new boots for this project. If you don’t have any to upcycle go to the thrift store and look for a pair. They make rain boots in adorable colours and patterns, especially the children’s sizes. Even plain toddler yellow rain boots would look fantastic in the garden. I wish I had saved the girls smallest sizes. They were so adorable and small!
Before you get started, use a wet rag and wipe them clean…especially if you are spray painting them.
If you need to spray paint the boot, of course, do that next. Outdoors on a drop cloth or plastic. Don’t wait to start this project on the hottest day of the year. Our temperature yesterday was rising past 38 degrees Celsius (100.4 degrees Fahrenheit) and the spray paint would not dry! I have never had that happen before…and I have been spray painting things for years!
To get the bottom edge and toe of the boot put your hand right inside and turn it upside down for the second coat of spray paint. Allow to dry completely.
I painted one red and one turquoise. It doesn’t take much spray paint so you can use a colour in a leftover can from another project.
To prepare the boot for some drainage first remove any insoles and then put 3 or 4 holes in the bottom with a drill or screw driver.
The next step is to put a few rocks in the bottom. This will help excess water drain away from the roots and to make it bottom heavy. If you happen to have sand or a mixture of soil and sand add a few inches of that over the rocks.
Then add the soil on top leaving several inches from the top of the boot.
Next add some flowers. I chose petunias because they are so easy to care for and they will fill out the container nicely.
Place the flowers in the top of boot and add soil in any spaces around the plants.
Thoroughly water! Every time you water it, have a look to see if the soil settled. You might need to add more soil. These are unusually tall planters.
Once every other week, add a bit of fertilizer.
Get a whisk or small broom and clean up the boots.
These would look great anywhere in the garden or next to a fence or on the front porch. Wherever you need some colour. I have a bare patch in a garden that looks like it needs a bit of colour.
By dinner time, my daughter looked out the window and said, “what are all those rainboots doing in the garden?” Tee hee hee!
I love to add colour to the garden. Have a look at some of the other posts I have shared to show more ideas for colourful summer projects.