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Kels in Wonderland

Kels in Wonderland

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April 21, 2016

DIY Mini Succulents for Under $10

With the exception of my wedding, I’m not an overly crafty person. But, for whatever reason, I had the urge to make something creative today.  So, without much planning at all I marched myself to my local nursery and bought a box of mini succulents and cacti.  Then (again without a plan) I wandered to the thrift store and began a hunt for containers.  After that, the Dollar Store for paint, brushes and other miscellaneous deco.

Thus, I have dubbed today “Succulent Saturday”.

I do love terrariums, especially those filled with air plants that are prettttty hard to kill easy to keep alive, but they are just so damn expensive. The gorgeous ones in my nearest local flower shop are about $25 for a teeny tiny guy, and over $50 for the serious sized ones.

This isn’t a totally reasonable cost for most people, so I played around with the cost and time of making my own.  Let me break it down for you.

1- The Greenery

2

These beauties are from my local flower shop Quince. The 2″ mini succulents are adorable, and I would have bought them for no reason other than that.  There was a broad selection of these bad boys, as well as the mini cacti.

Plants

2″ Mini Succulents – $5 each

2″ Mini Cacti – $6 each

Handful of Moss – $4

Total $35  (5 mini succulents and 1 mini cacti)

2- The Arts & Crafts

1

I purchased one children’s paint kit and 2 bottles of toxin-free safe crafters paint.  For the plant holders I grabbed a set of 3 mini mason jars, and a pack of 2 snap jars with coloured lids.  I matched my paint colours to these, because that’s what I do.

Supplies

2 x Paint – $2

Mason Jars – $1.50

Snap-Lid Jars – $1.50

Bowl + Brush Set – $2

Total $7

 

3 – The Prep

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I tried a few methods of painting the jars. Far left I covered the entire jar, and to be honest, was not super thrilled with how it turned out.  The second purple jar I freehand painted and safe to safe my lines are not straight. The OCD in me is unimpressed with that one. I rotated the first blue one (2nd from the right) in the paint pan and it had a wave effect on the jar.  I like this one. The last blue one (far right) I used painter’s tape to make the edge, and surprisingly, it worked wonderfully.  If I’m being picky – which I am – this is my fave.

Total time = 4-5 hours (15 minutes to paint, ~4 hours to dry)

 

4- The End Result

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Overall, I’m pumped with results of these. Despite the paint imperfections (we’ll just say it adds character) I would feel very comfortable gifting one of these, or swapping it with someone for other goods.  In hindsight, if I were to do this more often, I would absolutely spend more on better quality paint and tape to create fun designs.  I’ll also experiment with paint inside the jar, as I’ve seen that done really well with 1L mason jars.

Total Time = 6 hours (including sourcing the supplies and literally watching paint dry)
Total Cost  = $47 (including tax)
Cost Per Jar = $8

At the end of the day, the cost is $8 Canadian – so $US lol – and was a ton of fun. Definitely worth it for me to do this instead of pay $25 for the same size.  I’ll let you know how the next round goes!

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TAGS:cacticraftsdecorDIYplantssucculentterrarium
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Kelsinwonderland

Kelsi is a former professional athlete with serious wanderlust and an obsession with fonts and all things pizza. This new mom lives in Toronto with her husband and twin babies.

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9 Comments
  • Silvia D
    April 30, 2016

    I used to have many succulents..my son actually love cactus and succulents, has a few in his room!

    Reply
  • Jen L
    April 29, 2016

    Love chicks and hens! Love the unique pots. too.

    Reply
  • Joni W
    April 27, 2016

    I have one succulent. No idea what it’s called. I got it from my sister. It looks like the pointy one in your picture, the almost hidden one.

    Reply
  • kristen visser
    April 27, 2016

    omg i love these! so easy and fun to do! I love little plants like this and then to dress up the vase makes it that much cuter

    Reply
    • Kelsinwonderland
      kristen visser
      April 28, 2016

      Thanks!! It was honestly so easy, and is such a crowd pleaser for gifts 🙂

      Reply
  • Andrea Amy
    April 27, 2016

    This looks like it would even be a great little project to do with the kids 🙂 They look awesome, and way more affordable than my little cactus garden from the florist shop 🙂 Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Kelsinwonderland
      Andrea Amy
      April 28, 2016

      I think this would be awesome to do with kids! Let me know how it turns out if you decide to try it. Thanks for reading 🙂

      Reply
  • Shaleeza Jones
    April 24, 2016

    i love these! they turned out great!

    Reply
    • Kelsinwonderland
      Shaleeza Jones
      April 25, 2016

      Thanks, Shaleeza! They were super fun to make – I’m doing some more today lol

      Reply

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