For Briar's second birthday I wanted to give her something handmade that I knew she would love and get lots of imaginative playtime out of. It was also a plus for me that this not be an eyesore - because nothing bothers me more than our house being covered in neon plastic toys. So - my husband and I worked together to make her this adorable little flower box! She can pick the flowers, she can plant the flowers, she can make bouquets - the play possibilities are endless. Who knows, maybe we are raising a little florist!
We got the idea for this project when we were visiting the childrens museum in Phoenix. If you are in the area this place is amazing so check it out! They had a raised garden bed with lots of flowers, "growing," in it. It was huge. Briar LOVED it. She played in the flowers for what seemed like ever!
I just knew she would like a miniature version at home. Here is what you need and how we did it!
Materials:
- 4x4 cut to whatever length you would like your garden box to be
- enough trim to wrap all the way around the top of the box
- paint and stain, just use whatever you already have!
-flowers with a sturdy stem, I got mine at Joanns when they were on sale for 50% off and I had a coupon for 20% my entire purchase! (if you are paying full price for anything at Joanns, you are making a big mistake! coupons people!)
- caulk, this is completely optional and I only used it because I had it laying around the garage
-wood glue
- finish nail gun (if you do not have one of these just use that wood glue!)
-sand paper
-drill
*We do a lot of projects in our house so we were able to use supplies we already had and the only expense we had was buying the flowers, which were only about $10! If you are trying to keep it low cost - raid your scrap pile (or a friends), use paint you already have, buy flowers at the thrift store, and borrow tools if you need to!*
Directions:
1. Cut trim for each side of the 4x4. We have a miter saw so we did mitered corners, but you could also do straight edges if you don't have one.
2. Put a thin line of wood glue on the trim and then attach it to the top of the 4x4. We put ours about halfway on and left the other half sticking up so that the box would have a rim above the, "dirt." If you don't have a nail gun just do a kickin job with the wood glue!
3. Caulk where the trim meets the outside of the 4x4. I did this so that there wouldn't be a gap on the outside of the planter but you could skip this step if you want.
4. Drill holes in the dirt area of the planter for the flowers.
5. Sand all over so that those little fingers don't get any splinters!
6. Stain or paint the, "dirt," a dirt color. We did stain that we had from a different project.
7. Cover up the dirt with tape, plastic, paper, etc and paint the rest of the box a color of your choosin!
When you build a flower box please share pictures with us here! If you have any questions about how to make one of these planter boxes for a little in your life do not hesitate to reach out - I would love to chat with you!
