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How to turn anything into a planter

This tutorial is quite simple, but that’s the beauty of it! This method makes it easy to turn just about anything into a planter.

What should I make into a planter?

Here are some fun ideas for objects you can make into a planter:

• Vintage canister
• Vintage kettle or teapot
• Thrifted bucket or basket
• Pitcher
• An old shoe (can’t you just picture a vine growing out of a neat old boot?)
• Crock or cooking pot
• Ironstone tureen
• An upside down hat
• A faux pumpkin (top removed)
• A vintage dresser or sewing table drawer (removed from the table)

When you’re choosing your vessel, keep in mind that you will need to water your plant. You can certainly remove the inner plastic tub each time you water, but that may be a bit of a hassle. You will want to choose something that will not be badly affected by a little moisture.

Supplies

Here are the supplies you’ll need to turn your objective of choice into a planter:

• “Planter” of choice – see above for ideas
• Flexible plastic container that fits inside your planter (e.g. butter/margarine container, cool whip, etc.)
• Plant saucer / water tray that fits inside your planter (like these)
• Sharp scissors, knife, screwdriver, or other tool to puncture holes in plastic
• Potting soil and scoop
• A plant (I used pothos – you can read about how to propagate pothos here)
• Water

Instructions

1. Make sure your plastic container fits inside your desired planter.

2. VERY CAREFULLY puncture several holes in the bottom of the plastic container. I made 3 holes. Use whatever tool/method feels safest and most comfortable for you and always apply pressure down and away from yourself! Do this at your own discretion.

3. Place the plant saucer/water tray in the bottom of your planter.

4. Fill the plastic container with some potting soil, add your plant, and top off with more soil.

5. Give the plant a good drink of water! I like to give it a drink, let it rest a few minutes, then water it again.

6. Place the plastic tub/plant in the planter and enjoy!

I hope you found this simple tutorial fun and inspiring! I’d love to hear about the items you have turned into planters! Drop me a comment below!

Blessings,
Melissa

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Pothos is, by far, my favorite houseplant! It is beautiful, easy-going, and so simple to propagate!

I have pothos in nearly every room of my home. It is the one plant I know will survive under my care (I’ve seen the demise of many houseplants, unfortunately).

Here are 3 reasons why I love Pothos and think you will too:

1. Pothos is beautiful and comes in a bunch of varieties.

From solid colors to variegated, there are quite a few types of pothos and they are all beautiful! My favorites (and probably the most prevalent in my home) are “Golden Pothos” and “Marble Queen.”

2. Pothos is easy-going, resilient, and adapts to its environment.

Though it does best in bright, indirect sunlight, pothos can also thrive in moderate to low light. I have pothos everywhere from my bright, sunny kitchen to my moderately lit bedroom to my dim bathroom. It does well in all of those locations! Just be sure not to place pothos in harsh, direct sunlight as it can damage the leaves.

Also, whenever I forget to water my pothos and it starts to look a little droopy (which is inevitable sometimes – life happens!), it always perks right back up after watering. I generally water my pothos about once a week, allowing the soil to dry out in-between waterings.

3. Pothos is super easy to propagate (which means free additional plants!).

Pothos is ridiculously easy to propagate! Mine grow really quickly, so I’m always trimming off sections (giving them a “haircut” as we like to say) and propagating the cuttings. You can use your rooted cuttings to fill a new pot or to add fullness to your existing plant to give it a healthier appearance.

How to propagate pothos:

1. Trim a length of vine and cut it into smaller sections, being sure to keep one or two leaves per section and the stem of each cutting long enough to reach down into a glass of water.
2. Put your cuttings in a tall glass of water and set it by a sunny window (out of harsh direct light).
3. In just a few weeks (generally 3-4) you’ll see roots form! Plant in soil.

One important thing to note is that pothos is moderately toxic when ingested, so be sure to keep it out of reach of small children and pets who might try to eat it!

There you have it! Do you love pothos too? Let me know in the comments below!

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Blessings,
Melissa

I’ve wanted a space that was completely my own where I could create beautiful things and dream up my next project…

Think along the lines of Miss Mustard Seed – how she has a studio that’s a mix of woods and whites, airy yet grounded, vintage touches all over… it encourages one to dream up a project. I wanted something like that.

As I have an Etsy shop, I knew I also wanted one section of my studio to assist me in packaging orders. This brings us to the first installment of my studio makeover!

The kick in the pants I needed to start happened when I was approached by a company, Garage Royalty, to come up with a creative way to use their products outside of the typical garage setting. At once I knew it would be perfect for my Etsy packing station / workbench. I love the flexibility of the system – it’s so easy to move things around as my needs change and holds all my packing tools nicely! Plus, it is reminiscent of white shiplap which fits in perfectly with my vintage vibe.

And who says it has to just be for tools?! As you can see, I had a lot of fun decorating it with everything from vintage books and plates to my homemade “Market” sign! (I’ll link all the resources at the bottom of this post for you!)

Around the same time, I found this vintage sideboard on Facebook Marketplace to use as my workbench. I’ll be writing a post soon about how I cleaned it up, along with some tips for refurbishing antiques.

For my space to have the desired feel, I really wanted something besides bare cement under my feet. For a while I had a large thrifted rug in this area, but it had seen better days and was adorned by everything from water stains to crayon from my toddler. I wanted something that felt more upscale and that covered from wall to wall.

I thought about simply painting the floor and trying to stencil it, but wasn’t convinced the outcome would be very good – plus, as much as I like DIY projects, my time and energy are definitely worth something! My pregnant body can only handle so much… So one day when I was shopping at Target I stumbled upon these peel and stick tiles – a lovely light bluish-green with a vintage style pattern! I was in love!

Admittedly I’m not finished tiling my whole area yet – I’m about halfway done because there’s so much stuff on the other side to shuffle around. However, these tiles went down very quickly and easily. I made sure to thoroughly sweep & vacuum, mop, then let the cement dry completely before laying them and tapping them down with a rubber mallet. PLEASE NOTE: the company recommends painting the cement with latex paint first. I chose not to do this, at my own risk, but please be sure to read their instructions and decide what is best for your space!

I’m thrilled with how it’s all turning out and I can’t wait to start the next phase of this makeover! Items left to do include:

• Finish installing floor
• Paint and Wallpaper Wooden Display Cabinet for Dish Collection
• Paint Freestanding Work Table & Add Storage Underneath
• Find Comfortable Seating
• Hang Artwork

I hope you’ll join me as I continue this process! We’re also in the midst of redoing our master bedroom, so it’s all the projects all at once!

Resources:

Garage Royalty CrownWall System

Peel and Stick Floor Tiles

Hanging Storage Baskets

Large Storage Baskets (Sold as set online, individually in store.)

Vintage Flowers (I made them into a swag)

Blank Sign Template

Small Faux Plant

I don’t know why, but there’s something about a New Year that makes me want to declutter the house. Maybe it’s packing up all the Christmas decor. It was so cozy and inviting when we first put it up, but after a few weeks it always begins to feel a little heavy and I’m ready for the space to be able to breathe.

Here are a few areas – both big and small – that I like to declutter:

Confession: I have more clothing than I actually wear. Why? Probably because I hold onto things that I “might fit into again one day” as well as items that “just need the right shirt to go with it” (even though I don’t currently have one).

Because of this, I’ve found it difficult to pick out something to wear even though my closet is filled with clothes. What I’ve started doing is this:

I turn all my hangers backwards (hooking it on the bar from behind). Then whenever I actually wear something I hang it back up the right way after washing. (If you just try it on & hang it back up, turn it the wrong way – you haven’t actually worn it!) That way I can see what I’ve actually worn in the last 6 months or year! It’s been quite eye-opening for me.

I know many people have started using “capsule wardrobes” where they have just a few main pieces that are interchangeable with all the others. This results in fewer articles of clothing with more options. I’m not quite ready to do that yet, but I know it works for a lot of people.

My theory is to only keep the pieces that Fit, Flatter, and make me Feel good.

This goes for shoes too.

My intentions in stocking up are good – really they are. But sometimes things just go unnoticed and unused and expiration dates come and go without me noticing. Now is a great time to sort through your canned goods and your freezer and pick out the stuff that’s no longer fit for consumption.

Move older (but still good) cans towards the front so you’ll be sure to use them. Make a list of what is in your freezer that needs to be used up and design your next few weeks of meal plans centered around using up those ingredients. Epicurious.com is a great website (and free app) where you can search for recipes by ingredient. Use their advanced search option to sort by cuisine, cooking method, and more. Allrecipes.com also has this feature.

While I do use cookbooks, many of my recipes get printed from the internet. I like to keep them all in a binder using page protectors. This way they are easily accessible and I can make notes in them with a good old fashioned pen. The tomato sauce splatters on the pages just add character – ha!

Every now and then I go through and clear out the recipes we got burned out on and replace them with new favorites. Going through the binder is also a great way to remind myself of recipes we haven’t had in a while – “oh yeah, I should make that again!”

You know that bottle of stovetop cleaner you bought that you thought would be all that…and it wasn’t? Might it still be residing under your kitchen sink? Now’s a great time to clean out the cleaning supplies and only keep the items you actually use. Just be sure to discard items appropriately according to package instructions and warnings.

This is where all the stuff goes when we don’t know what else to do with it. It’s where our giveaway pile resides. It’s where our seasonal not-currently-in-use stuff goes. It’s where all the “let’s keep this just in case” stuff goes. Can you relate?

Because this is where the random stuff we’ve forgotten about goes, it’s usually the easiest for us to purge (and make more room for stuff from upstairs – it’s a cycle, haha). Here are a few things to look for in your basement/attic:

• Empty Boxes
  • I don’t know about you, but I often keep the packaging for small appliances, kitchen gadgets, toys, pots & pans, etc. While these can be useful if you’re planning to move, chances are you probably won’t need them otherwise – and they take up a lot of room! Time to recycle!
• Outgrown Kids’ Toys or Clothes
  • Even if you think there’s a chance you might have more kids some day, it’s good to weed through it all. Items tend to accumulate beyond what we actually need. That little outfit that was cute but never got worn because the fabric was weird feeling? Let it go – you probably won’t use it for the next child either.
• Seasonal Decor
  • Working on putting away Christmas decor? As you put things away, take note of what you didn’t use this year and ask yourself if you’ll really use it next year. If not, it might be time to let it go. Apply liberally to any holiday or season.
• “Guilt” Items
  • Have you ever received gifts that really weren’t your style? Did you return them, donate them, or are they still in your storage tubs because you felt guilty about getting rid of them? Don’t feel guilty! Appreciate the thought the person put into it, but let it go! It’s a win-win – you’ll have more room in your house and someone else will have a great find at the thrift store! Chances are, the gift giver will never know, but even if it gets brought up in conversation, show gratitude but be honest. It happens and most people will understand.
  • Similarly, if you have items passed down to you from family members, but those items mean absolutely nothing to you (or worse, they bring back bad memories), don’t let them weigh you down. First offer them to other family members who might appreciate having them, but if there are no takers, consider donating or selling the items. If you want to remember an item, take a picture of it before donating.

Finally, if you’re having difficulty deciding if you should get rid of something, try asking yourself these four questions:

If not, and it’s not an essential item you must have on hand (please don’t get rid of that spare tire for your car!) then get rid of it!

Do you enjoy decluttering or do you dread it? Let me know below!

One of my favorite cozy winter activites is a nice hot shower. Even if I’ve taken my usual quick shower in the morning, sometimes I’ll indulge in an extra one right before bed just to relax, unwind, and warm myself before crawling under the covers in our chilly bedroom. (Did I mention our room is the coldest in the house? It’s about 5 degrees colder than the other rooms because it has 3 exterior walls and is on the corner of the house, catching all the cold wind whipping up the hill. Brr…)

As an extra special treat, I buy a bundle of fresh eucalyptus from Trader Joe’s and hang it from the shower head! It’s only $3.99 for a decent bouquet. Sorry if you don’t have a Trader Joe’s – a lot of people have told me they wish they had one closer!

Benefits of eucalyptus in the shower:

• The steam of the shower releases the oils from the leaves, resulting in a wonderfully soothing aromatherapy experience.
• Having fresh greenery in the shower is visually calming and refreshing.
• Eucalyptus steam can help with wintertime colds and congestion.*

To hang it in the shower:

• Remove all packaging from the eucalyptus.
• Wrap a long piece of kitchen twine several times around the base of the bouquet and tie with a knot.
• Tie it to the top of the shower head neck so that that end is sticking up above the pipe (see photo). This helps keep it out of the stream of water. You will need to loop the twine around the shower pipe and back around the eucalyptus to achieve this height.

A few tips:

• Try to keep the leaves out of the direct stream of water – this will keep them fresh longer and prevent them from getting moldy.
• Mine usually lasts about a week. Remove it when it starts to dry out or sooner if it starts to grow mold.

Please note that eucalyptus should be used carefully:

• The oils should not be ingested by anyone – they can cause seizures or be fatal if consumed. Keep the leaves out of the reach of children and pets.
• Eucalyptus steam may not be right for everyone, especially young children or those who have a history of asthma or breathing problems.
• *I am not a medical professional. Please use your own discretion and/or consult a doctor if you are unsure how these tips will affect you based on your health history.

All that being said, I find eucalyptus in the shower to be a delightful winter treat and I hope it’s one you enjoy as well!

It’s so important to take time to care for ourselves – even if that’s just by incorporating little things into our usual tasks that make them all the more enjoyable and rejuvenating!

Happy New Year to you all! Please let me know if you try this and how you like it!

I enjoy thinking about what people like and trying to come up with things they could use to make life easier or more fun. Unless we’re talking about my brother – he’s the most difficult person in the world for whom to buy, so I always get him fun socks plus whatever extra ideas my mom has. Ha! I can write that because I’m 99.9% sure he’s not reading this.

Sometimes, though, it can be easy for me to lose track when gift buying – I may forget that I already bought x thing for this person or not realize just how much I’ve already spent on gifts in total. Seeing as that money tree in our backyard never did start producing, my husband and I have had to set a gift budget. While giving gifts shouldn’t be about how much you do or don’t spend on someone, staying within budget is a very real aspect of life for most of us!

The past few years I have kept a list of the people for whom we buy gifts, what I’ve purchased for them, ideas of things still to purchase, item prices, and the total budget we’ve set for each person. It’s really helpful for me to be able to see at a glance who is already “done,” what I have left to buy, and how much I’ve spent.

In case this idea may be helpful to some of you too, I’ve created a printable!

Christmas Gift Planning Printable

There are 2 pages to the printable:
* “Short list” = fewer lines per person
* “Long list” = more lines per person

Please note: the number of lines included on each list was guesswork and very much an aesthetic decision. It in no way reflects what I think you should or should not be buying. Do what works for you, your budget, and your situation.

I figured both lists may be helpful in different settings – we probably will need more lines for our children than our husband’s second-cousin-once-removed, right? You can always use more than one section per person if needed.

There are 2 versions:

–> Please note these printables are for personal use only and may not be modified, sold, or republished without express permission of Hymns & Home.

Print Version – Physically print & write your list

Digital Version – PDF with fillable fields and checkable boxes to use on the computer

There is only one of each list in the digital version.

I decided not to duplicate the pages for the digital version ahead of time as I don’t know how many you will need and I wanted the files to be easily navigable.

If you want to add more pages to your digital list, do this:

On Mac using Preview
Go to view -> Thumbnails, hold down the “fn” and “option” buttons at the same time, and drag the page you want to copy downward. It will add another one.

On PC using Adobe (Haven’t tried this – don’t have a PC)
Viewing thumbnails, hold down “control” and drag the page you want to copy downward.

I hope this little printable brings some organization to your Christmas shopping! I’d love to hear if you use, if it works well for you, and any changes you might like to see in a future printable.

Do you love gift shopping too, or is it something you dread? Leave a comment below!

Blessings,
Melissa

My post the other day featuring the Neutral Fall Botany Printables sparked some comments and questions (positive ones!) about our family room curtains. I had been planning to write a post sometime on this subject, but figured I might as well do that now since you all seem interested! (After reading so many blogs by southerners, I feel a great urge to use the term y’all, but feel like I don’t live far enough south to have earned that privilege, so I’ll stick to my Midwestern jargon. )

A few years ago an Ikea was built within reasonable driving distance, and I finally made the pilgrimage a few months ago. When I said I wanted to go check it out, my husband didn’t quite understand the appeal – he lived in Houston for a few years before we met, so he is plenty familiar with Ikea and probably associates it with his bachelor apartment furniture. He agreed to it anyway, and we made it a family affair – took the kids and everything. I have to say, that place could be pretty overwhelming if you’re not going there for anything in particular. If you try to look at everything, you’ll be there for hours. However, it was really fun to see all the different sections – they had items I never even imagined, like this blanket we picked up for baby girl – it’s now our favorite, or this bib which has worked fantastically.

Okay, I am getting off track here. Back to curtains!

I love the look of farmhouse curtains that have a ruffle at the top – I just think they are so cozy and charming! To get that ruffle, though, you either have to pay a pretty penny for ruffled curtains, or you can use one of many Pinterest-inspired curtain “hacks” to achieve the look. Any time I’ve seen this done, however, it’s always been with solid white curtains, white bed sheets, or drop cloths. I’ve never seen this done with a patterned curtain.

Well, we wanted something a little more interesting than plain white, but also didn’t want to break the bank. The Rosallil curtain from Ikea was just what the doctor ordered. Its thin blue windowpane design keeps it interesting yet airy and it has such a farmhouse flair to it when you add a ruffle! The material is thin enough that this hack still works, and when it comes to Ikea curtains, you cannot beat the price! I mean, two panels for a grand total of $17.99 (some designs are even less)? Win!

(Just FYI, the Rosallil curtains are not privacy curtains by any means – I would call them more “light filtering.”)

So here’s how this hack works:

Ikea curtains come at a length of 98″. With our 8-foot ceilings, I had plenty of excess fabric to fold the end of the curtain over to create a ruffle. I first turned the curtains upside down. Yes, you will actually be hanging them upside down. No, no one will be able to tell, don’t worry! This is so the rod loops will be at the bottom of your curtains and not end up showing on the ruffle. Next, I measured [read: eyeballed] how long I wanted my finished curtains to be, then folded over the excess material at the top to create a ruffle. The body of the curtains will be showing the “right side” of the pattern and your ruffle will be showing the “wrong side.” Make sense?

I used these clip-on curtain rings to hang the curtains, clipping them right at the fold. Looking back, I wish I would have gone the oil-rubbed bronze route to match our ceiling fan, but we already had the silver curtain rod and a silver floor lamp, and I didn’t think at the time to just paint the rod! Oh well, I can always redo that later, right? You live and learn.

The only downside to using curtain clips is that one’s toddler can pull the curtains off if he tries. Ask me how I know…

To be clear, the “wrong side” of these curtains is not 100% as bold as the front side, BUT it is close. If we were putting this in terms of image opacity, I would say the wrong side is at about 90-95%. It’s not quite as bold as the front, but if you don’t point it out to anyone (don’t), they’ll never know, especially when the curtains are bunched up with sunlight streaming in. When it’s dim in the room, you totally can’t tell at all.

If this is the sort of thing that is going to bother you because you just know that it is not 100%, I would advise skipping this and sticking with a solid-colored curtain. Or you could cut off the ruffle, flip it around, and sew it back onto the curtain.

Personally, I don’t even think about it, no one else has ever noticed (even family I have asked directly), and I’m thrilled I didn’t have to sew! Haha, I know how to sew, but I hate it. Don’t even get my mom started on the years of trying to teach me…sorry, mom.

I hope this little curtain hack has been of some help to you. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me a comment or message and I’d be happy to help!

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