How to make a table from a pottery pot

I’m sure I’m like most gardeners who have a million unused pots lying around or stacked up on the potting bench, and I also know I’m not likely to plant all of them! Hating to see a perfectly good pot go to waste, I came up with a way to make a larger one into a garden side table. You can, too—it’s easy and very inexpensive.  Here’s how:

Step 1

I started with an urn shaped pot that was sitting empty on an iron stand, but any large piece of pottery will do. Mine is 16” high and wide at the top, and the stand is about 1’ tall.

Step 2

Find another old pot that will fit, inverted, into the larger one.

Step 4

I added bubble wrap and old plastic bags around the smaller pot to stabilize it. Anything lightweight will do—crumpled up newspaper, packing peanuts, you get the idea.

Step 5

Place some moss on top of the plastic bags—I used bagged sphagnum moss from a craft store—and then have fun decorating! I placed some seashells on top of the moss, but you can add anything you like—river rocks, old photographs, small wine glasses & corks. It seems to work best when you have a bit of a theme or an odd collection, just keep it fairly lightweight so it stays on top of the moss instead of falling through it!

Step 6

Finish the table by adding a round glass topper. The one I used is 19 ¼ “ in diameter and cost $10.00 at a local discount department store (it’s normally sold to top an inexpensive round wooden decorator table.). I really love the organic feel to this table, and the fact that you can use it either indoors or out is a real plus. And once I started roaming around the house for other little items to put under the glass, it was like a treasure hunt! You’ll have fun personalizing this garden table to fit your own décor, whether it’s in your living room or on your patio.

Jenny is a landscaper garden designer from Austin, Texas

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