Learn how to make painted mini plant stands using scrap wood, minimal tools, and paint to add a modern dipped leg effect! This post is sponsored by Decoart.
How to make painted mini plant stands
I’ve got a fun woodworking craft to share today—these painted mini plant stands I made out of little scrap wood pieces from my garage! Honestly, these plant stands came about one night after I put R to bed and walked into the garage wanting to make something.
Not something big, but something with some of my scrap wood. I’d been thinking about what to do for my June Decoart Core Blogger post, and it hit me—painted mini plant stands! It all came together when I saw the colors they sent me to work with. One of them matched the accent dots on a gorgeous new planter I got a few weeks ago.
So here’s what I used:
- Scrap wood (measurements for the stands below)
- Wood glue
- Clamps
- Decoart Americana Acrylic paints in Cactus Flower, Eucalyptus Leaf, Cobblestone, and Snow (Titanium) White
- Small paint brushes
- Painter’s tape
- Measuring tape and pencil
- Fine-grit sandpaper
Measurements:
- Each stand is the same depth and width.
- I used three pieces of edge-glued 1.5″ wide poplar for the top. I cut each of these pieces to 4.5″ long, so that when glued together, they made a perfect 4.5″ by 4.5″ square.
- A square dowel about 4″ long was used as the support piece underneath.
- For the shorter of the two planters, I cut each of the four legs to 2.5″ long. For the taller one, I cut the four legs to 4.5″ long each.
And here’s how I made my painted mini plant stands!
Always take the proper precautions and safety measures before working with any tools. Wear safety equipment and work with a professional when necessary. Happy building and stay safe!
Step 1: Cut pieces and edge glue the top
Cut all pieces. I used my miter saw, but if you don’t have a lot of tools, this is a small enough project that you could use a miter box and hand saw. In fact, the miter saw was overkill. 🙂
After cutting, I gave any rough areas a light sand with fine-grit sandpaper. Then I edge glued the three pieces for the top together using wood glue and clamps. As soon as the wood for the top began to set up (about 30 minutes), I removed the clamps and carefully glued down the underside support piece, clamping that down.
For more thrifty paint projects, check out my painted wine bottle upcycled into a bud vase, my upcycled tea tin planter, my post on how to paint thrifted clay pots, and my post about painting art using a feather duster!
Step 2: Add plant stand legs
To add the legs, I flipped the top upside down and glued them in place. After about 15 minutes, the glue began to get tacky and hold the legs in place. I very carefully added a piece of scrap wood on top of the legs, then set a plant pot on top to apply some gentle, even pressure.
See! You don’t always need fancy tools. Gentle, even pressure is critical to getting the best bond using wood glue. You could use books, too. I like improvising. 🙂 After a few hours when the piece had dried fully, I gently sanded rough spots by hand using a piece of fine-grit sandpaper.
Step 3: Paint the mini plant stand legs
Now for the painting. Here are Decoart’s brand new colors! (For this project, I used Cactus Flower, Eucalyptus Leaf, and Cobblestone.)
- Cobblestone
- Cactus Flower
- Eucalyptus Leaf
- Moody Blue
- Warm Sunset
- Jadeite Glass
- Matcha Green
I also used the old trusty Snow (Titanium) White to give the legs a fresh coat of white. They were already white, but it was a dull primer white with some marks on it. So a quick coat really helped polish the stands a bit.
Step 4: Paint a color-blocked “dipped” effect
After the freshly painted white legs had dried completely, I got to work creating my color-block “dipped” effect on the mini plant stand legs. I measured and marked where to add the painter’s tape on each leg, ensuring I got a firm seal with the tape. I used Cactus Flower for the shorter plant stand.
That’s because I knew I wanted the planter that coordinated with this color to go on the taller of the two plant stands, and I didn’t want things to be too matchy-matchy. I needed only one generous coat of the paint for full coverage, and I carefully removed the painter’s tape immediately after to ensure a crisp line.
For the taller of the two plant stands, I mixed Eucalyptus Leaf and Cobblestone in about a 2:1 ratio. I wanted to mute the green color a bit so it would better coordinate with the green accent dots on the second planter I had. This turned out to be THE perfect green!
I repeated the process of measuring, marking, and applying painter’s tape to the second stand. After painting one generous coat of my mixed green, I immediately and very carefully removed the painter’s tape to reveal the gorgeous green dipped legs.
And here are my finished painted mini plant stands!
Aren’t they adorable? I love how they complement these cute face vase planters (which, by the way, are from Target). These are also perfectly sized for a windowsill, too. Which is great because these two succulents need a lot of light and live in a southwest-facing window.
Pin my painted mini plant stands DIY
