Crate Address Planter - Do It Yourself

Monday, June 14, 2010

One day on the way to the store I found this old crate. It was just sitting there all abandoned and I could see it's potential through the mud and spiderwebs. And it was very sturdy.  I decided to make an address planter with it. What do you think? Keep reading to see how I did it.
Note: I blacked out the street for privacy issues. The full street name is really there.

First things first, clean and paint the crate. I used black but now I'm kinda wishing I would have gone with something more exciting like green or turquoise. I taped off the metal pieces and used spray paint.

Plan the layout by getting the measurements of where the address number and street will fit on the crate. Type out the address on the computer in the proper size (to fit the crate) and print it out on regular paper. Next trim the excess paper off.

Flip the address papers over and cover the back sides with chalk, I used the kids sidewalk chalk.

Tape the address paper to the crate in the correct spot, with the chalk side touching the crate. Trace the outline of the address. I used the tip of a mechanical pencil without the lead.

This will transfer the outline of the address and it will look something like this below.

Using a small paint brush and acrylic craft paint, paint the address. Use the chalk outline as a guide. This did take a bit of time but not as much as I thought it would. I also went back and gave it a second coat. Something you also may want to do when it dries is give it a coat of clear spray paint to seal it.

Line the inside. I used a thick trash bag and a staple gun. I did not cover the bottom. This crate already had those holes which were perfect for drainage.

And here she is!
Thanks for reading! Let me know if you come by. And thank you again son for all your help. Those are his little hands in the photos again.

Linking up at:
S- The DIY Showoff, Under the Table and Dreaming, MThe Girl Creative, MM Party at BNOTP, Making the World Cuter, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Keeping it SimpleT- Coastal Charm, All Thingz Related, Today's Creative Blog, Hope Studios, ReinventedW- Blue Cricket Design, Life in the Pitts, Me and My Bucket, Someday Crafts, My Backyard Eden, Room to Inspire, Creations by Kara, Just a Girl, T- The Shabby Chic Cottage, Life as Lori, Somewhat Simple, Beyond the Picket Fence, Fireflies and JellybeansF- A Few of My Favorite Things, It's FUN to Craft, The Shabby Nest, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Tatertots and Jello, Funky Junk InteriorsS- Along for the Ride, I Heart Naptime

51 comments:

  1. Your planter is wonderful!! Thanks for sharing.

    I also love your Mario printables. My son and husband are huge Mario fans. These would make excellent and very affordable party favors.

    I've signed up to follow, can't wait to see what else you've got up your creative sleeve. :)

    Thank you,
    Erin
    http://homeswheremyheartis.blogspot.com

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  2. WHAT a neat idea!!! Anything with an old crate and you've got my interest!!
    Tracey

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  3. Oh, I love this. Using chalk would never occur to me! Great idea.

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  4. This is so adorable! I love love love it! And easy too...that is the best part :-)

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  5. That's really cute. I never would have thought of it. Clever.

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  6. I love this! I'm going to use that technique! So clever!
    Thanks for sharing @ Anything Related No.11!
    {Rebekah}

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  7. So cute. What a clever way to display your address. Love the planter.

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  8. Hi! I'm stopping by from the All Thingz Related party. This is too cute!

    Enjoy the week! :)

    Alison

    http://welcomesunshinehome.blogspot.com/

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  9. What a CUTE idea and the plants in your planter are perfectly arranged!

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  10. love this idea!!
    Thanks for sharing it.

    blessings
    barbarajean

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  11. Darling! I will feature this at somedaycrafts.blogspot.com today. Grab my "Featured" button.

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  12. what an awesome idea! i love it :)
    blessings,
    aimee

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  13. Your planter looks great - and I love that you used chalk to get the transfer - sounds much better than the tedious pencil I am always using!

    Chelsea

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  14. Thanks everyone for your great comments!

    And yes the chalk worked very well. I guess you could use colored chalk if you needed to transfer on to something white.

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  15. that is seriously the most beautiful thing ever!

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  16. WOW!!! I love this. Girl, you know I'm going to have to copy this right? :-D

    Hook line and sinker, I'm your newest follower! :)

    xo
    Rachelle

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  17. Oh man that beats cutting out words on vinyl using a utility knife. I made some crates and signs and put words on a couple of them but got tired of cutting. I'm going to try this technique. Thanks so much for sharing this information.

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  18. So excited to see this when we've got a crate we could use! Thank you for the chalk transfer idea also--sounds much better than cutting out numbers! It looks beautiful!

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  19. Fabulous idea! Love the look. Visiting from SDC. Hope you are enjoying your week! ~Stephanie Lynn

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  20. I do believe you've given me crate envy! Love how you turned this into something chic and lovely. Your flowers are gorgeous, too. Now I must find a crate of my own!

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  21. The transfer trick alone was worth the hop! Awesome project, I like house number planters a lot. Pop by my site sometime and say hi!

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  22. Now, I just love this project! Even the flowers you picked are perfect.

    Thanks so much for sharing at My Backyard Eden!

    ~Carolyn

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  23. I am so glad you linked this up today - I am still lovin' it!

    Chelsea

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  24. I love how this turned out! Not only is the box adorable, but you certainly know how to beautify it with just the right flowers. Thanks for the tutorial!

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  25. WOW! This is so great! I just got an old crate off of FreeCycle. I thought I would use it for firewood, but now I'm not so sure. Maybe I'll use the same idea, but still use it for firewood and make it beautiful AND functional instead of just functional.

    I host a Messy Monday and a Transform Tuesday link party. I'd love it if you joined them. Thanks!

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  26. Thanks so much for stopping by! I LOVE what you did with this crate! Would it be weird to have three house number signs outside my house -- I want to do this one too! :)

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  27. That is awesome! And aren't you clever with the chalk? Way to go!

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  28. What a great idea! Looks lovely!

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  29. Great job! Very unique way to use your crate. I love crates!!!

    Partying with you today.

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  30. wow...very creative...definitely stands out!

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  31. Cool idea! I found an ancient dynamite box up at an old barn that I walk by just about every day and I was thinking about doing something with it. This would be perfect!

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  32. I love old crates and what you have done with yours! It's awesome!!
    I'd love to have you link up to my Garden Party Next Wednesday at http://keeninspirations.blogspot.com. Lots of inspiring outdoor/gardne projects and some awesome giveaways!
    Hope to see you there!
    Sharon

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  33. The crate makes an awesome planter! And your plants are soo pretty : )

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  34. Wow, what a fabulous idea. It looks great and you can swap out the plants when the seasons change. Love it!

    Best wishes,
    Natasha.

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  35. Soooo fabulous! It just finishes your beautiful mailbox so nicely. Great job...

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  36. Wow, this is fantastic. I especially love the chalk trick.

    Thank you for participating in the Creative Therapy Session at Life in the Pitts!

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  37. Hey, I featured this today!

    http://lanieree.blogspot.com/2010/06/featuring-you_18.html

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  38. I can't tell how much I love everything about this! yeah!

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  39. How cool is that?! I'm going to make something similar for my front porch!!

    Tania

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  40. I mentioned this idea in my most recent post! Plan on making something similar soon! Thanks!!!

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  41. I featured your idea on my blog today!

    http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/2010/06/saturday-showcase_19.html

    Thanks for linking up!

    Sumo

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  42. So sweet! It looks like a chalkboard. Really turned my head!

    Donna

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  43. Cute idea & thanks for stopping by.

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  44. What a great idea! I'm adding this to my list of things to do!

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  45. Fabulous! :)

    I featured you here:
    http://firefliesandjellybeans.blogspot.com/2010/06/sunday-spotlight-soys-32-favorites.html

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  46. I love this idea! You did a great job. Thanks for the step-by-step! :)

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  47. Oh wow, what a great idea!!! I did a number for my house and this might be what I do!

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  48. That came out great! I love the idea.

    I would also love it if you hopped over to My Magic Friday blog party and posted this idea there!

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  49. Hi
    Thanks for visiting Recaptured Charm today and for your lovely comments. SURE you can come over and hang out around the fire pit! Seems we have the same taste in things. I AM IN LOVE with your crate planter. How about this... You steal my tire planter idea and I steal your crate address planter idea? Sounds good to me. I have two crates just waiting to be madeover! You're great, thanks!
    Lisa

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