Use An Empty Pickle Jar To Create The Perfect Planter And Drip Tray Combo

Affordable planters are a hot commodity if you're cultivating your own personal home jungle. Whether you have a habit of bringing home new plants or you can't stop propagating new cuttings, it can get pricey to buy new pots for every plant you welcome into your collection. This is where a little DIY magic can help spare your wallet. A genius way to reuse a pickle jar and save some money is to craft a DIY planter.

Instagram creator @houseplusplant shared a tutorial on how to transform a plastic Grillo's Pickle container into a planter, complete with a drip tray. The end result was a playful yet functional place to house your plants. There are a variety of common household items you can turn into beautiful planters, but pickle jars, in particular, offer the added benefit of featuring a built-in drip trays — i.e., the lids.

For this project, you'll need an empty straight side pickle jar, the pickle jar's lid, a soldering iron or screw driver, and, of course, a plant and soil. Be sure your jar can rest on top of its lid for this DIY. Before reusing your pickle jar, clean the container with hot soap and water. Go even further to get rid of that strong scent by combining equal parts baking soda and white vinegar in the jar, and then give it one more scrub. 

Once your jar is nice and clean, use a soldering iron or screw driver to create holes on the bottom and along the lower edge of your pickle jar. To create holes in a glass pickle jar, use a diamond-coated glass cutting drill bit. If you go this route, be sure to wear protective gear to shield your hands and eyes from stray glass shards. Then, prepare a baking sheet lined with a damp dish cloth to serve as your work area. When you're ready to get started, place your pickle jar upside down on the sheet. Mark the hole's location with tape, and use a spray bottle to wet the area. Start drilling your hole at an angle, and slowly straighten out as you work further into the glass. Pause regularly to spray the area with more water. Take your time until the drill makes it through the glass.

Once you're done creating drainage holes, you're free to use the pickle jar as a planter. Simply establish your plant in the container, and place the jar on its lid. If you're a pickle fiend, you may like the stylized look of the logo and colorful lid. To further customize this project, consider painting the pickle jar. You could do one color for the jar and lid, or paint each a different color for a two-toned look. Take this customization a step further by adding a textured finish. Simply coat the pickle jar and lid in plaster. Alternatively, you can also use texture spray and combine baking soda with your favorite paint color to create a tactile finish.