Help Your Solar-Powered Dollar Tree Garden Lights Stand Taller With An Affordable Hack

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If you're trying to create a warm and inviting outdoor space without breaking the bank, your local discount store should be your first stop. For example, you can always find affordable Dollar Tree items that belong in your gardening arsenal — from flower pots to birdhouses to lanterns. One of our favorite outdoor products at this low-cost retailer is the solar stake lights. They come in various styles, which is great, but they're also on the shorter side. Most of the lights max out at 14 inches tall. However, as crafty YouTuber Glue Guns & Roses figured out, there's a cheap and easy way to give them more height: slide a solar light onto a wooden dowel.

Your first step is to visit Dollar Tree and pick out some solar lights. There are plenty to choose from, but the Garden Collection Solar Stake Lights are a classic choice. They come in three finishes — stainless steel, black, and bronze — and cost just $1.50 each. You'll also need one wooden dowel for each stake light. Before you start shopping, measure the inside diameter of the stakes so you know which size dowel will fit. Look for tall dowels that give you lots of height to play with. Alternatively, if you have a few simple woodworking tools at home, you can skip the store and DIY your own wood dowels for this project. Finally, pick up a can of exterior spray paint that matches the color of the lights. Rust-Oleum Painter's Touch 2X General Purpose Spray Paint sells for around $6 per can at Home Depot.

Once you've gathered your solar lights, dowels, and spray paint, you can get to work. To keep yourself safe while painting, put on some work gloves, goggles, and a mask. Then head outside. Lay a piece of cardboard, newspaper, or wood on the ground and place a wire rack on top of it. Set your first dowel on the wire rack and spray paint it, rotating the dowel as you work to get even coverage. Repeat that process with the other dowels, then let them dry to the touch. Next up, remove the bases from the solar lights. Decide where you want to place each light in your yard and push the painted dowels into the soil. Slide each stake of the Dollar Tree solar lights onto its respective dowel and turn the lights on to make sure they work. You're done!

Are you looking for other clever ways to illuminate your yard on a low budget? There are plenty of other garden hacks using Dollar Tree solar lights. For example, you can switch out the wooden dowels for Dollar Tree's Thermoplastic Toilet Plungers. Paint the plungers, remove the rubber base, and attach the solar lights to the top. Wrap nautical rope around the top of the plunger handle to hide the joint. Similarly, Dollar Tree's Essentials Black Plastic Broom Handles, which cost just $1.50 each, fit perfectly inside the solar lights' hollow stakes. Since they're so long, the resulting fixtures look a little like tiki torches. If you're open to a bigger project, you could even create a classy centerpiece for your outdoor dining table by attaching the solar stake lights to Batoslee Black Taper Candle Holders in assorted sizes.