Easy DIY Garden Accents

By BH&G Garden Editors
February 19, 2016
Skip the store-bought accents and give your garden a personalized spin with these easy-to-make containers, ornaments, fountains, and more.
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Scrap Metal Flowers

Salvaged Metal Garden Accents

Give your garden year-round blooms with larger-than-life flowers designed from scrap metal and wooden stakes. A decorative knob provides a pop of color at the center of each flower while keeping the parts together.

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Bubble Fountain

A small metal table becomes a fountain by swapping the glass top for a plastic planter bowl and dressing up both pieces with spray paint. A submersible pump and attached fountain bring the waterworks to life. Glass balls glisten under the water and conceal the pump.

Tip: Replenish water as it evaporates, keeping the pump submerged to ensure it works properly. All pumps and fountains in these projects are available at home improvement centers.

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Custom Concrete Pots

How to Cast Concrete Planters

Stir up some fun by mixing concrete and adding color. These custom garden pots were created using small disposable milk cartons for the exterior designs and tumblers from the dollar store as inner molds.

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Stenciled Outdoor Art

An unadorned stretch of fence becomes a fetching focal point thanks to colorful stenciled outdoor artwork. This wooden canvas was created using a bundle of lath, available at a building center. After constructing your palletlike canvas, roll outdoor acrylic paint onto the front. Position your stencil on the lath canvas using repositionable adhesive, then paint the image with a flat brush. Let dry before attaching to a fence or wall.

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Easy Concrete Orbs

Make these affordable concrete accents for your garden or patio using a few surprising materials. Watch our step-by-step video to see how to create this project.

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Hanging Wooden Basket

Hanging Wooden Basket Container Garden

Catch eyes from a block away with a colorful hanging basket design. This easy-to-make project brings a touch of greenery straight from the garden to your front porch, patio, or deck.

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Salvaged Succulent Planter

Transform a Birdbath

Turn an old birdbath into a salvage-style succulent planter in just three simple steps.

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Nursery Pot Wreath

Upcycle bumper crops of plastic nursery pots and cell packs into pretty garden decor, no matter their shape, size, or color. This wreath is designed to tough it out in the rain or sun. To make this wreath, set a wreath form on a moss mat and cut around it as widely as possible Glue the moss mat to the wreath form, then cut nursery pots and cell packs into desired flower shapes. Spray-paint the plastic flower shapes and let dry before anchoring each one to the wreath with florist pins.

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Simple Sphere and Pedestal

Dogwood Garden Orb

Gather leftover trimmings from pruning and fashion them into a decorative garden accent. A tripod of arching rebar holds this organic sphere and adds to the scupture's overall appeal. Insert the rebar securely in the ground 6-8 inches apart and adjust to hold the sphere.

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Double-Decker Fountain

Incorporate nature's splashy sounds into your outdoor space with a simple two-tier fountain. This space-savvy design can turn even the tiniest garden into an exotic escape.

Related: How to Make an Urn Fountain

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Chalkboard Plant Markers

Easy Chalkboard Plant Markers

Liven up your garden with these reusable plant markers. Create your own custom chalkboard paint colors by combining 1 tablespoon unsanded tile-grout powder with 1/4 cup outdoor paint. Use the mixture to coat wooden plant stakes, then label each one with a china marker.

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Tile-Topped Stepping-Stones

Tile-Topped Stepping Stones

Create a pretty garden path with the help of these handmade stepping-stones decorated with pieces of ceramic tiles or plates. To keep costs to a minimum, look for chipped or cracked ceramic items at flea markets or neighborhood sales.

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Simple Rosemary Topiary

How to Make a Topiary

It's easy to buy a ready-trained topiary, but it's fun and satisfying to make your own. Many types of plants are well-suited to shaping, including the herb rosemary used here. It's also possible to train your own topiaries from hollies, ivies, and boxwood, or from flowering plants, such as lantana, fuchsia, and hydrangeas.

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Colored Glass Garden Votives

Cast a cool light on your deck or patio with these decorative votive holders. Pint-size canning jars, glazed with paint to match a garden's decorating scheme, provide pretty, low-cost candle lanterns. These blue-hue jars enhance the garden scene while protecting the votive candles from breezes.

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By BH&G Garden Editors