One of the things I love about outdoor decorating is that there are so few designing “musts”. You’re free to be creative and carefree when decorating your garden. I’ve shown you how I enjoy turning toys into planters, as well as how I make my own cement planters. Today I’m teaching you how to turn rusty, seemingly unuseable patio chairs into beautiful mini gardens.

Supplies:

Metal outdoor chairMetallic Paste in Rose GoldChicken wireZip tiesFabric

Step one: Wipe down the chair as needed to remove flaking paint and dirt. I opted to keep my chair rusty “as is” because I think the aging adds to the character of the piece. Plus, it will be sitting outside aging even more in the elements!

Step two: Use an old washcloth to pick up the metallic paste. The paste is kind of like soft wax. If your paste is too dry, you can add a bit of water to soften it. Use the cloth to rub the paste onto the surface of the chair. I love the way the rose gold metallic shimmer contrasts with the rust.

Step three: Wear sturdy gloves for this step! Cut a square of chicken wire to fit in the base of the chair. Use zip ties to attach the four corners of the wire square to the top of the seat. Cut and bend the wire to form a basket where the chair seat would be. Use zip ties to hold the wire basket in place.

Step four: I wanted the chair to look like it was still a seat, so I added fabric to the back and bottom. You will, at the very least, need to place some kind of fabric over the chicken wire to keep the soil in the basket in place. My chair had pegs that I attached the fabric with by pushing the metal peg through the meshlike fabric. You could also stitch the fabric to the frame.

Step five: Fill the basket with soil, then add your flowers. I added bright, beautiful mums to add color to my fall garden.

This pretty chair garden adds so much color to my fall yard. I think this will be a lovely way to welcome guests to my home this Thanksgiving. Have fun crafting and creating DIY mini gardens from chairs!