A good chunk of the summer, so far, has unfortunately been a little rainier than I care for. I figure since I’ve been feeling like I’ve been living under water for the last month, plus in honor of our cover story about “The SpongeBob Musical,” it seemed appropriate to find a craft that could kill a rainy afternoon with the kids and celebrate the one who lives in a pineapple under the sea!

I came across these adorable little planters recently, it seems like a pretty easy, but fun craft for adults and kids alike!

DIY Pineapple Planters Tutorial

Supplies:
– Terra cotta pots (4″ pots will be good for succulents)
– Potting soil — I would suggest a cactus or succulent specific soil, but regular potting soil will work in a pinch.
– Succulents or other plants that resemble the top of a pineapple
– Yellow, brown, and black craft paint
– Foam paintbrush
– Small paintbrush
– Spray sealer (optional)

Directions:

Make sure the pots are nice and clean. Use a foam brush to paint several coats of yellow paint over the entire outside of the pot. You’ll want to paint the top few inches of the inside of the post as well, since you’ll be seeing it above the soil.

You’ll probably need a couple of coats of paint to cover the terra cotta, but if it is warm day, it shouldn’t take long to dry between coats. Let dry to the touch.

Now it’s time to get creative! Pineapples have an intricate pattern, so let the kids decide how they wanted to paint the pattern with a small paintbrush and some black and brown paint. Depending on age and skill level, they can make the pattern as simple or fancy as they’d like! Let the black paint dry.

Now it’s time to plant the “pineapple tops.” There are a lot of succulents that will work for you. Just pick what you like! But if you want suggestions, something like short leaved aloe or haworthia will work great. We have lots of garden centers in the area that have big selections of succulents, so let everyone pick what they think will work best!

Fill your pot about 1/3 with soil, pop in your plant, then fill with more soil. Make sure you give your plant a good soaking drink of water after. Beyond that, succulents prefer to live on the drier side of life, so you really will only need to water them once or twice a month. You’ll want to plant your plant in bright, indirect light.

The summer weather hasn’t been ideal, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still fun to be had! Enjoy a fun craft and take advantage when the sun does shine!