As I was perusing through the Pottery Barn catalog one day, I came upon a photo with this flower trough centerpiece with beautiful hydrangeas sitting on it. It immediately made me think of the old pile of fence slats that I trash-picked inherited from my neighbor. I knew it would be simple and free to recreate.
Overall dimensions of mine: 20” x 3 1/4” x 3 1/4”
Supplies:
2 old fence slats (mine were 3 1/4” wide)
miter saw
air brad nailer and stapler
old thin belt (optional)
scissors
tape measure and pencil
1. The fence slats were 3 1/4” wide so the first two pieces I cut were 3 1/4” x 3 1/4” for the length on the ends.
2. Next, I cut 2 of the sides at 20” and then the bottom piece at 19”. (Since you won’t have the same slats that I did just take the thickness of your board and times it by 2 and then subtract that number from your sides to figure out how big your bottom piece should be).
3. Once all the boards were cut I used my brad nailer and nailed the sides to the bottom piece. Then I attached the front and back pieces. Simple as that!
4. You can leave it as is or try and find a grayish color paint to paint the ends since you can see the original color of the wood once cut. I opted for an old belt that was way too big for me and cut two pieces to 13”. Then I air stapled that to the sides to give it handles. Functional and cute!
5. Then I put a cry out for some hydrangeas to fill it and my friend Lisa came to the rescue. I filled it with these gorgeous blue and purple hydrangea blooms from her yard.
Do you like weather wood? Check out the other projects I have made with the stolen inherited fence slats. (Links below)
Eat, Surf Pray Art (with free printable), Pallet Silhouette Art, Barn Wood Frames, How Sweet It is to Be Loved By You art piece
Don’t have old wood sitting around? You can still make one with purchased wood. Check out a couple of my friend’s tutorials here:
Love it! Looks simple enough, but makes a huge impact!
The PB version looks like an old card catalog drawer. Or a metal version from an old tool chest. My dad had some old steel drawers like that.
This container is SUPER cute! I love how you thought to use your leather belt for the straps–co clever! As good as the PB or better–better actually–I want one!
Perfect. Easy, quick and FREE are the buzz-words for my projects lately!
Hehe… Sounds right up my alley! 😉
Awww, thanks, Kristin! I am all about repurposing, and trust me when I say it’s so simple to make!
Very cool. It would be nice to get your hands on those I bet!
Thanks, Megan. And, yes, you are so right – it was crazy easy but definitely catches your eye in the room.
Becky, that looks so pretty!!
that is so cute! I have some fence pieces in my yard just waiting for such a project…love the leather handles.
Ok, this I can build. Surely I can. I love it. Hydrangeas I adore. 😉
Really nice piece! Thinking of the belt for handles is what makes you so amazing!
I love this, I am going to hunt for more wood to make these for my floral shop!
Thanks,
Peggy
So simple and so effective! Gorgeous…
I LOVE this look! I am into old wood and rustic decor. Looks fairly easy to make even though I don’t have a saw like this. Very clever with the handles and I think it looks better than the PB photo!
So many times I have thought about making one of these. I have TONS of old fence boards. It never occurred to me use them for this project, but they are perfect. What a gorgeous idea, and I have Hydrangeas! Pinning this project, and will hopefully complete it before my Hydrangeas finish blooming!
I’d love to see it, Karen! Tracking down the hydrangeas was the hardest part for me. Ha!
Awww, thanks so much! Thanks to my fence slat stash I have started to incorporate more rustic decor into my home. Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks!
I’d love to see how they come out!
Stop now… you are making me blush! 😉
It doesn’t get too much easier than this, and it’s just perfect for hydrangeas. Let me know if you give it a go. 🙂
Thank you!
Awww, thanks, Lisa!
Love, love, love it! And you can dry the hydrangeas if you want to keep the arrangement for a long time. I like the color contrast with the white and the blue. My friend and I built a platform (tree house) when we were kids out of her parent’s old fence slats.
Love! And I think my favorite part was how you “casually” threw in the part about the belt that was too big for you and so you go and make custom leather handles…..so smart!
Ha! 😉 Thanks, Girl!
Hi Deborah, Thanks for the tip about drying the hydrangeas. That’s a great idea, especially since I had to hunt down the hydrangeas! 😉 I’m glad my little centerpiece could bring back happy childhood memories for you. Thanks so much for reading!
LOVE it! Totally on the hunt for more old boards now…
Thanks! Hope you find some!
Love this! So simple, too! And I have just the place for one. Now I just need to find old fence boards.
I’m just curious… I trash picked a bunch of old fencing hoping to repurpose it for home decor, but I read online that it might not be safe for indoor use because of the weather treatment. Do you have any idea about that? Because I LOVE this project!
Hi Connie, I am so glad you like it! The fence posts would be fine by now. However, newer wood that hasn’t been aged is iffy because of the chemicals they use to preserve outdoor wood products. However, if it has been outside for years it is usually safe for indoor use now. Hope that helps!