DIY: Marvellous marbled plant pots

Put your old nail polish to good use with these pretty, marbled planter ideas

If you’ve got any old terracotta pots languishing in the shed, why not bring them out of retirement and transform them into beautiful, colourful marbled planters?

You don’t need any specialist paint, just a few old nail polishes. It’s as easy as one, two, three – and no painting skills required.

We love this super-easy version created by Nicole Valentine Don for Justina Blakeney.

What you’ll need:

  • An old plastic bucket
  • Latex gloves
  • Coloured nail polishes – the brighter the better!
  • Terracotta pots

Step-by-step:

  1. Half-fill your bucket with water and leave for a while until it reaches room temperature (this is important for ensuring the polish floats).
  2. Drizzle your polish or polishes on top of the water.
  3. Submerge your pot under the water and pull it out again immediately.

Marbling for minimalists

If you prefer a cleaner and more contemporary look, try painting your pots with matt white paint first, and then just dipping the bottom of the pot in the water – as beautifully illustrated here by Joy Cho at Oh Joy!