DIY tip: build your own cactus base

From loose bricks to a decorative designer pot: let your imagination run wild!

The cactus is a plant that you cannot easily pigeonhole. It's both stylish and rugged, fits perfectly into the style trend of busy geometric patterns, but is also the embodiment of calm. You decide for yourself how colourful and geometric you want it to be with this Lego design that show off the cactus amazingly as the Houseplant of the month for August. The smooth surface of the building bricks contrasts beautifully with the cactus's spikes. And the colours of the building bricks immediately make this slightly prickly character less severe. Vivid and cool, you can make this style statement in under 20 minutes.

What you need:

A cactus (the photo shows an Opuntia)
Various colours of Lego bricks
Sturdy plastic bag
Wood panel for the base
Gloves

How to make it:

Step 1:

Measure the cactus's pot (the pot size is often shown underneath) and take that as the starting point for the pot that you're going to build. It can be a tight fit: the cactus grows slowly. Saw a square in the size of your design, and build the decorative pot on this in different coloured layers.

Step 2:

Hang the plastic bag over the last but one row of bricks, and secure it with the last row. If you like things to be firmly secured, glue the bottom to the wooden square.

Step 3:

Remove the plant from the plastic pot, place it in the decorative pot and top up with cactus soil. If you don't have any cactus soil to hand, mix 2 parts sand with 1 part potting soil: cacti don't like soil that retains too much moisture. Give the cactus and its cheerful pot a bit of space to bring out the effect of the combination.