$5 DIY Concrete Plant Stand

After browsing Pinterest for awhile one day, I came across this video on how to make a concrete stool for only $5. Say what?! So, I attempted it myself. We didn't need a stool, but we needed a cute plant stand on our porch. I was skeptical of how well it would actually work, but I was incredibly thrilled with how it came out!!
Start with a bag of concrete (ours is from Home Depot), a dowel, a bucket (I used a 2 gallon bucket so my plant stand would be smaller), and a saw.
Cut the dowel into thirds. Mix a couple of cupfuls of concrete in your bucket (Make sure to wear gloves!!)
Add a little bit of water.. (I realize a "little bit" is vague, but we really didn't measure anything out and eyeballed it all.)
Mix the concrete really well. Then use a dowel And gently tap the bucket on the outside to get out all the air bubbles.
Carefully put your dowels in. This worried me, as I wasn't sure how I was going to make sure the dowels were all level. We really just hoped for the best; and it came out perfect! Just make sure your dowels are pushed all the way in and are "thirds."
We let it dry for about 20-24 hrs. Then gently bend the bucket outwards all around to loosen up the concrete. Pull out the plant stand by the dowels. Voila!
I taped off the legs and painted them to look "dipped."
It's the perfect addition to our front door! To see more detailed instructions (AND for the detailed tutorial on how to make that "hello/goodbye" doormat), head over to my blog!
Amanda @ Dwelling In Happiness
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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  • Mary Howard Mary Howard on Jul 19, 2017

    Why didn't you Paint the concrete? Adding a color wold make it pop against the orange pot. I do like it.

  • Kris McWain Kris McWain on Apr 21, 2018

    I've tried this twice now and they both cracked :(


    I did the first one in a 5gal bucket. let it sit for 20-24 hours, was perfect when i took it out. brought it inside before bed, and when i got home from work the next day, it had two cracks in it.


    I did the second one in a 2.5 gal bucket. Left it in my greenhouse overnight to dry (i read that higher humidity can help prevent cracking).. when i went out the next day, it had already developed 3 big cracks while drying in the bucket.


    Any tips?! :(

  • Judy H Judy H on May 08, 2020

    You mentioned pushing the dowels all the way in. How do you make sure they don’t poke through the top? Thanks. Can’t wait to try this.

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  • Dana Dana on May 14, 2020

    Very nice!

  • Michelle Hawkes Michelle Hawkes on Jun 16, 2020

    Just a note... wood does not adhere to concrete. Your dowels will loosen over time. I filled my bucket with 1/2 my mix, added a piece of chicken wire for strength, I prepped my dowels by drilling a few small staggered holes in the end to be submerged in the cement to add screws and then wrapped wire around screws to bulk it up. Added rest of mix, pressed in my legs and viola!! Metal sticks ! No cracks! Also to be really fancy...I have made these with repurposed metal legs and lined the bucket with a rhubarb leaf. Awesome leaf impression on the top.

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