Indoor Flower Garden

Here's a quick DIY Indoor Flower Box with a rustic look you're sure to love. It's very easy to make with very little experience needed. This project can be done over the weekend with the most time devoted to glue and stain drying times. It's very cheap (I used free pallet wood) but adds great value to any room. Let's begin.

Tools needed:

• Drill
• 12mm or 1/2" Diamond Tipped Metal Hole Saw Drill Bit for Tile Glass
• 90 degree Corner Clamp
• Clamps
• Glass Jars (I used salsa jars we saved)
• 3-Inch Hole Saw or Jig Saw
• Flex Seal
• Stain (of your choice)
• Sandpaper
• Wood Glue
• Circular Saw or Table Saw

Materials

• Wood (I used Pallet Wood for a reclaimed look)

Gather wood and make the necessary cuts. If you're using pallet wood like me you will need to disassemble the pallet. I used the bottom board planks (the wider ones) for this box. Cut your boards according to how you want it, but here is a cut list if you are following my build exactly:

• All wood is 1/2 inch thick
• 2 boards - 20 1/2 in. x 2 1/2 in. (two side boards)
• 2 boards - 20 1/2 in. x 3 3/4 in. (top and bottom boards)
• 2 boards - 3 3/4 in. x 2 1/2 in. (front and back boards)

To cut holes in your top board you will need to do some prep work and math (yikes). First, mark a line down the center of the length of the board. Next find the holes with a little math, nothing too scary I promise. Here's the math:

(length of the board) / (number of holes + 1) then convert to fractions.

Explanation: First you will need to convert the fractional length of the board into fractions. In my example the length is 20 3/4 inches. So convert it like this, (20) + (3/4) = (20) + (0.75) = 20.75. Next, the number of holes + 1, if you are cutting four holes like me this is 5, if you are cutting six holes the number is 7. The reason for this is you are measuring the distance from the edge to the hole to the next hole until you reach the opposite edge, not the number of holes themselves. Do the math and convert the decimal to fractions as close to 1/32 as possible. Here's an online calculator to make it even simpler. That's it, I told you it was easy.

Once you have your number, start from one edge and mark the center of each hole along the center line until you have marked each hole.

Then take your hole saw and cut out each hole. If you are using a jig saw you will need to trace the bottom of your jars or draw the perimeter of each hole for a line to follow.

I wanted to make this box as simple as possible so I didn't use any joinery like dovetails or any fastners at all. All that's required is some wood glue, clamps, and time for it to dry.

First I clamped the front and sides together. Just apply some glue to the edges of wood that will be touching and clamp them together. Allow them 24 hours to dry completely. Next glue the bottom board to the box by applying glue to the touching edges and clamp together for 24 hours.

Once the front, back, sides, and bottom are dry you can paint the inside of the box with flex seal. This will prevent any mold or rotting from occurring if you over water your plants. Do this in a well ventilated space and follow the application and drying instructions closely.

Once this has dried you can clamp the top to the box. Now you can sand and stain it if you like. I went with a Red Oak stain. I think it came out pretty nice.

Prepare the jars by cutting holes in the bottom of each jar with a 1/2 inch diamond tipped hole saw. I used a cordless drill for this. Place the jar upside down in a sink with a flat surface. Get a slow steady stream of cold water going so that it creates a constant flow of water across the cutting surface. This keeps the cutting cool and prevents cracking or breaking. Trust me, this is the fastest and easiest way to cut holes in glass and you need not fear being killed. Every time someone writes up a tutorial on how to cut holes in glass there are a million comments about how this will kill you, trust me, you're safe. If you are unsure about this step I suggest watching the following Youtube Video, thanks "Kelly Barlow Creations" for the video!

Finally it's time to add the plants. My wife loves tulips so I used these for the planter. You may add whichever plant you like so long as they won't outgrow the jar you are using. It's common for people to plant herbs such as basil or mint to these jars for an indoor herb garden! Add a bottom layer of potting soil first, then add the desired plants to each jar. Finally top it off with some more potting soil. Place the jars in your box and enjoy! That's it, easy peasy; as with all plants make sure to water and care for them as necessary.