Make a TAKE-OUT PLANTER!

Take-Out Planter

When Laurie and I go out to eat, I usually end up cleaning my plate.  She however, will always eat half of her dinner and take the rest home because she loves leftovers. I am not fond of leftovers but am quite intrigued at the interesting variety of take-home food containers and have built up quite a nice collection.  The “keepers” are a combination of a top and bottom which just happen to make pretty cool hypertufa pot and saucer molds.  What a great way to reuse a take out container!

What you need:
-One or two plastic take-out food containers preferably with a top and bottom

-Plastic covered work area
-Large plastic mixing tub or bowl
-Your favorite Hypertufa recipe
   (Here’s mine: http://fromthesummersgarden.blogspot.com/p/normal-0-false-false-false-en-us-ja-x_10.html)
-masonry trowel or large spoon
-vegetable oil and brush
-disposasble gloves

What you do:
1.  Cover your work surface with plastic
2. Lightly oil the inside surfaces of both the top and bottom pieces of your take out food container. 
3.  Put on a pair of disposable gloves and mix up; a batch of hypertufa.  You can make this project using just sand mix concrete mix but the end result will be much heavier.
4.  Line the insides of both pieces with ½” to ¾” layer of hypertufa and pat firmly using your fingers to a uniform surface. 

5. Use your finger or a stick to poke a drainage hole in the bottom of the planter portion. Don’t put a hole in your saucer.
6. Allow to set and harden overnight and pop out of the plastic containers. You can slit the plastic with a box cutter.  This will make it very easy to remove.
7.  Brush off rough edges and allow to cure for a week.
8.  Pot up and place when you want some living color.

What else you can do…

Take a breather from planting 

this busy spring and visit 

Breath of Fresh Air, 

the spring sale at 

From the Summer’s Garden.