Every year when summer’s arriving, I think about growing some herbs, and every year I invariably kill the herbs that I start.  This year will likely be no different, but at least I’ll have some planters.  I thought of this because of three reasons:

1. I don’t want to keep buying little pots here and there
2. I drink a lot of orange juice
3. I like chalkboards

So, here’s a four step process to making some chalkboard planters.

Step 1

Buy and drink some orange juice.  I got these from Whole Foods, but they’re for sale at pretty much any grocery store.  Make sure you get the cartons, I don’t think the plastic jugs would work very well due to their matte surface, funny shapes, and are generally harder to cut.  If you don’t like OJ, that’s fine, there’s also lemonade, milk, soy milk, or even water (I must admit that the last link was an inspiration for this project).

Step 2

Cut the box and chalkboard-ify.  I made the cut 5″ high, but you may want to vary the height depending on the type of planting.  I also bought some spray-on chalkboard paint (make sure you spray paint in a ventilated area, or you can get dizzy pretty quick – trust me).

Step 3

Wait.  Then apply a second coat of chalkboard paint.  Then wait some more.  What you end up with is this.  As you can see, I’ve also tried lining the inside of the carton with some plastic, but I don’t think that’s necessary, and if anything makes adding soil and watering more complicated.

Step 4

Put in some soil, and plant away.  Don’t forget to label what you’re planting.

And that’s it.