I drink a lot of Gatorade to maintain my blood pressure, so to save money and plastic, I regularly buy large cans of powdered Gatorade. After collecting quite a few, I finally found a way to repurpose them: into planters! To encourage people to upcycle, I decided to share an insanely simple tutorial on how I make them. Check it out!
Here are the supplies you'll need:
Container to be upcycled (powdered Gatorade tin in this tutorial)
Plastic bag(s)
Rope (length needed will depend upon desired thickness of rope)
Hot glue gun and extra glue sticks
Scissors
Decorative trim (optional; off-white and blue macrame fringe used in this tutorial)
TUTORIAL
Step 1: Glue plastic bags inside container
(i) Heat up hot glue gun.
(ii) Add enough hot glue to base and sides of container to secure the bag in place (well enough to support it once dirt is added). Before the glue has the chance to cool, stick your hand and arm in bag and press into place inside the container.
NOTE: Bags may be longer than necessary as demonstrated below 👇
(iii) Trim the excess length of the bag with scissors; leaving enough to glue to the outside edges of the container (shown in Step 2).
Step 2: Glue outside edge of plastic bag to outer rim of container
(i) Carefully glue the outside of the plastic bag to the outer rim of the container, making sure to secure the bag to the entire rim.
(ii) Carefully trim the rest of the excess plastic with scissors.
Step 3: Glue the rope to the outside of the container
(i) Flip the container upside down and glue the end of the rope to the bottom of the container (ensuring that the base of the container sits flat).
(ii) Rotate the container while securing the rope with hot glue in a spiral pattern towards the top of the container (pictured below).
(iii) Once the top edge of the container has been reached, trim the excess rope at an angle to allow the end to appear more flat once glued down (see below).
Step 4 (Optional): Add decorative trim
NOTE: If you prefer sleeker/simpler designs, then you may want to skip this additional step and enjoy the planter you've now made!
However, if you want to add some more flair, follow the final instructions below!
(i) Glue the edge of the decorative trim to the top edge of the container where the end of the rope is attached, being careful to align the trim vertically and inline with the rim of the container.
(ii) Like with the rope, rotate the container as you secure the trim with hot glue, carefully ensuring that the trim lines up with the edge of the container.
(iii) Once you have reached the end, cut the trim at least 1/4 inch longer than necessary and secure with hot glue, overlapping the starting edge of the trim.
And that's it: now you have a beautiful new planter!! Instead of ending up in a landfill, these can be used to grow new life 🌿
Another note: although I used two Gatorade tins in this tutorial, this method can be applied to any container otherwise headed to a landfill (including boxes, tin cans, etc.).
If you have any questions or comments, please share them; I'd love to clarify anything and hear your thoughts!
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