I made these Halloween faux succulent gardens for a variety of reasons. First of all – I saw all the supplies at Dollar Tree and couldn’t resist. and I thought it would be a fun idea for a decoration that isn’t all about blood and gore. I like too, but mostly I love the color story of the season – orange, green, purple, black…and since the succulents are just plastic, giving them an October makeover seemed like a smart plan.
Here’s a video tutorial of my process for these Halloween Faux Succulent Gardens!
You can use this idea for anything you have on hand – cans, or other types of drinkware. Check out your local thrift or dollar store for wide mouth containers.
SUPPLIES:
Margarita glasses
Plastic succulents
Black rocks or sand (I used aquarium rocks)
Craft paint
Spray sealer
White glue and ultra fine glitter, optional
Directions:
Wash and dry the glasses.
Leave the succulents in the plastic pot, it makes them easier to paint. I used spray paint on half of them and craft paint on the others. This is probably the longest part – waiting for the paint to dry. It took several coats.
Make sure they are dried completely before adding a second coat. You can set them in front of a fan to move it along…
I wanted each succulent to stand on its own so I made each one a little different. After I added craft paint, I coated them with glue and then glitter. Add spray varnish as a sealer.
While these are drying, go ahead and work on the glasses.
You could certainly leave them as is, but why?
Dive into that craft paint and work your own Halloween magic. These are super simple patterns. The loose design allows for the colors to stand out. Also, consider all the components so the colors are balanced. Keep in mind, you will doing reverse glass painting on these if you paint them on the inside. Check out my other video on this here.
Once you are in love with your finished painted glasses, add a coat of spray sealer so you won’t experience chipping. Don’t forget to spray the bottoms if you painted those too.
Let them dry thoroughly.
Put all the pieces together!
Remove the fully-dried succulents from the plastic containers.
Fill the glass with the pebbles. For a sturdier garden, glue the succulents to foam then glue inside the glass, then add the pebbles.
Mine are just going to be set out, so the insertion method work perfectly!
Arrange the succulents to your liking. You can fill them with all one color or follow my lead and add all different colors!
Alrighty, we are done! They are ready to put on display and adored!
Check out the detail on these. It doesn’t take much to give them a little pop. You can use a lighter paint on top of the dark or vice versa. And for the glitter, use a solid color and go for a gradient style. The idea is to have fun and play with these awesome contrasting colors. This is a great project for any newbie crafters or for a workshop. It’s easy to make and the end result will make you feel so proud!
I totally want to also make this for the holidays. I can already see the red and white stripes on the glass. These would also make nice candleholders (battery-operated tea light) or dishes for wrapped candies or nuts.
Okay, now I want to go back to. Dollar Tree and BUY ALL THE MARGARITA GLASSES!
When shopping for succulents, buy them according to shape (all different ones!) as opposed to color. That’s because you’ll be painting on them…
Thanks for reading through this!
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