Upcycled Picnic Basket Concrete Planter

A few months back I shared a fun tutorial “How to Make Faux Concrete Pots & Planters“, but in the back of my mind I still had an inspiration picture of another idea I had seen bouncing around, just waiting to be attempted!

I’ve had one that has been sitting in our garage for about 15 years, and while it is still in pretty decent shape, I never cared much for the color, and figured that it would be a good one to experiment on.

Now I just know that painting over real wood and antiques (…and baskets) is seen as a horror to some in the design world – so please consider this fair warning if you count yourself in that camp!

I suggest you might want to cover your eyes as you finish this blog post!

I know some items have true value and charm that it is good to preserve, but I also believe that for me, if painting or changing an item gives it a new and useful extended life in my home – that’s the right decision!

Since this was a true experiment, I learned some things in the process, and my tips & tricks below will share both my original thoughts and what I ended up doing so that you have the best information available to you before you proceed and try this at home!

*This post contains affiliate links to products I know &/or love.

Recap:

Overall, I wouldn’t consider this my favorite DIY project, but I’m glad that I did it and learned some things in the process!

I think a bit part of the adventure of DIY is to keep trying new things and to keep learning!

As I said before, my fascination of faux concrete brought me here, but I don’t think this will be the end! I’ve already been thinking about maybe trying to make some faux concrete pinecones this winter for Christmas, and maybe Faux concrete shells next summer…

I’d love to hear your ideas of other things that might be improved with a faux concrete finish!

Thank you for learning and going on this DIY adventure right along with me!

Shop this look

If you’re planning to use your piece outside or on an uncovered porch/deck, I’d suggest using a protective clear coat of some kind! I did not do this step, so I do not have a reccommended product!

If you know of one that would work well, please share it in the comments below.

I used a garbage bag I had on hand, but a heavy mil plastic would work well, too!

I used “Clara” begonias which are a beautiful white variety! I only had 3 plants, so that is what I used, but I could have easily fit 5. I tipped them a little bit toward the outsides of the basket to help give the appearance of fullness.

And I also added in some of my favorite faux IKEA Plants, “FEJKA” to fill in the gaps until later this summer when the begonias fill in a little more.

I’ve heard that begonias can survive over winter if brought inside, so this planter might make it’s way indoors to become part of my fall decor this year!

Supplies for your faux basket concrete planter:

• Wicker Basket | I used a thrifted picnic basket I had on hand, but this process could be done with any shape of wicker basket! Keep in mind that if you want to use it for a planter – it just needs to be a size and shape that will accommodate soil & plants!Here is an option for a more simple style from Amazon. And Here is another that looks similar to mine, but is a bit pricier! If you can find one at a thrift store or yard sale, you’ll save quite a bit!
• Plaster of Paris |optional – see notes below
• Gloves | if you chose to use the plaster of paris
• Paint Brush | I used a basic 1 1/2″ brush I had laying around
• Grey Paints (Light & Dark Shades) | I used : “Dove Tail” by Folk Art, & Annie Sloan “French Linen”
• Clear Coat | If you are planning to leave this on an uncovered porch or put it in the garden, you’ll want something to help protect it from the elements. I knew mine would be protected on our covered porch, so I skipped this last step.
• Plastic to line the basket
• Soil
• Plants

This was one of the places where I changed my mind after I finished my basket. I added the plaster of paris layer to the faux concrete pots that I did, because they were pretty smooth and really needed the extra dimension.

Because the basket is already chalk full of texture, I easily could have skipped the plaster of paris step and gone straight to painting!

It’s up to you to decide if you would like extra texture or not when doing yours!

Cover the entire basket in your lightest gray paint – using your brush bristles to carefully get within all of the nooks and crannies (and with wicker, there are plenty!).

Use the dry brush technique to add some depth with your darker grey shade.