How to Update a Hanging Planter

Learn how to update a hanging planter easily by swapping out the old twine or string with something more modern looking. It’s that easy!

How to Update a Hanging Planter from Big Lots

Just a quick little project to share today—how to update a hanging planter! I can always use a new hanging planting, but to be honest, I didn’t have any hanging planter DIYs on the docket. The week I picked this planter up, I was pretty busy with work and trying to enjoy the newly warm and pleasant weather with R.

It was super hot for a few days, so we decided to get a kiddie pool. I looked up the kiddie pool stock of a bunch of different stores in town. And as suspected, pretty much everyone was out. Obviously we had waited until the last minute. I did see that Big Lots had a splash pad, though, so I popped over to get it. 15 bucks well spent—she loves it!

But that’s not what this post is about…

It’s about how to update a hanging planter. Because as I was headed out of the store, a really cute planter caught my eye. I’d never been to Big Lots before—our store is fairly new because it replaced the old Toys R Us. They had a pretty decent selection of hanging planters and plant pots.

I loved the shape, size, color and price of this one. It’s ceramic, and it had a sisal rope hanger. It really reminded me of this pretty planter Bigger Than the Three of Us made.

I very lazily forgot to get a before photo before I cut off the sisal rope, so here is a picture of the planter on the Big Lots website…that I took of my computer with my phone. 🙂 Great price, $7.20! To be honest, I probably would not have ordered the planter based on this photo; I think it looks much better in person (and in my pics, ha).

I wasn’t really keep on the sisal with the super modern look of the high-gloss white hanging planter. So I decided to snag it and update it with some supplies I had at home. I’ve been working through a supply of leather rope I got last year on various projects, and even though I’d used a lot on the hanging planter project below, I knew I’d have enough for this one.

So here’s how I updated my Big Lots find!

Step 1: Cut sisal and clean planter

The first thing I did was cut the sisal off and remove all of those annoying stickers discount stores put all over everything. Why do they have to remind me so many times that I can’t afford to shop at Crate and Barrel? WHY?

Soap and water will usually get these stickers off. If your stickers are really stubborn, check out my tip on how to remove sticker residue.

Step 2: Cut and thread leather rope

Again, I used this leather rope designed for crafting because I had it on hand. I’m really trying to work through some of the random supplies in my craft closet, and this was a perfect use! It was *just* small enough to fit through the opening that the sisal was knotting through.

I did end up cutting the end of each piece at an angle to help smush both of them through the hole. This took a few minutes and a bit of luck I think, but at least the snug fit will help keep things secure.

I also eyeballed how long I wanted my rope to be by knotting the leather and doing a test hang. When I finally settled on the perfect length, I double-knotted the rope as tightly as I could and trimmed the excess.

Step 3: Secure planter rope and add plant

I then grabbed some super glue and squirted it into the crevices of the double knot. It was pretty secure without the glue, but since the planter itself was pretty heavy, I didn’t want to take any chances with stability and weight when I put a plant in it. Especially a wet plant.

You can use any sort of super glue. Something with a fine-point tip is nice because you can squirt it down inside the knot for extra security. Let this dry, then hang your planter. I slid mine into a secure curtain rod, but you can also hang it from a hook. (See my tips on how to hang planters from the ceiling.)

As it happens, I already had a high-light plant in a little pot that was the absolute perfect size to sit down in this hanging planter! The gray and white colors of the pot also look lovely with the white and black on the planter.

I’m all about maximizing the space I can have my plants, especially in the areas of our home that get the best light! This is the 5th hanging plant in this corner, so probably the last I can squeeze in. But don’t test me. 🙂 (Another one of the hanging plants in this corner is my stainless steel bowl DIY hanging planter. I also have my DIY test tube propagation station over here.)

Pin my tips about how to update a hanging planter!