This $15 Home Depot Burlap Trick Makes Plastic Planters Look More Expensive

I’m always keeping my eyes open for different ideas for how to decorate my backyard and patio. To be honest, it’s a bit of a mess right now — some fencing that needs repairing (our neighbors’ kids are always working on their free throws haha), planters that don’t have plants in them yet, a deck that probably needs refinishing, a little bit of weeding that needs to be done in between some pavers. It’s not too late to show our outdoor space a little love. But the lower-lift the decorating idea, the better. Because we have work to do!

That’s why I got so excited when I was at the Brooklyn East Fork store about a week ago for a special pottery painting event. The brand not only was debuting its new backyard “secret” garden, but it also was celebrating a planter collaboration with British company Whichford Pottery. The terracotta pots are absolutely lovely, but the way the team disguised what I think was likely a large plastic pot is what really caught my attention. That’s because it involved the strategic use of inexpensive garden burlap. 

If you look at what the team at East Fork did, it appears pretty simple. They took a piece of plain garden burlap and essentially wrapped it around a large, likely plastic planter that, to be honest, just wouldn’t have been able to hang next to the brand’s gorgeous Whichford pots. What an ingenious idea because planters that are large enough to fit trees and bigger flower varieties are very expensive (not to mention what the larger plant itself sets you back), and this fix appears to be really easy.

All you really have to do here is buy the burlap (The Home Depot has a big roll for just $15, or you may even have some hanging around) and wrap the plastic planter. Then figure out some way to secure it (a staple gun? Pins? Twine?). I love the way the burlap is effortlessly (but also artfully) folded here. And if you use garden burlap, you don’t have to worry about it withstanding the elements. Even better, if your burlap gets a little ratty, just rewrap it in fresh material, and recycle the first wrap by using it for what it’s meant for: tree protection, being a barrier for weeds, etc.

And if you are wondering about the pretty terracotta pot next to the burlap-wrapped palm tree, well, that’s from the East Fork x Whichford Pottery Collection. The collab was sparked by a floral drawing by East Fork’s founder, Alex Matisse. He showed his work to Jim Keeling, Whichford’s founder, who translated it into clay with carved roulettes, relief moldings, and hand-applied stamps on beautiful, frost-proof terracotta pots. A few different styles are available in three sizes with motifs.