This TikToker Created a Luxurious-Looking Table Using Cheap Planters

Now that spring planting season has begun in much of the Northern Hemisphere, you’re probably seeing tons of options for planters at home centers, nurseries, department stores, and other shops. And yes, you can scoop some up to hold some of your spring-planted flowers or even your favorite indoor plants. But there are plenty of other creative ways to use planters that don’t involve plants at all.

TikToker Geneva Vanderzeil (@genevavanderzeil) showed how with this clever hack that turns planters into a cool table base. After spotting a sculptural dining table that she loved, but that cost way more money than she wanted to spend, Geneva decided to try to recreate the look for less. She lucked into an ultra-cheap plain round table she scored secondhand that she could use for the top, but the base required a little outside-the-box thinking. Her solution: Stack a few bowl-shaped planters.

The planters Geneva chose were made of lightweight fiber cement, meaning they were easy to stack (and easy to move, once they were put together). Geneva used construction adhesive to secure them into stacked spheres; where she wanted to create a half-sphere, she glued a wood round on top of the planter. Then, she followed with a couple layers of plaster over the entire assembly to help fill the joints and make this look like all one piece.

On the tabletop, Geneva used a textured paint to mimic the look of stone; using it on the base, too, made the whole piece feel cohesive. Finally, all that was left to do was attach the base to the top, which Geneva did with construction adhesive (and the help of a friend).

The results look like an expensive carved stone dining table — not something that Geneva pulled together using materials from the thrift store and the home center. And even better? She didn’t have to pull out a single power tool.

You can use any combo of planters to get a similar look yourself. Go for a combo of spheres and half-spheres like Geneva, or try a tall urn shape for something with a more traditional vibe. Want more info on how Geneva pulled this project off? Find the complete step-by-step instructions on her website, Collective Gen.