This post was originally published on DIY Network’s blog Made + Remade in September 2014.
Feeling crafty? This hanging planter was made of just basic rope and embroidery thread (so easy-peasy). I chose a glow-in-the-dark 1/4″ Polypropylene cord, but the color combinations are basically endless – white rope/gold thread is on my list next. It’s easy to construct your own to suit a specific room in your home, and existing decor.
Learn how to make your own hanging rope planter by referencing the tutorial below!
Step 1
Cut 8 pieces of rope, each 36″ in length. Prevent fraying by melting the rope. Hover the cut ends beneath a lit match and allow the melted synthetic materials to flash-singe together.
Step 2
Lay your 8 pieces of cut rope in a circle, so that the middle of each rope overlaps in the center. It should look like a big pizza pie, with the ropes at even lengths all around.
Step 3
Use one package of embroidery thread to knot the pieces of rope together as one. You will be using most, if not all, of this length of thread, so keep it as untangled as possible.
Step 4
Weave the remaining length of thread around and through the individual pieces of rope to help anchor them into their position in the circle, and strengthen what will become the base of the planter. Keep wrapping the thread until the ropes are secure, and until the thread sufficiently covers the entire overlapping area.
Step 5
Lay the ropes back onto the floor flat, and pair them up so that you have 8 extending sections.
Step 6
Using another package of embroidery thread (in a contrasting color, or the same color if you wish!) tie each pair together, wrapping the thread tightly to bind them in a neat way.
Step 7
Continue all around until you are left with 8 tied sections. Separate the loose ends of each pairing, and allow it to re-pair with the neighboring rope.
Step 8
Repeat the process with a third package of embroidery thread, so that your ropes begin to look like a web when laid flat on the ground. You can continue to add a third row by re-pairing the loose ends again, depending on how deep or engulfing you need your hanging planter to be.
Step 9
You might find it easy at this point to grasp your loose cords at the ends and create one big knot, but with this many pieces at 1/4″ thickness, the knot would have been the size of a baseball, so I improvised. Gather the loose ends together so that when hanging, the basket is level and the ropes are taut. Lay them flat, and through each rope, run a needle with embroidery thread.
Step 10
The thread is what your hook will latch onto.
Step 11
Gather all of the loose ends together around the hook, and use another length of embroidery thread to first tie, and then wrap, around them to finish the hanging piece. If your ends were a little bit off like mine were, trim them to be the same length at this point, and use another match to melt the ends to prevent fraying.
Step 12
Choose a vessel sized to fit your hanging planter. If you’ll be hanging yours outside, make sure it has drainage at the bottom to allow for rainwater runoff. Mine is an 8″ glass globe, perfect for air plants, succulents, and cute cacti. I like using aquarium gravel in a miniature garden (the coarser pebbles are better than the mini rocks for drainage purposes).
Step 13
Layer the gravel, soil, and plants into your vessel. A layer of gravel on the bottom makes for happy, well-drained roots, but I added a thin layer on top too, to cover some visible roots without adding more soil.
Step 14
Put the plant between the ropes of your new hanging basket, nestle it into place, and enjoy!
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