How to Make a Seashell Succulent Planter

Carolyn J. Braden • 3 Minute Read  

How to Make a Seashell Succulent Planter

Living on Sanibel Island, Florida, I collect seashells with each beach walk. Sanibel is known for being a great shelling destination and it never disappoints. If I find a cool shell (that is not occupied by a living creature), I sometimes bring it home even if I don’t have an exact plan for it. As an artist, I always know I’ll find a purpose for my finds when the time is right.

Johnny Cash, modeling my new succulent planter

Recently, my miniature American Eskimo duo, Minnie Pearl and Johnny Cash, were playing on the porch and knocked over one of my potted small succulents. The pot broke into many little pieces. They are basically toddlers and are true half siblings, but almost never break anything, so I sent them on their way and cleaned it up. While cleaning, thought to place the homeless succulent into a large broken seashell until I could find it a new pot.

My finished seashell succulent planter

After a day, I liked how the succulent looked in the shell, so I bought some more succulents so I could turn it into a beautiful succulent planter. My husband and I do this a lot. We often take “lemons and turn them into lemonade” as part of our DIY philosophy. We turn neglected houses into homes, we have turned many thrifted or found items into beautiful home décor pieces and more.

My DIY succulent planter

Though we plan to sell our Sanibel Island home (one we definitely turned into “lemonade” before Hurricane Ian and again afterwards), I can still take my DIY succulent planter with me as it will look beautiful in a bathroom (in the Georgia falls and winters) or on a porch (in the Georgia springs and summers) at our next home. Read on to learn how to make a seashell succulent planter.

This succulent planter would make a great gift idea for a beach lover

What you’ll need for this project:

Watch me make the planter in my one minute video tutorial below or via my YouTube channel @carolynjbraden:

Directions:

1—If you found the shell on the beach, rinse it well and allow to dry

You can use large or small seashells, broken or not

2—Remove the succulents from their pots and place them in the shell

I used real succulents but you could use faux succulents too

3—Add any potting soil if needed and water. I did not need any extra soil as my succulents came with plenty. Water once a week or as needed according to the plant directions, as they are very drought tolerant.

If you packed them in really, really tight, they may not get enough drainage and the shell may need to have some small holes drilled in it for proper drainage. Or, you could add a few rocks or loose seashells at the bottom of the shell before putting the plants inside the shell. That will help with water and air flow.

Fill in all the space on the shell with succulents

4—Optional: I didn’t overstuff my succulents to give them a bit of room to grow. In the meantime, I filled any negative space with loose shells that I also found on the beach.

Succulents do not need much care, so they are a great option if you don’t love doing too much maintenance on plants. Check out this article from HGTV to learn how to take good care of succulents.

You can adapt this to many different varities

For some reason, I think Johnny Cash wanted me to create this DIY succulent planter. He helped me model it on the porch after I created it. I think he agrees with me that it’s really cute! It came together in a matter of minutes and I think it would make a great gift idea too for any beach lovers in your life.

I did move the planter after taking the photo, as this is the scene of the “crime”….lol!

If you do not want live plants, you could also use faux succulents and no soil. Just buy plenty to fill the shell. If you chose a tiny shell and a tiny succulent, you may be able to glue a super strong button magnet to the back and turn it into a cute refrigerator magnet. You could also decoupage the shell before adding the succulents to the shell.

There are many possibilities for this project and if you tried this one or came up with your own version, tell us in the comments at the bottom of this post.

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Carolyn J. (C.J.) Braden is the owner of Carolyn’s Blooming Creations is a regular contributor and editor for CBC. She has been featured in numerous media publications such as InStyle Magazine, on HGTV, on Bustle.com, and more. She is the author of the books Georgia McMasters in Amethyst Lake Cemetery, How To Be Yourself: 3 Ways To Help You Being You, and the illustrator for the children’s book Bridging Connections. She is a former classroom teacher that now dedicates her life to educating others on how to live their most healthy, creative and happy life. Learn more about her visiting our About Us page.