I shared yesterday that I was working on a diy garden project that was for the birds! Our Lowes Creative Ideas Network challenge this month was to create a diy bird feeder or birdbath. After Matt’s failed attempt at creating a bird feeder, I just went ahead and purchased a cute feeder from Lowes. However, I had this fun idea to create a planter and bird bath in one and today I’ll show you how to make your own!
Supplies needed:
NOTE: Please use your own measurements and judgement when recreating this project. These are guidelines to follow and you shouldn’t necessarily even want to copy my project exactly. Be creative and add your own flair, pot sizes, rebar size, birdbath top, paint color, etc.
- 1 8″ tall terracotta pot for the base
- 4 6″ tall pots
- 1 4″-5″ tall pot
- 62 inch piece of rebar (I bought a 10ft piece from Lowes and had Matt cut it to size with a hacksaw. Lowes will cut if for you if you ask.) **Edited to add: My Lowes said they could cut it for me; however, someone had trouble getting their rebar cut by Lowes so you might need to purchase a hacksaw for this project. It’s $5.
- Spray paint primer. (I used Valspar primer.)
- Spray paint in your color choice. (I used Valspar in Exotic Sea.)
- Discarded globe from “boob light”.
- Little ceramic bird (Optional but uber cute.)
- DAP Household/Aquatic Adhesive
Step 1: Prime all of your pots and then spray paint them in whichever color you choose. This was my first time using Valspar spray paint and I have to say that I wasn’t a huge fan of the primer, but I loved the paint! The primer seemed to splatter a bit out of the can and it took two cans of primer to thoroughly cover the pots. Granted, I didn’t seal the pots before painting so they were thirsty for the primer! However, I used less than one can of Valspar’s gloss spray paint in Exotic Sea on all of the pots and on the birdie. I love this fun color for the garden!
Step 2: Measure the height of all of your pots and then add 24 inches to that number to determine the length of your rebar. Cut your rebar to size using a hacksaw. Use a hammer to pound the rebar into the ground at least two feet down so that it will hold your heavy pots.
Step 3: Thread your pots onto the rebar and fill with soil. Alternately tilt each pot from right to left, filling with soil as you go.
Step 4: Take the globe from one of your discarded “boob lights” and place it onto the top of the rebar. The bowl will be resting on the top flower pot but the rebar should thread all the way up into the birdbath bowl. I used DAP household/aquatic adhesive to attach the bird and to seal around the gap between the bowl and rebar hole. The adhesive takes a day to cure, so I’m not able to fill my bowl with water yet.
Step 5: Plant your flowers and enjoy!
For more DIY bird feeder, birdhouse, and bird bath projects be sure to check out Lowe’s Creative Ideas Magazine!
Disclosure: Lowe’s provided me with a gift card to showcase this project this month as part of their Lowe’s Creative ideas Bloggers team.
Brilliant! Not only is this such a cute idea, I love the hit of turquoise. If I were a bird, I’d appreciate the fancy spa treatment you’ve got going on!
This is so stinkin’ cute! I absolutely love it! I can’t wait to see pictures later in the season when the flowers are overflowing ! Great idea Beth! I’m tweeting, FB, & Pinning this one!
A-dorable!!! and love the recycled boob light!!!!!
I love this!!! Seriously the best one I have seen. Darling
BETH…this is adorable! I love it! Thanks so much for sharing!
This project looks adorable – so bright and cheery! And I really like that you’ve found a use for the globe from the boob light.
Pretty! I love those kinds of flowers
Great color you chose too
Oh my goodness this is the BOMB! LOVE it. When I saw the picture, I was like, “how the heck did she get them to stay like that?” then a big “ahaaaa” when I saw the rebar :O)
Great reuse of those ugly boob light globes. May get me to take down the last one I have and complete this project.
That is super cute!!! I love the paint color and the little bird. Now watch – this will have started a new blogger trend “how to reuse discarded boob lights” ; )
This is so cute! What a creative idea – thanks so much for sharing!
Oh my gosh Beth that is adorable. I pinned it. Way to go above and beyond!
This is so fun, pretty, and functional! Those birds will be bathing in style!
I love it, Beth! Adorable and whimsical!
Awesome!
So cute! May have to use this idea when I get the bush pulled out in front of my house.
Seriously? I love everything about it! What a fun and colorful project for your patio! Gosh. It’s adorable.
This is adorable! I think I will make one for my front flowerbed thanks for sharing!
Super Cute!
Oh my, this is awesome! I’m showing this one to my hubby and maybe he’ll help me with one for our yard! Pinning it!
Beth,
This is so sweet. I am going to make one for my studio! Thank you for sharing your creative and clever ideas with us.
Your Friend,
Deborah
This is so adorable and creative! I showed it to my husband and even he was impressed (He’s not the type that would typically be impressed by a birdbath).
Beth that is seriously the cutest thing ever! I absolutely love it.
That is seriously adorable. Saw the word rebar and was curious on how it would turn out but it looks great!
I found you via a pin on pinterest honestly this is brilliant and I LOVE your site! So glad I found your site! I love super clever creative ideas!
Very cute. I made a stacked planter a few years ago.
The addition of the bird bath is clever.
love…love…love this! Great idea! so creative!
THE best idea I’ve seen in a long time! love it~
Wow…TOTALLY creative!! Looks like it belongs in Whoo-ville & that’s a compliment
I love seeing things that are SUPER cute & VERY original!! No wonder you’re Lowe’s go to girl 
I think the pots sizes are wrong isnt it 1-6″ and 4-4″ pots? thats what it looks like in the picture?
Nope. The bottom is an 8″. The middle (main pots) are 6″ and the top is a 4″ or 5″ but really you can mix it up and do whatever you want.
Found your site through pinterest…LOVE this! Can’t wait to try it in our back yard. Seems like the perfect thing to add some major impact in a small space – which is exactly what our back yard is. Thanks for sharing this wonderful idea!
Very cute – love the turquoise paint!!
I was reading through the list of supplies and got to “boob light” and cracked up!!!!! I didn’t realize there were people (outside of my family) that called them that! Thanks for the how to on this. I’ve seen them a bunch and was never quite sure how they went together.
My flower bed will be rocking one of these very soon.Best part is it’s super easy and I already have all of the supplies.Thanks
This is so cute!! I love it!
Hey!! I am so excited for this project. I found it on pinterest and spent all day shopping/planning and starting this project!! have to admit I am more comfortable in a craft store than in a hardware store but am looking forward to the challenge! Thank you for this wonderful idea!!
Oh I LOVE it! I made one a couple of years ago but now I want a water dish at the top…super cute and my birds with LOVE it!
totally cute, Beth! Love the addition of the bird bath. I am featuring this at somedaycrafts.blogspot.com.
I would love to try this for my yard this summer. (I have pinned one of your photos to my PI page; if you’d like it removed, please let me know.)
I had to show Lowe’s this blog before they would cut the rebar for me. Otherwise, they said this.. “We don’t cut rebar.” Get your facts straight, please.
Sorry you were put out by it Bethany. My Lowes offered to cut it for me as I was struggling with a 10 ft piece on my shopping cart. Perhaps it’s not standard practice. I’ve updated my post to reflect this.
Perhaps a different approach to a comment could have been that you were frustrated to find out your Lowe’s store would not comply with your request. Not all stores/personnel follow the same procedure.
Beth would not purposely cause chaos between customers and nationwide Lowe’s stores. What did you LIKE about the post that attracted you to Beth’s post?
Beth, fantastic idea, found thru a mislabeled pin thankfully you watermarked so i could find it
keep up the great ideas, and dont let others put you down.
Dayna
Awesome idea! I’ve spent the morning shopping for all the supplies and. Any seem to find a ceramic Birdy:( any help on where I could find one would be awesome, I’ve tried joAnns and hobby lobby with no luck. Thanks in advance
Dollar tree has the little birds and so does Dollar General in there garden art department.
Hey,
Just found your blog by way of facebook, love it! you def have a new follower!
door251.com
Does water stay in the “boob light” bird feeder or does it drain through hole?
I used DAP Household/Aquatic adhesive (which can be used for aquariums) to seal up the gap between the bowl and the rebar. That being said, my water leaked out
. I don’t know if I didn’t use enough or if I didn’t let the glue cure long enough. I’m going to try again and might need to do several layers with curing time between. I’d love to hear others thoughts on what else might provide a water tight seal.
Maybe caulking it
I have been doing this design for about 5 years now, I love where i can move it around my yard if i need, I did find that trailing plants look really pretty in here, Moss Roses on the bottom made it look so pretty, Just so you know,, you do NOT have to paint the clay pots if you do not want to, I do not, and i do not put a bird bath on top, i put flowers.
So how do you move it around or store it? Do you have the 2 feet out the bottom?
Hi Tracy, I don’t move mine around at all. It’s a semi-permanent fixture. In the winter, I will “unthread” the pots and store them in the basement until next Spring but the rebar will stay where it is.
How adorable is this?? I love it!! Trying to think of a good spot for one in our yard!
I can’t wait to do this!! Looking at your pictures I could swear you were in my backyard! Our fence is the same as yours, stained the same color and we didn’t stain the very bottom either!! LOL…actually we did on the first couple panels but then realized that dirt was getting into the stain and brush. This project is just too cute!!
I love this design so much. I will be making one this Saturday. I am planning to run drip irrigation hose up into the pots through the same holes along with the rebar.
I absolutely LOVE this!! I’m wondering if anyone has ideas on how to assemble this with some sort of base so it can be moved? Also, since water is leaking out of the light globe, maybe attach a regular wide & shallow bowl or cute pie plate or treated terra cotta saucer to the top. The top pot would need to be secured snugly to the rebar somehow so it doesn’t tip….so maybe fill it with styrofoam cut to fit snugly inside….or a disk of wood with drilled hole in the center and glued. Just thinking out loud!
What a great idea. Something I can get my daughter and grandson involved…..Great idea
Great idea. I’m thinking of using this idea for strawberries. Much cheaper, and better than those expensive strawberry posts you can buy.
I LOVE THIS!! I’m going to attempt to make this for my mom for mother’s day…only problem is where does one find a ‘boob light’ similar to the one you used? Otherwise I found the rest of the materials. Thanks!
This might be too late, but it might help others. I found a beautiful one at a thrift store.
I am deffinately making these for Mother’s Day…. My Mom, His Mom and My Granny…. they are gonna love it…..
I am so excited to make this and now have my mom on board to make one too!! Super cute and oh so creative!!!
I love this idea! I saw it last night on Pinterest and went to Lowe’s and got all the stuff today!! I already have the primer on the pots! ah! can’t wait to paint on the blue!! thank you so much for sharing! I am a new home owner and now a new gardener and this is going to look great out there!
Limited from gardening this year but this is one project I think I will tackle. What a cute gift idea!!
My next project for my garden
How did you get the top pot to stay upright and not tilt to one side like the others?
I love the use of the “boob light”. I’ve recently noticed that reference online and now want to take my bathroom fixture down. I love how this project came together. Thank you for the tutorial.
It’s a great idea! I love it!
I will create one to my house and wait the birds (of course!)
Hugs from Brasil!
What an excellent idea. I am passing this one to my sister who has a small garden spot and this would be perfect for her. Love it.
I’m working on building one of these for my patio, but when I brought all the pots home and took a second look at the picture, I realized that the top pot measurement must be off. No way that pot is 4in wide. Maybe it was measured by height? This is such a cute project though!
olha q fofo e fácil….
LOVE this! I’m going to try this one for sure!
I showed this to my husband when I first saw this and he happily agreed to let me make it for our garden! We went to Lowes this afternoon and purchased everything we needed. My only problem was my 4″ pot’s hole is too small for the rebar we bought so we’ll have to gently drill it out. My Lowes was more than happy to cut the rebar as well! Can’t wait to put it all together tomorrow.
Hi, we had the same problem. We simply used the rebar as a sanding tool and rotated it back and forth. It shaved off enough to let the rebar in.
Hey Beth. this is super cute and very clever!!! I wish I had saved my boob lights from my kitchen remodel! hee hee!!!!
Quite a refreshing idea for a bird bath. Your creativity level is above normal.
just found your blog and this is so pretty thank you for the idea and the material list. looking forward to seeing you more often now. blessings from southeast iowa
Just wondering….what keeps the top pot from tilting like the others? I didn’t see anyone mention what did, but I may have skimmed right over it
The globe light fixture on the top keeps it from tilting.
Thank You!
Thank you for the wonderful tutorial. I made 2 of these for our mom’s for mother’s day. I have seen them around town. You are an inspiration. Our moms loved them. I replaced the light bowl with a clay saucer for the bird seed and it worked great.
I adore this project! I really want to make one but I live in an apartment so it would have to go on the balcony. Do you think there’s any way I could make this work without the ability to hammer the rebar into the ground? Any ideas? Thank you!
How hilarious that you call that a boob light! When my son was a newborn he would focus on the light in our bedroom. We jokingly call it the boob lamp because he was breastfed. We assumed he was gazing at it longingly
I love this. I’m looking for a cheap bird bath for my yard. I’m surprised, though, at the price of terra cotta pots. It’s almost cheaper to just buy a bird bath.
I absolutely LOVE this!! Is there any way to print out the instructions…I will never be able to remember it all!! Thank you! I am looking forward to other projects!
How did you get the top planter to be straight? How do you keep the water in the bowl when there is a hole in the bottom of it? I love your idea and would love to give it a try!
The light globe on top holds the pot upright. The rebar is slightly raised in the middle of the light globe and the DAP Household/Aquarium glue around the rebar (with some caulk) keeps it water-tight.
So beautiful
I was also wondering, since I have a deck, have you got any suggestions for keeping this upright without hammering it down? Thanks and amazing inspiration on this site x
Hmmmmm. Well, if I was going to do it as a stand alone, I would increase the size of the pot base and I would mix concrete and pour it into the pot with the rebar in the center. Once set, I would cover with soil and hope it wouldn’t tip over
.
What size of boob light did you use, 11, 13,15 inches? Or would it matter? Thanks Cindy
Wonderful craft! I shared on the Norcal Ace Facebook page.
this is so funny that you refer to the bird basin as a “boob light” i thought i was the only one who thought those light fixtures looked like boobs. haha….great project! i plan on trying this soon!
Love this! On my to do list!
Hi
Just wanted to give you a heads up. I saw this post a couple of days ago, then to my suprise saw it again today on this Chinese site
http://www.duitang.com/people/mblog/31562258/detail/
It is all over Pinterest today with the links going there. I know that others were having the same problem with this site but can’t remember which blogs it was.
I LOVE this idea…I found your exact pictures on this website http://www.duitang.com/people/mblog/31562258/detail/
Sorry to say but I think they stole your idea just wanted to make you aware!
Absolutely love it!
I finished it yesterday……….so so cute!!! I did it exactly like yours. The Lowes I went to would NOT cut the rebar so I
had to buy a 6′ length and only put one foot of it in the ground. It leaned a little bit after it was planted so I wired it to the fence.
The little bird, I purchased at Michaels. He’s a stuffed little blue bird and will fade in time. His feet are attached to a tiny clothespin that just clips on the light fixture/bird bath. When I find a cute little ceramic bird to replace this one with, I will glue him to a regular size clothespin!!!
Love it!
I put this on my Summer Bucket List!
http://arieloser.wordpress.com/2012/06/25/summer-bucket-list/
I’ll be sure to link it when I post about it after I make it as well.
Thanks so much… So cute!!
You can get those ceramic birds at Ace Hardware.
Hmmm……I don’t have any more “boob” lights in my house. How do you think it would sound if checked the local stores and asked if they ugly “boob” lights. LOL
I love this birdbath. What a pretty idea.
I think I’ll ask my sisters to make this for my new back yard view!
Hi,
I am really wanting to make this but am having a really hard time finding the birdie. Where did you get yours or where did others get theirs? Any ideas of where to check?
Thanks!
Hi Cheryl, I found mine at Michaels a few years ago.
Absolutely gorgeous. I just pinned this to one of my boards (the pic without the instructions is being pinned from a bogus site – ugh). I don’t think birds will bathe in a bowl that deep, but either way this is sooooo inspiring. What a beautiful project you created.
Hi Beth, was just wondering if you realize that someone has made a collage of your pics from this project and pinned it. Did not know if you were aware of it or not. I remembered seeing the original pin and knew that it was from a blog….Here is the pin addy… http://pinterest.com/pin/20618110764722189/
Wanted to show you this and let you know about it if you did not already know. Sorry that this stuff happens… http://pinterest.com/pin/20618110764722189/
Hey Beth — we think this project was a great (and very unusual) idea! But when we saw your comment that our Aquarium Sealant was leaking, we asked one of our product experts for some advice, since this is an unexpected application for that product. Here’s what he suggested for future reference:
“Using the aquarium sealant alone may not be the best idea, as the bowl can keep moving. Plus, if the rebar is either bare or “primed” with a zinc coating, the acetic acid in the silicone will corrode those surfaces, thus rendering the seal unusable.
I would use a stainless steel threaded bar, and then use a rubber gasket with a stainless steel nut/bolt along with either our household adhesive or straight polyurethane sealant to create a better seal.”
Hope this helps!
Hey Beth, I know it has been a while, so I am wondering how your bird feeder/planter has held up?
It is still so cute, I haven’t made one, but just sent instructions to hubs on his computer, so he can be thinking about it all winter!
Hi Bernice,
It still looks brand new. It’s held up better than I thought it would! I need to take it apart for the winter because the pots will crack in the snow, but so far so good.
I tried to make holes in my pots but only ended up breaking them. any tips?
I fell for this project as soon as I saw it on Pinterest, but the link was SPAM so I reported it. I used google image to find you, and just repinned! I think anyone would be happy to have this in their garden. Perfect Mother’s day or Father’s day gift. Just one question — What diameter rebar did you use?
Love love love this idea!!!! It’s going on my to do list for sure! Thanks for sharing
Love love love this!!! What a great idea…..going on my to do list or sure! Thanks for sharing
OHMYGOSH!! I absolutely LOVE this!! Thanks for the great idea. I’m so excited to do one! Ps. Where did you get the little birdie?
Love it but how do you change the water every day?
I just used our garden hose to flush it out and cleaned it with a scrub brush when it was looking like it needed it.
I saw this tutorial on pinterest but the link always lead back to random sites. I had finally given up on finding the original when I JUST today came across the image with your website printed on it. SO glad I finally found the right place. I’m excited to create one just like this for my garden.
Hi; I made the “tippy pott’s” from an idea I got from Birds & Blooms Magazine, but it did not have the bird bath on top, I am always looking for new ideas, and since I have been nagging my hubby for a bird bath this is the perfect solution to the problem. Now my birds can enjoy the flowers and take a bath at the same time. lol. Thanks for a great idea.
je tiens a vous dire super toutes ses belle choses qui nous font rever, et surtout nous donner des idées
un petit bémol domage que ce ne sois pas en francais aussi
pour certaines explication
bonne journée et tres bonne continuation
tailleur nicole
What is a Boob light?
Hi Shanna, I was just being silly in the post. It’s a flush-mount light. I dedicated an entire post on the topic here if interested: http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/decorating/do-boob-light-fixture.html
Do the pots need to be sealed or poly’d after painting?
Where can I find a “boob light” and do you know the approximate cost of the entire project, not including the paint? Very cute and creative!
It’s just the “globe” part of a flush-mount discarded light that I had. You can find one second hand at a thrift shop or Habitat Re-store. I really don’t remember the total cost of the project. I would guess around $25 but I’m not sure.
a brilliant idea!
I linked to your tutorial on my blog – thanks for sharing!
♥, doro von Hand zu Hand
OMG this is such an awesome and cute garden idea. I will be doing this with my 4 year old daughter who has been asking me to plant a garden and build a bird house with her. Two birds one stone, perfect!! BTW I thought I was the only one that called those light covers “boob lights” my friends and family look at me like I’m crazy when I say they look like boobs.
You’re not alone Dolores
! Enjoy creating your own garden planter and bird bath!
Love this, just bought all the stuff for it. Spent 18 on pots, used a 12″ on the bottom and 5 8″ for the top. Alternated between yellow and purple paint at 3$ per can and 3$ for the rebar. Not sure what plants to use yet. Something the birds will enjoy tho and I’m going to use a deep dinner plate for the bath, I’m afraid the boob light might be too deep for the feathered friends:) so for any one wondering the structure itself with out dirt and plants 25$-30$ depending on the size pots if your doing it all brand new. Love this project so much! Thanks for the fabulous idea!
I love love this! I am trying to make this for my mother on mother’s day. If I do not have a “boob” light what do you suggest I do? Or can I ask for one at Lowes? HELP
Hi Jamie, you don’t need a flush-mount light fixture to go on top. You can use any round planter. I’ve seen some people use the large “coffee mug” planters on top (that I think are at Walmart), a bowl (that they drilled a hole into), or just a large plant drainage plate. Good luck and send me some pictures when you’re done. I’d love to see it
.
I just made this and it came out beautifully. I didn’t do the bird bath on the top, another flower instead. Thanks for the instructions!
I just stumbled upon your birdbath through Spoonful. I just wanted to say that I love that you call it a “boob light” too. I read that and I knew EXACTLY what you were talking about, knowing I have a couple of those in my ceiling that I would love to discard. haha
Thanks for stopping by Thea
. And yes, I still have a few of the unsightly things in my hallway that need to be replaced!
I love this idea and all your other ones… we are a family of 6 and as you can imagine on a tight budget, what would really help out is knowing how much (and I know this wasnt much) you spent on the entire project. Thanks love the site
Hi Angela, I’m guessing between $25-$30. Maybe more depending on plants purchased to fill the pots and spray paint purchased.
Wondering how well this holds up in heavy rain…….does all the soil run out (w/flowers) or does it hold up pretty well?
Thank you. Anxious to make one of these…..if it works well, I may make 2 more for Mother’s Day gifts. But don’t want to “gift” it if one heavy rain destroys it.
I meant to take my pots apart and bring them in for the winter but I didn’t. The spray paint has chipped off of the top pot which I anticipated would happen. I’ll have to touch them up as soon as it’s warm enough to spray paint again. A coat of poly certainly wouldn’t hurt but if you live in an area with snow clay pots in general don’t do great outdoors all winter. Don’t overfill your pots and you won’t have any trouble with run off.