Give your potted plants a new home with this easy DIY
Build a Wooden Decorative Crate For Your Home
Have you ever constructed a DIY project with nails or screws? For some DIYers, the thought seems impossible. But with Loctite® Extreme Glue Gel, you can forget the hardware and create a beautiful, sturdy decorative crate with the most durable adhesive on the market.
Our friend Ashlee (@thesassybarn) created her own crates to house her potted plants on her patio, which were looking a little lonely. The painted and distressed finished product provides the perfect farmhouse aesthetic for her outdoor space.
Watch Ashlee’s process in the video below.
Directions
1. CUT YOUR LUMBER INTO THE APPROPRIATELY SIZED PIECES
Make sure you have enough of each sized piece. You will need eight long pieces to create the longer sides of the crate and sixteen shorter pieces to create the shorter sides of the crate and framing pieces. Remember to measure twice, cut once! This is also a good time to sand any sharp or splintered edges.
2. LAY OUT YOUR PIECES
Create your first side by taking two shorter pieces and placing them vertically on a flat surface about 10 inches apart. Take four of the longer pieces and place them horizontally across the two short pieces to create a flat rectangle. The ends of the longer pieces should be flush with the shorter pieces. Repeat this exact process again to have the second side of your crate laid out.
To create the shorter sides of the crate, repeat the process of placing two 8-inch pieces vertically down but a bit closer together and use four shorter pieces to go across horizontally in the same array. Again, repeat this process to arrange the final side of the crate.
Keep the remaining short pieces to the side for now. We’ll need them later!
3. Assemble crates
Using Loctite® Extreme Glue Gel, secure each wall of the crate together by placing adhesive on the vertical pieces, then placing the four other pieces horizontally. Let cure.
Then, adhere the four sides together to assemble the four sides of the crate. Once secured, you will be adding the bottom of the crate by attaching the remaining short pieces to one of the open sides.
Because the crate is intended to be decorative, you don’t have to fully secure the bottom. Feel free to leave space between each wood slat.
4. Sand and paint
Finally, you can choose to leave your crate looking natural, or sand it down and paint it your color of choice. Ashlee sanded, painted and then sanded the crate again after painting to give it a distressed look. And voila! A full decorative wooden crate held together entirely with strong, durable adhesive. No nails, screws or clamps required.
After the paint has dried, use the crate as a decoration around your home. Ashlee put her terra cotta flower pots in her crate to liven up her patio, but you can use it in a sunroom, mudroom, laundry room or wherever else you feel inspired!
These crates are easy to put together and long-lasting with the help of Loctite® Extreme Glue Gel. Give it a try the next time you feel like giving your screws a break.
