craft Sarah is the author of craftinvaders.co.uk where she blogs about her original craft tutorials, recipes, foraging, and developing wellbeing through being By Sa rah Wh iting creative, spending time outdoors and connecting with nature
WHAT IS MILK PAINT?
M
ilk paint is a water-based paint made from milk protein, lime and clay with natural pigments added for colour. Milk paint contains only natural ingredients, so it is environmentally safe and non-toxic. It is perfect for children’s furniture and toys, is food safe and ideal for those looking to reduce the level of toxins in their home. Milk paint has been used for thousands of years. It is incredibly durable, often lasting for hundreds of years if protected from the elements. It sinks into porous materials and hardens over time, so will not peel or chip like many modern paints. Supplied in a powder form that is mixed water, milk paint can be used both as a colour wash using a thin coat or built up in layers to provide a solid matt colour with a velvety finish. Succulents are easy to grow as long as they have good drainage so they will love the conditions these strawberry planters provide. I used a selection of trailing Sedum and Sempervivums to plant up the succulent pots. Most of them I bought for this project, but I did also grab a couple of cuttings from others I already had in the garden.
Upcycling Planters I’VE HAD TWO TERRACOTTA STRAWBERRY PLANTERS LURKING EMPTY IN MY GARDEN FOR YEARS. I HAVE NEVER MANAGED TO GROW STRAWBERRIES SUCCESSFULLY IN THEM; THEY ALWAYS DRY OUT AND DIE. SO IT WAS TIME TO ADD A POP OF COLOUR BEFORE PLANTING THEM WITH DROUGHT LOVING SUCCULENTS
Materials − Terracotta strawberry planters − Milk paint − Paint brush − Mixing pot (for the milk paint) − Succulents for planting − Soil, compost, vermiculite, stones
Instructions 1. Before you start anything, make sure your planters or pots are clean by washing them with soapy water, before leaving them out to dry. It doesn’t matter if you can’t get them spic and span, a little bit of character works well! 2. Mix up your milk paint as per the instructions provided. 3. Apply a first layer to your planter and allow to dry. 4. If needed, apply a second coat of milk paint to make the colour really ‘pop’. 5. Leave to dry overnight or as per instructions. 6. Work out where you would like your individual succulents, place them and
6 etcetera
start filling the planter with soil. Due to the weight of the terracotta planters, I decided not to add any gravel to my soil mix. Instead, I mixed vermiculite and compost to make my succulent soil. 7. The pot grown succulents pushed into the holes of the strawberry planter perfectly. For the spots where I planted cuttings, I used stones to hold them in place and to stop the soil falling out while I wait for the plants to establish and fill up the hole.
Happy Crafting!
