Now that spring is in full swing, I find myself, yet again, entranced by the indoor plant section at The Home Depot. Last week, I picked up a variegated pink polka dot plant, or a hypoestes if you must use the designated Latin name. In a way, I feel like I’ve come full circle, rounding back to the beginning of my indoor gardening journey – this was the very first plant I picked up when I was trying to stave off the loneliness of a long-term relationship by going full-blown crazy plant lady.
I also nabbed a Japanese aralia and spider plant last week. For a long time, I maintained a very basic plant collection since writing and reselling kept me fairly busy. But I found my way back into my hobbies – no matter how fun work is, it’s work at the end of the day, and you need to turn off your brain. And so, along with binging indie movies on Mubi and toiling away on Kaplan crossword puzzles from estate sales, I’ve amassed an indoor plant garden yet again (which in many ways is still more modest than my indoor jungle from 2022).
And with a growing indoor plant garden, you need gardening accessories. As this is mainly a thrifting blog now, I want to tie everything back to thrifting. Lately, I’ve been picking up most of my indoor plant accessories at secondhand shops and upcycling vintage inventory that I can’t resell for one reason or another. I love repurposing thrifted goods into planters and other plant goodies because they’re often incredibly affordable (hello, tariffs!) and one-of-a-kind.
So, if you’re looking for fun and creative ways to repurpose and upcycle thrifted treasures into indoor plant swag, keep on reading!
1. Glass bud vases as propagation vessels
I found these pretty pink mid-century bud vases at Goodwill for 25 cents a pop. I love how they add a hint of glam and don’t make my space look too much like a chemistry lab, although I know some people enjoy that test tube botanist vibe. Plus, they’re clear, so you can watch the roots grow as you propagate them. Here they are with some basic golden pothos cuttings.
2. Mugs as planters
My dad and I have a mug problem. We can’t stop buying cheap mugs at the thrift store. And often, we’re too unmotivated to list them for resale, so, much to my mother’s chagrin, we have a well-stocked (and overflowing) arsenal of mugs in the kitchen pantry (and elsewhere). To keep them from taking over our cabinets and island, I’ve started using a few for my plants.
Tip: 16- and 24-ounce mugs are actually perfect cachepots for 2- to 4-inch plants. I have this hoya wayetti in a cute 80s Laurel Burch cat mug!
For a bit of decorative flair, I also popped this owl mug inside of a bird cage for wreaths.
3. Fine china plates and saucers as plant saucers
Sometimes (OK, oftentimes), I am too lazy to find a pot for my plants. But plastic and terracotta nursery pots are, frankly, kinda sad on their own. At the very least, a nice saucer can really make them less of an eyesore while I’m in the process of finding a suitable pot. While I used to buy lots of plastic saucers from Lowe’s and Dollar Tree, I now pop my cachepot-less plants onto fancy gilded vintage plates. It’s truly criminal how cheap vintage gilded Limoges and Royal Albert plates are at the thrift — you can usually find them for about $2 to $5. This is a floral Royal Cotswolds plate that I picked up at the thrift for about two bucks or so.
If you’re willing to risk it, you can also drill a hole into a vintage teacup to use it as a planter and pop that on its matching saucer. Bear in mind that healthy roots grow and spread, so you might not be able to keep your plant contained to a tiny teacup for very long.
4. Teapots and pitchers as planters
A few months ago, I came across this adorable pink mid-century Korean teapot at an estate sale. I didn’t know what I was going to do with it, but I knew I had to have it. Turns out, it’s the perfect home for my pink polka dot plant. I was too lazy to create a drainage hole, but thankfully, it’s a moisture-loving plant. I packed gravel at the bottom of the teapot just in case. Let’s hope for the best — I completely forgot to throw in perlite when I repotted it (lol).
Last month, I also went to an estate sale where the (presumably late) homeowner planted a bunch of pothos propagations in miscellaneous vessels, including this lovely pink pitcher. It too has no drainage hole, but it’s been hanging on fairly well.
Side note…I also picked up that GORGEOUS Tiffany style lamp there for a very affordable price. (If you are ever estate sale shopping in the Central Valley, I highly recommend the Sterling Estate Sales company — I always get awesome deals from their sales.) I also want to note that you can usually find lots of gardening supplies at estate sales, whether you’re looking for bird baths, fertilizer pellets, or vintage planters.
5. Bonus: One-of-a-kind planters
Quite frankly, I’m not the biggest fan of the planter marketplace right now. If you want options beyond Japandi ceramic cachepots and self-watering plastic junk, I highly recommend hitting up your local thrift store for more varied styles. Some of my fave finds include this vintage hobnail milk glass pot and hand-painted floral Chinese fishbowl style planter.
That’s it from me today. Now that I’m cautiously reviving my plant hobby, I’d love to weave in a few more plant-related posts down the line — I find that they do pretty well for me, so I’m excited to connect with other plant lovers from a thrifty angle. Plus, stay tuned for vintage fashion blogs, since I’ve been beefing up on my brooch history knowledge!
