Love is in the air on the blog today! A painted box planter and succulent arrangement have been on my to do list for quite some time now. And since my weakness for succulents has lead to a pretty big collection of mini potted succulents there’s no better time to plant some of them together…and make room for more!

In case you didn’t know, most succulents and cacti love being part of a clique. These social bunch can be packed into planters like pickles! In fact, it helps promote slower growth so you won’t have to replant them for some time. I purchased most of these succulents online, from my favorite wholesaler, Mountain Crest Gardens. They have the most divine selection of succulents delivered right to your door!

I found this box planter at Target for only $3, and it already came lined with plastic.However, most craft stores have a great selection of wood boxes and planters you can easily paint, and line with plastic. For the plastic you can use a sandwich bag, freezer bag, or I’ve even used a plastic magazine sleeve. As long as it’s water tight, you’re good go!

The laser cut wood sign is from Michael’s craft store. They have tons of different option, but since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner I thought I would stick with a classic.

Step 1: Protect your work surface from paint by laying down newspaper or magazines. Pint the wood box planter with black acrylic paint. Set aside and allow to dry completely. You can find laser cut wood signs in at most craft stores. I found this one at Michael’s. They also had cut out hearts which would also like just as lovely. Paint the wood sign in red and let dry a few minutes.

Step 2: Add pearls of E6000 glue to the back of the wood sign and place on the front of the wood box planter. I found that offset to the left or right looks best.

Step 3: The wood planter came with a plastic liner. If you don’t have a plastic liner you can use a sandwich bag or plastic magazine sleeve cut to size. Since there are no drainage wholes you’ll need to layer the planter similar to a terrarium. Place the rocks down first. Followed by a layer of charcoal to keep everything smelling fresh. Next add potting soil specially formulated for succulents, which helps with drainage and keeps the soil airy and light.

Step 3: Remove succulents from their pots and pack them in! Work from left-to-right or front to back. Adding large succulents first will leave you with little room to work, so add your smaller succulents in first.

Terrarium care: Provide plenty of light for your succulents. A brightly lit window for at least 6 hours a day will suffice.