Upcycled Easter Centerpiece Box With Faux Wheatgrass

If you're looking for an Easter table decoration idea that won't break the bank, then you'll love this. Today I'm sharing a fun upcycled Easter Centerpiece Box with faux wheatgrass plus how I decorated it with chair spindle carrots and DIY speckled eggs. That's three Easter crafts in one! Everything you need to make it can be found at the dollar store and your local thrift store and I'll show you how easy all three are to make.

Upcycled Easter Centerpiece Box with faux wheatgrass

I've had this indoor metal planter for over a decade and it came with artificial wheatgrass. I bought it to center above the basement fireplace mantel because the height didn't infringe on the remote control sensor on the television hanging above. There it sat for over a decade collecting dust.

For years I've been telling myself that it's time to get rid of the darn thing until a few weeks ago when I was inspired by Sarah Sadie Seasongoods hobnail milk glass Easter vases.

The faux wheatgrass was the inspiration I needed to upcycle my long-neglected planter and repurpose it into a fun and whimsical Easter table decoration for our dining room.

I love how Sarah nestled colorful Easter eggs in wheatgrass and then I remembered I had a carton of dollar store chalkboard pastel Easter eggs in my stash that I bought last year.

If you've been following me long enough around here, you know that I love to paint everything. With the eggs already pastel colors, I decided to pull out the paint anyway and speckle those pretty eggs.

Then I got to thinking since I'm using an indoor planter, why not plant something in that faux wheatgrass.

I have a stash of antique chair spindles in the workshop and a drawer full of faux greens so I made some fun chair spindle carrots to plant in the wheatgrass too. I'll show you how easy they are to make further down in this post.

The antique chair that these spindles came from is the chair that keeps on giving. I used the chair back to make this DIY Bird Feeder and the longer spindles from the back to make these Wooden Caddies With Chair Spindle Handles. I used the smallest spindles for stems on these Retro Fabric Pumpkins and this Chair Spindle Snowflake decoration.

So as promised, let's get into the nitty-gritty of how made all the elements for these DIY Easter decorations, staring with the upcycled planter.

I've included a supply list towards the bottom of this post. It contains affiliate links so you can see what products I used or recommend. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Upcycled Metal Planter Box

Just a little white paint is all it took to give the bronze planter a fresh new look for Spring. I brushed the entire metal planter with two coats of Raw Silk Fusion mineral chalk paint.

Once the paint was dry I distressed along the edges and over the round divots with 220-grit sandpaper. To protect the finish I used clear wax buffed to a matte finish.

While the wax was curing I set about to clean the dusty faux wheatgrass mats by setting them in the kitchen sink spraying them with the spray nozzle. Spritzing them with a water bottle will also work. Set them aside to dry.  I've included a link to artificial wheatgrass in the supply list below.

While the grass was drying on a towel I filled the centerpiece box 2/3 full with pea gravel from the dollar store. Once dry, I set the wheatgrass sheets on top of the pea gravel and it was ready to plant some carrots and speckled eggs.

How To Make DIY Speckled Easter Eggs

You can make these speckled eggs in less than five minutes with pastel chalkboard eggs from the dollar store - no painting required! Of course, you can use the real thing too. You will need some dark grey or charcoal colored craft paint and either a paintbrush or toothbrush.

Squirt a little dark grey craft paint onto a paper plate and dilute with a drop or two of water. Dip the brush into the paint and flick the bristles to spray flecks of paint onto the eggs. That's it, can't get much easier than that!

Funny story about my speckled eggs...

Well, it wasn't so funny at the time.

I set myself up on the work table at the far end of the workshop. Apparently, I was having too much fun with the paint splattering because on the opposite side of the room, I had just finished the last coat of paint on my Pink Ombre Waterfall Dresser.

You probably guessed where I'm going with this.

Not only did I have speckled eggs but a speckled pink dresser too! Panic set in because it isn't quick and easy to get the ombre paint finish, especially considering it was my first time trying the technique.

Thankfully the grey specks hadn't dried yet and I was able to easily wipe them off with a damp cloth.

How To Make Chair Spindle Carrots

Now onto the fun chair spindle carrots and how easy they are to make.

I was happy to finally put more of my antique chair spindles to good use with these fun wooden carrots. I found the artificial greens to use as carrot tops at the dollar store.

You can see in the photo above that the ends of my chair spindles were uneven and in rough shape. First, clean up the ends by trimming them with a miter saw.

Next, we're going to paint the spindles to look like real carrots with dry brushed layers of paint.

How to dry brush layers of paint

To dry brush, all you do is dip just the tips of your paintbrush into the paint and dab the excess onto a paper towel. Simply glide the brush over the spindles with very little pressure on the brush in random brush strokes. You want to see the dark stain underneath the paint. 

I used paint that I had on hand to paint the wooden carrots. You'll want a dark and light orange and perhaps a mustard yellow too.

Start with the darkest orange paint color (sorry it's a custom color that I mixed ages ago and forgot to label). Once dry to the touch (mere minutes) dry brush a layer of yellow (Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in the color Arles). Use the lightest orange color for the final painted layer. If you don't have chalk paint on hand, any craft paint will work as well.

Once the paint is dry, poke a hole in the top of each spindle with an Awl. Drill a hole for the faux carrot tops with a small drill bit.

Clip the faux greens with wire cutters, put a dab of E6000 glue on the ends of the stem, and slip them into the drilled holes (pictured below).

Now you're ready to plant some carrots!

Push the carrots through the grid of the artificial wheatgrass and then through the pea gravel to hold in place. Nestle the speckled eggs in the grass and you now have an adorable Easter centerpiece.

Supply List

Rectangular Metal Box (wood or glass)
Artificial Wheatgrass
Small Pea Gravel
White Chalk Paint
220 Grit Sandpaper
Clear Chalk Paint Wax
Pastel Chalkboard Eggs
Graphite Craft Paint
Small Paint Brush or Old Toothbrush
Small Chair Spindles (salvaged)
Dark Orange, Light Orange, Mustard Yellow Paint
Artificial Greens (for carrot tops)
Awl
Small Drill Bit
Drill
E6000 Glue

For more DIY Spring inspiration visit my Spring|Easter Ideas page on the blog and my Spring|Easter Decor Board on Pinterest.

If you have any questions about this Easter centerpiece idea, please leave them in the comment section below or the Contact Me tab at the top. I love hearing from you!

If you enjoyed this Easter craft, I'd be so thankful if you shared it with a friend or pinned it to your Easter Decorating Board or Spring Ideas Board or Upcycled Home Decor Board on Pinterest.

I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.