Today, I’ll show you a simple decorating change implementing small galvanized metal containers.

Living in an apartment rental can sometimes be frustrating for the “interior designer wannabe”  in me. Because of our rental agreement, we can’t do anything to the apartment walls that could cause significant damage to them or we will pay hefty fees when the lease is up. Mind you, a little nail here and there is fine since you can cover up the holes with caulk later on. But for heavier items we have come to rely upon the AMAZING Command strips. They leave no damage on the walls!

For the new simple change I wanted to do to the apartment decor this month, I knew I had to use these amazing little things. I am always stocking up on them and have both the velcro and the glue types.

I have been perusing Pinterest for inspiration lately, and have gotten interested in the “galvanized metal” theme.  I just didn’t know how to implement it into our little apartment until I was strolling around our neighborhood At Home store and found these little gems on sale:

I automatically imagined these on a wall in my dining room, with flowers I can change according to the season. On the walls I am talking about we currently have a set of 6 little mirrors we got from Target, hung with command strips.

I have always felt like they still needed something else… My husband hung a canvas with fun “Family Rules”on one side, but I never liked that the whole wall looked funky and uneven (I let him have the canvas up ;-), so he wouldn’t feel bad). Now though, the galvanized “planters” are up and it is such a nice difference!

For this DIY arrangement, I used leftover artificial flowers (real ones will die on me, I guarantee it) from my Spring centerpiece arrangement and from a bedroom arrangement I had made a few weeks ago (pictures to follow in a separate post). I got all those and the following extra materials from JoAnn Fabrics with mail and online coupons from the website (tip: do a Google search for them, and you will find several ones in sites like Retailmenot.com). Like always, I also took with me online coupons I found for Michaels and Hobby Lobby (same Google search as above). If items are on sale or on clearance, the coupon gets applied on top of the sale/clearance price. The total I spent on these arrangements was $14.48, but if we count the Command strips and rubbing alcohol the total was $18.43. Still, pretty good for something I can use in multiple different decorations.

Materials:

2 styrofoam blocks (1-7/8″x 2-7/8″x 5-78″ $4.49--> plus 2, 50% off coupons= $2.25 each, $4.50 total)
galvanized metal planters ($4.99 on sale at At Home)
rubbing alcohol (for cleaning the surface where these will be hanged, $0.99 at Walmart)
Command strips ($2.96 at Walmart)
wire cutter (already had one of these)
bunches of artificial flowers in different colors of your choice (already had leftover of these from my centerpieces, and they cost anywhere from $3.99 to $9.99, but make sure you get them from the clearance section and with coupons)

The first step is to measure the area you have where the planters will go. Measure the planters as well and mark where they will go on the wall so they look centered.

Next, cut any too-long stems from the flowers, leaving enough stem for you to stick it into the styrofoam later. Make sure to save any extra leaves, since you can use those in future decorations. Stick the flowers into the styrofoam blocks so they are sturdy in there, and arrange them in whichever way you think will look nice. The styrofoam box fits in the planter with a lot of space around it but, once you put flowers in it, it fits more snug inside the planter and does not dance around so much.

Take the rubbing alcohol and wipe the area on the wall where the planters will go. Let it dry. Take the Command Strips and stick them on the planters following the instructions on the Strip’s box. Remove the tape cover from the Command Strip backs (the side that goes to the wall) and press the planters to the area of the wall where you want them. Hold them in place for about 30 seconds. DO NOT put anything else on the planters until at least 30 minutes have gone by to allow the glue to stick well to the wall.

Lastly, put the styrofoam and flowers inside the planter and voila! You are done!
Such a cute little change for your walls, that can be modified throughout the year!! Double and triple win!

If you have any questions or ideas for similar projects, please shoot us a message or a comment. We would love to hear from you!