Hanging Teacup Planter Upcycle

February 17, 2017 by Patti Estep 17 Comments

Learn how to create a hanging teacup planter by upcycling a china cup and planting it with a proper plant, using twine to create a hanger.

Vintage teacup hanging with string of pearls planted inside

Old teacups are so pretty and I love seeing all the ways people reuse them in their decor. I've made teacup candles before and today I will show you how to create a beautiful hanging planter with an old teacup.

Making a Hanging Teacup Planter

When deciding on what to plant in this cup the lovely String of Pearls Plant, aka Senecio rowleyanus, came to mind. After all, good china and a string of pearls go perfectly together. Also, the fact that it is a succulent plant means it doesn't need to be watered very often so keeping it in a container like this would probably work.

I have a few teacups that came from my mother, but also several that I've collected at antique malls over the years. I thought the pretty rose floral one was a good size for housing a plant.

This is a little transplant, I purchased it online it already had several "strings" flowing over the sides. When it came in the mail, all the little stems were neatly packed inside, and like a fine necklace, you need to carefully untangle them before repotting.

Aerial view of a teacup and saucer. There are a handful of small stone in the cup.

Since this planter would not have any drainage holes I placed a nice layer of stones at the bottom. Hopefully, any excess water will stay in the stones, and not allow the soil to remain wet, and risk root rot. I don't plan on watering it very often. The string of pearls plant likes to dry out well before watering. I think that makes it a good candidate for this project too.

Creating the Twine Hanger

For the hanger, I used some basic macrame knots. I took eight strands of twine about 40 inches long. First I tied them to a plastic ring. This is what I had on hand but I think a metal key chain ring, or binder ring, would look much nicer. Use this ring to hang the plant from a hook.

Eight lengths of twine tied together to a plastic ring that is taped to a table. They are separated into groups of two.

Tape the ring to the table and separate the twine into four pairs of two.

Groups of two lengths of twine tied in knots about half way down.

Tie a double overhand knot about 6-8 inches from the top.

Twine pieces tied in knots by groups of two and then more knots below with adjacent twine pieces.

Move down another 6-8 inches and take two strands, one from each group, and tie knots in the new pairs.

Eight pieces of twine tied together at the bottom in one overhand knot.

Finally, tie a double knot at the bottom.

Hang up the twine hanger, and then gently place the vintage teacup inside.

This teacup planter idea is in my dining room and looks so pretty there. There's light from the windows but it's north-facing, so there's not too much direct light which is perfect for this string of pearls plant. I can't wait until it fills in and spills all over the cup.

More Fun Garden Upcycle Ideas

A rose vintage teacup is holding a string of pearls plant and hung with twine in a window.

More Gardening

About Patti Estep

Patti is the creator of Hearth and Vine, a home and garden blog filled with projects to inspire your creative side. She loves crafting, gardening, decorating and entertaining at her home in Pennsylvania. When she is not working on a project at home or searching for treasures at nurseries and thrift stores with her girlfriends, you’ll probably find her with family and friends, at a restaurant, or home party enjoying new and different food adventures.

Comments

iris davies

April 14, 2017 at 3:17 am

Lovely idea ,have got the ideal china cup my friend gave me as a bird feeder but have not seen the string of pearls plant around here may use another trailing Alpine

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  April 14, 2017 at 7:59 am
  
  Hi Iris,
  
  A trailing alpine should work great with this application. I'm sure you will love it.
  Thanks for stopping by,
  Patti
  
  Reply
Nikki

February 26, 2017 at 11:30 am

Love this! Thank you for the tutorial. Curious to know: Did the rocks work out well enough?

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 26, 2017 at 11:55 am
  
  Hi Nikki,
  
  So far so good. I'm really careful about watering it. It only gets watered once a week in my house but everyone's climate is different.
  Thanks for stopping by,
  Patti
  
  Reply
Lisa

February 17, 2017 at 6:10 pm

Love it! Everything about it. Going to look for my twine now!

Reply
Stacey

February 17, 2017 at 10:57 am

Patti, what a fun idea! I'm not really familiar with the String of Pearls but will be checking that out. A little macrame project was a great idea. 😉

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 17, 2017 at 11:43 am
  
  Hi Stacey,
  
  I'm so glad you like the string of pearls. It was fun project and a great group to work with.
  Thanks for stopping by,
  Patti
  
  Reply
Karen

February 17, 2017 at 9:45 am

String of pearls is a plant I've never seen before. I love how unique it is and it looks perfect trailing over the edges of your tea cup. I can always count on you to introduce me to new and interesting plants, and this one is certainly a winner!

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 17, 2017 at 9:56 am
  
  Hi Karen,
  
  I've seen string of pearls before but have never grown it. I hope it will do well for me.
  Have a great weekend!
  Patti
  
  Reply
Carole West, Garden Up Green

February 17, 2017 at 8:02 am

I went with China too - I grew up enjoying tea parties with my grandma and parties in the spring always involved these fancy tea cups. I love this planter idea and you're right it's going to look even more amazing when it fills in. Thanks for joining us and you're kind words.

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 17, 2017 at 8:14 am
  
  Hi Carole,
  
  Thank you for this challenge. I love my new hanging planter and I would have never come up with it if you hadn't brought this challenge to me.
  
  Reply
Jemma

February 17, 2017 at 7:51 am

Beautiful project Patti, reminiscent of macrame with a delicate and feminine twist to it, very artistic too.
Jemma

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 17, 2017 at 8:17 am
  
  Hi Jemma,
  
  I know! So macrame, right. Too bad I didn't retain any of those fancy knots. I do like simple and so that's what I went for and now I love this new hanging planter in my dining room. So fun to create with such a fabulous group.
  Have a great weekend,
  Patti
  
  Reply
Jane

February 17, 2017 at 7:26 am

wow...gorgeous Patti! I love the knots...definitely adding this to my list

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 17, 2017 at 8:18 am
  
  Hi Jane,
  
  I'm so glad you like it. I had fun creating this one and probably would have never done it if it wasn't for this challenge.
  Have a great weekend!
  Patti
  
  Reply
Kim

February 17, 2017 at 6:33 am

Very nice. I have several tea cups just waiting for this project.

Reply
- Patti Estep
  
  February 17, 2017 at 6:35 am
  
  Hi Kim,
  
  Thanks. It's always fun when we have the materials to repurpose for a project.
  Thanks for stopping by,
  Patti
  
  Reply