Make a Flea Market Find into a Flower Container

Do you sometimes buy items at flea markets because you like them, but don’t have any idea where or how you are going to use them? I figured out a way to make a flea market find into a flower container.

Well, friend, I do that, too. We hate to miss great flea market finds. I had some flea market purchases just laying around, and fortunately, I was able to transform a flea market find into a flower container.

D you shop estate sales, garage sales, antique malls, your grandma’s attic, or your own home? Those are my favorite places to discover flea market finds. I love it when I find one in my own home that I can restore for a new purpose.

I had no idea when I started working on this month’s project that I would make a flea market find into a flower container. That’s just where the DIY path led. But what a nice path to follow. So join me as I show you how this neglected flea market purchase became the cutest flower container.

Make a Flea Market Find into a Flower Container

This post contains links to products that I absolutely love, use, and recommend. If you should purchase any product from this site, I may be compensated, but you don’t pay a penny more! We both win!

In case you are new to Bluesky at Home, I should tell you that I love flea market finds. I love reusing them, turning them into something more useful or pretty. The benefit to you? You get to see great projects, you can be inspired to create your own DIY projects. Hopefully, these projects will spark your own home decor and DIY imagination.

My Flea Market Find

A while back, I really don’t remember when, I bought a galvanized watering can at a flea market. Anything galvanized is popular and I grabbed this one the second I saw it. Just because. And to be honest, I do not remember what I paid for it, but I’m sure it was under $10. I had no idea what I would do with it. Water plants?

Anyway, the cute watering can has been sitting on our patio for a few years; just sitting; not doing anything. See it hiding behind the flower pots?

I decided it was high time to give this galvanized can a purpose. Wouldn’t it be cute with flowers in it? Instead of watering flowers, it would hold flowers. It needed something to dress it up. It needed words. And, I then knew just what to do.

I would tell this galvanized can that it is a watering can, but now it would be a pretty one meant to hold pretty flowers.

Paint and Stencils for My Flea Market Find Container

As some of you may know, I work with A Makers’ Studio. I absolutely love their ChalkArt and tri~mesh stencils. Best ever. Changed my DIY life. I knew that it would be simple to give the galvanized can a name with stencils. I picked 2 fonts for my 2 words: Alphabet 1 and Alphabet 3.

I chose ChalkArt in black or Preaching to the Choir.

Since I had used the stencils and the ChalkArt for previous projects, I don’t count them was new supplies. When you use a supply over and over, like glue or paint or stencils (ours last through many projects), it’s hard to give them a value for just one project.

The Ten~Minute Flea Market Project

I did wipe down my galvanized watering can to make sure there wasn’t any dirt or spiders hiding inside.

I always try to start a word stencil project with the center letters and work out from left and right. You can see the can is a little rusty on the bottom.

I did discover that the ridges near the top of the can caused the ChalkArt to seep just a bit. No problem because I can clean that up. One thing I love about ChalkArt is that it’s removable.

If you make a mistake, you just wash it off with a damp paper towel and start over. I need to move my “E” over closer to my “T”.

When I finished all my letters, I dipped a paper towel in a little water, wrapped it around my finger and rubbed off the excess ChalkArt on the ridges. Clean as a whistle. Q~tips work great for this task too.

Once my galvanized watering can had its name on it, it needed flowers to become a flower container. What flowers would you choose? I chose sunflowers. I thought they would pair well with the farmhouse feel of the now properly named “water can”.

A quick trip to the grocery store and I brought these happy fellows home.

I realized I didn’t have enough, so back to the store again. I ended up with 6 bunches of sunflowers. Luckily, they will last a good week.

So I cut the stems off the sunflowers, filled the galvanized can turned flower container with water and went in my office to work. About 30 minutes I came back in the kitchen and there was water all over the island counter. I picked up the can and discovered there wasn’t any water in it. My galvanized can leaked!!

Looking for something to put inside the opening of my flower container, I thought of a plastic deli cup, which is 32 ounces and would squish to fit in the opening of the water can/flower container.

I filled the deli cup with water, rearranged my sunflowers and I finally had my flea market find made into a flower container.

I thought it would look pretty sitting on the chest in our entry hall. A bright, sunny welcome that we could still see from the living room and Sweet Shark’s bar.

I decided it needed something to “ground” it so I placed the water can inside a pretty round platter with flowers on the inside ~ a wedding present from an old friend.

I’m so glad that this flea market find that didn’t have a purpose, other than to just sit and look cute. Now it has a purpose as a flower container ~ thanks to a little help from a plastic deli cup, some ChalkArt and some alphabet stencils.

Here’s a couple of other flea market projects that I’ve worked on.

Update a Flea Market Bowl 

Flea Market Pig Gets a Makeover

If you like how to make this flea market find into a flower container project, then please PIN it.