Gold DIY Mini Greenhouse {Ikea Hack}
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This gold DIY Mini Greenhouse from IKEA is so cute! It only takes 30 minutes total to complete and costs less than $30. It’s the perfect IKEA hack for any time of the year!
I’m super excited about today’s project! Even though I have a black thumb, I have been swooning over all the beautiful greenhouses I’ve seen online lately. Although this greenhouse is tiny, it’s affordable… and gold!
This DIY gold mini greenhouse might be my favorite IKEA hack yet.
Easy IKEA Hack: Mini Greenhouse
Back in 2014, I fell in love with the Socker Greenhouse in the IKEA catalog.
A cute greenhouse for less than $20? Sold. I picked it up at IKEA immediately and knew right away it would be the perfect hacking candidate. 😄
I took it home for a makeover—and you can too!
How To Make A DIY Mini Greenhouse
In this tutorial, I’ll show you how easy it is to create your own mini greenhouse. Just follow along!
Gather Your Supplies
Here’s what you’ll need to make a mini greenhouse – in gold!
- Ikea Socker Greenhouse (you can find it online at Amazon right here, but it’s quite a bit more expensive. If you don’t have an Ikea around, use this glass terrarium instead — it’s a similar style!
- Martha Stewart’s Gold Liquid Gilding
- Foam Brush
In the photo below, I’m showing you everything that comes in the box when you buy the IKEA SOCKER greenhouse.
The instructions are just like you’d expect from IKEA, and the greenhouse is actually a stark white color.
The white greenhouse is simple and clean, but I wanted more pizzaz! So, I purchased some Martha Stewart liquid gilding.
Here’s how I hacked the IKEA SOCKER greenhouse and created my own gold mini greenhouse.
DIY Mini Greenhouse Instructions
Now that you have your supplies, here’s how to make your DIY greenhouse.
Remove All Plastic From The Frames
My plan was to paint the outsides of the greenhouse with the gilding. I was super excited to see that the plastic sides were not only wrapped in a sticky layer of plastic but were also easily removable from the frame.
I opted to remove all the pieces, leaving just the metal frames.
Cover Mini Greenhouse Frame With Gilding
I then enlisted Scott to help me, and we used foam brushes to cover the entire outside of the frame with the gold gilding. It was my first time working with this product, and I loved how beautiful the finish was!
Paint Over Cardboard
To prevent your work area from getting any drips, lay out some cardboard. I used the cardboard box the greenhouse pieces came in, and it was the perfect size for us to paint over.
Paint Slowly And Cover Completely
I like to use a foam brush because I feel like I have more control over where the gilding ends up. If you prefer a paintbrush, feel free to use that instead! You just want to make sure every single space of your greenhouse is covered.
Take your time! If you rush, you might waste gilding or end up with lumpy paint on your frame.
Isn’t it looking amazing so far? You can always add a second coat if you notice some drips or things don’t look quite right.
I just adore how shiny and glamorous the liquid gilding makes this greenhouse! That color reminds me of the sun!
Let It Dry Completely
Before putting it together, let all the parts dry completely. To be safe, I recommend letting them dry overnight.
Assemble DIY Mini Greenhouse
The next day, after it was dry, we put the greenhouse plastic sides back in the frame and put it all together again.
I decided to leave the inner frame white since the gild had a strong scent, and I wasn’t sure how plants would do with it.
You all will be proud to know that I put REAL plants in it and fought the temptation to get plastics. 😁
I didn’t hack the greenhouse mechanically, so we just followed the instructions it came with and put it together.
Tips To Make A Mini Greenhouse Easily
I have a couple of tips that I think will help make this project a little easier!
Only Dip The Tip Of The Brush
As you can see in my photo below, you only want to dip the tip of the foam brush in the gilding.
If you get too much gilding on your brush, it will drip off and waste the product. It will also be difficult to control and could leave unsightly brush strokes and drips on your greenhouse.
Use Even Strokes
Pay close attention to the direction you paint the pieces of your greenhouse. Always apply the gilding with the strokes in the same direction. This will give it a polished and professional appearance.
Ideas For What To Put In An Indoor Greenhouse
Now that you have your fully assembled and repainted mini greenhouse ready, it’s time to fill it up! What will you put inside? It’s pretty small in size, but here are a few greenhouse ideas for you!
Fill With Mini Succulents
Isn’t this beautiful? One of my personal favorite DIY mini greenhouse ideas is to fill it up with succulents. It’s the perfect size for other small plants too.
Do mini greenhouses need air holes?
Well, plants do need air to survive. But the awesome design feature that these mini greenhouses have is that you can leave the top of the greenhouse fully closed, fully open, or partially open.
How cool is that? That’s why they’re so perfect for plants, regular use, or swapping out decor items seasonally!
I love the color it came out to be! Isn’t that gold finish gorgeous?
Display Old Books In Your Mini Greenhouse
If you don’t like plants/flowers, that’s okay! Fill it with books and glitter-dipped feathers. Or whatever you happen to have on hand.
Something I love decorating with is old books! After playing around with this mini greenhouse, I discovered it is the perfect size for holding a small stack of books along with a few plants.
I love how my mini greenhouse matches the gold in the plant pot too. Gold is a very trendy color right now, and this craft couldn’t be any easier!
Now, go make one of your own! 🙂 It’s super easy, I promise!!
More Gilding Crafts And Ideas
After we finished the outside of the greenhouse frame and were waiting for it to dry, we went a little crazy with the gilding. We could also call this post “we must gild all things.”
Here are just a few more things you can apply gild to and create:
1. Upcycle An Old Book Into A Notebook
First, we tried to gild one of the books I converted into a notebook. Isn’t it pretty?
2. Make Old Scissors Look Like New
Then, I found a pair of crafting scissors that were red. Red… boo! So, I decided to make them gold instead.
Much prettier!
3. Redecorate A White Mirror
Then, we found a plain white-framed mirror and decided we’d rather it be gold, so Scott gilded it for us. You might recognize it as my DIY rope mirrors twin!
Isn’t this gilding amazing? One little jar goes a long way.
I’m actually impressed with how many projects we accomplished with just a little jar of liquid gold and some foam brushes.
The best thing about using foam brushes (and being extra careful) is that you don’t need painter’s tape. However, I still recommend adding painter’s tape to the mirror before painting it, just in case.
More Fun Greenhouse Ideas
Want even more ideas of ways you can use this DIY greenhouse? Check out these fun DIY mini greenhouse ideas from a few of my friends.
Wedding Decor And Card Holder
Turn mini greenhouses into wedding decor! You can personalize yours with chalk pens and use it to hold cards or blessings from your guests.
Turn It Into A Dollhouse
Since the “glass” is plexiglass, you could transform your DIY mini greenhouse into a see-through dollhouse. Wouldn’t that be adorable in a little girl’s room?
Create A Winter Scene
Wouldn’t a mini greenhouse make the perfect setting for a winter scene to use along with your seasonal decorations? Get creative with some fake snow, bottlebrush trees, maybe a mini truck, and more!
Beautiful And Functional
I love this idea! It combines my ideas to create a DIY greenhouse for your nightstand. It holds books, magazines, plants and looks stunning.
DIY Mini Greenhouse Bird Feeder
Instead of a traditional pinecone bird feeder, create one that’s beautiful, unique, and stunning in an open window!
For Succulent Lovers
A succulent lover’s dream! Here’s another way to fill your DIY greenhouse with succulents. In my version, I added mini pots of succulents. I love that this version has loose dirt filled with succulents.
Turn Greenhouses Into Shelves
How creative is this? Adding brackets to the bottom of your greenhouses will allow you to transform them into clear, chic shelving units. Then you can fill them with a variety of visually interesting items.
FAQs About DIY Mini Greenhouse Project
Yes! I didn’t do it for this project, but if you want to seal your project after the gilding dries, you can. Just apply a clear sealant, either with a spray or using a sponge brush, and let it dry completely.
After seeing this project, you might be wondering if I actually applied real gold to my greenhouse. Gilding is a technique used to apply a very thin layer of gold to a surface – in this case, by painting it on.
Some gilding paints contain actual gold, while others are gold-colored. Read your label carefully to determine which your is.
Plating is different because it involves mechanically applying a thin sheet of gold to the surface.
I hope you love this Ikea hack and these greenhouse ideas! With just a little time and creativity, you can take something basic like this mini greenhouse from Ikea and turn it into something stunning.
More Easy Crafts
After you finish this craft, here are some more you’ll enjoy too!
Instructions
- Remove All The Plastic Pieces From the Frames
- Cover The Outside of the Frame With Gilding
- Paint Over Cardboard
- Paint Slowly And Cover Completely
- Only Dip The Tip of the Brush
- Use Even Strokes
- Let It Dry Completely
- Assemble the Mini Greenhouse
Notes
Tania Griffis is an accomplished writer, blogger, and interior designer with a Journalism degree from the University of Oklahoma. She started her popular blog, Run to Radiance, in 2011, demonstrating her design expertise through the personal remodeling of six houses to millions of readers across the globe.
Tania also owns The Creative Wheelhouse, a respected ghostwriting agency for bloggers, further showcasing her talent for creating engaging and informative content.
Lovely idea! Can’t wait to try it out myself 😀
You should! And if gold isn’t your thing there are a lot of other lovely colors you could choose! 🙂
I bought this, but am unable to remove the glass from the frame to paint it. How did you do it?
I saw this the other day at Ikea but they only had the display. I’m already planning another Ikea trip next month so hopefully they’ll have them in stock them. I’m with you on gilding all of the things. My house looks like King Midas took a stroll through it. haha 🙂
It took me a bit to find them Rachel! They were kind of sneakily stacked somewhere nowhere near the display. Kind of want another one, but have to cut myself off at some point. CRACKING UP at King Midas. hahaha!
Super cute idea! I really like the gold paint – so on trend right now.
Thanks Char…I just can’t get enough!
lol! I’m chuckling at you guys painting everything gold, including the scissors.
Super cute! Plants scare me though, I once killed a cactus.
Haha Samantha don’t worry, me too. I also killed a succulent! 🙂 I thought those were impossible to kill.
I just bought this and assembled it. The SOCKER greenhouse is incredibly poorly designed, unless I assembled it wrong. Basically if you ever try to pick it up by anything other than the very base, the bottom will pop off and the entire thing will collapse. They couldn’t figure out a way to attach the bottom to the rest of the walls?? I’m very disappointed in IKEA.