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Home » Home Organization » DIY Projects For The Home

How To Upcycle Planters Into A Desk Pencil Holder

Modified: Aug 20, 2025 Published: Sep 19, 2025 by Sabrina Quairoli Visit our "Disclosure Policy and Cookies" page in the menu for details. This post may contain affiliate links. 13 Comments

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In the coming weeks, I will share with you some DIY projects I did recently. If you have an aversion to DIY projects, have no fear; these projects are so easy and fun to do that you will be amazed.

Jump to:
  • Supplies Used to Make this Project
  • Instructions
  • Reveal
  • How much did this DIY Project Cost, and how long did it take?

This week's project is a DIY pencil holder. I transformed these planters into a great pencil holder for my daughter's desk.  She loves to draw, and there were pencils and markers in a variety of different containers in her room. So, to consolidate all of them together, I decided to make this for her. After finding these planters at a nearby used marketplace, I visited the nearby hardware store to ask for their help in determining which screws and bolts to use. We measured the distance between the two planter sides so the screw will pass through and have enough room to attach a bolt securely. Check it out.

Supplies Used to Make this Project

  • Second-hand store found three planters with liners
  • Screws - standard
  • Drill (affiliate)
  • Drill (affiliate) bit the size of the screws

Instructions

These three boxes (affiliate) are planter boxes (affiliate).  They came with these little handles.  If they weren't already distressed in white, I would have done it anyway.  Perfect find for me!

old planters found at a resell marketplace

Remove Liners

Liners hold the pens and pencils inside without marking the wood and will keep it clean in case of a pen leak.

And these liners were included. I want to keep the lining because it protects the screws from getting undone. It also protects my daughter's hands when she goes into the boxes (affiliate) to find a pencil.

planter liners

Drill Holes

I drilled two holes straight into the side of the boxes (affiliate) of the smaller planters. After drilling all the way through on the two areas, I lined up the back of the box on the table and used the screw to mark the place where I needed the hole to be for the larger box.  Then I removed the smaller box and drilled right into the marks that were indicated on the box.  I did the same with the other smaller box and then marked the other side of the larger box, removed the smaller box, and drilled the other holes. So, the larger box had four drill (affiliate) holes, and the smaller ones had two each.

screw in the first hole into planter
screw the screws through the holds and use a washer and bolt on the other end to attach
drill the holes into the side of the planters

Visit our other DIY Projects to Organize Your Home Affordably!

Attach with screws and bolts.

I passed the screw through the holes from the smaller boxes (affiliate) to the larger box. I then passed it through and attached the bolt to the other side. And, then I replaced the liners that covered the holes.

pass the screws through the holds and lineup with the other wholes in the other planter

Reveal

And, that's it! This is the finished product. What do you think? Cute, right?how to upcycled planters into a desk pencil holder

How much did this DIY Project Cost, and how long did it take?

The entire project took 20 minutes to put together. The planters cost $10.00, and the screws were less than $5.00, so the whole project was around $15.00.  I didn't even need to paint it because it matched my daughter's room. So easy!

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Please note these are affiliate links through Amazon (affiliate), and at no additional cost to you, I will earn affiliate fees if you decide to make a purchase.

How To Upcycle Planters Into A Desk Pencil Holder
HOW TO UPCYCLE PLANTERS INTO A DESK PENCIL HOLDER
HOW TO UPCYCLE PLANTERS INTO A DESK PENCIL HOLDER
(Visited 1,116 times, 1 visits today)

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About Sabrina Quairoli

I love sharing my passion for organizing life and home. I hope you get inspired when visiting my home organizing tips, quick weeknight recipes, party planning ideas, and DIY organizing projects. Visit the About Me page to read my story.

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  1. Jeannette Paladino says

    September 29, 2016 at 11:03 pm

    Great idea and good for the budget, too. There are so many household items that can be used for purposes other than were intended.

    Reply
  2. Sushmita says

    September 29, 2016 at 2:48 am

    It's very cute and apt. Loved what every may be the need it can used and adapted easily. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  3. Erica says

    September 28, 2016 at 12:37 pm

    They are so cute! I'm sure that your kids appreciate how much they have that has been created just for them. This looks like a really fun project.

    Reply
  4. Tatia says

    September 28, 2016 at 10:45 am

    What a creative project Sabrina! The planters make spacious holders and nice decorative pieces too.

    Reply
  5. Jeri says

    September 27, 2016 at 7:08 pm

    DIY projects are great. I typically use a coffee cup to hold my writing utensils, but this is a cute idea for sure.

    Reply
  6. William Rusho says

    September 27, 2016 at 1:19 pm

    What a great DIY project. The pieces look great too when finished. I might try this sometime soon. thanks for sharing this with us.

    Reply
  7. Marquita Herald says

    September 26, 2016 at 5:21 pm

    Looks like a fun project Sabrina! I set aside a couple of days this week to go "shopping" for the new home and this is just the kind of goodies I'll be looking for. Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
  8. RoseMary Griffith says

    September 26, 2016 at 4:21 pm

    What a fantastic idea, Sabrina. I love DIY projects. We've always got something going on around this house. Those boxes are a fun way to keep your daughter organized. My desk might be jealous.

    Reply
  9. Phoenicia says

    September 26, 2016 at 1:53 pm

    I typed a message and lost it!

    Interesting to know your daughter is artistic. My daughter has the creative bug which we are trying dearly to embrace.

    The pen/pencil pots will ensure they are kept in one place.

    Reply
  10. Janet Barclay says

    September 26, 2016 at 10:48 am

    I can't believe you did this in 20 minutes! I'm just not handy this way.

    Reply
  11. Catarina says

    September 26, 2016 at 9:31 am

    They are both cute and practical, Sabrina. Am sure your daughter loved them!

    Reply
  12. lenie says

    September 26, 2016 at 4:32 am

    Sabrina, what a cute idea and so practical. Anyone can use this because it seems to me that we all have pens and pencils laying around (and never can find one when we need it). These planters/pencil holders would fit in lots of places. Well done.

    Reply
  13. Ken Dowell says

    September 25, 2016 at 8:26 pm

    It is cute and very resourceful. Thanks for the tip.

    Reply
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