3 DIY Christmas tree planter ideas to elevate your festive decor using things you already have at home

We hope that by now you’ve got your Christmas tree sorted and even decorated. But the part of the Christmas tree that often gets forgotten is the base. And yet, it draws a lot of attention, especially once presents are dotted around it. Which is why dressing up the base of your tree will make all the difference and elevate your Chrristmas decor. But if you are pinched for time or budget, there are ways you can DIY Christmas tree planters from things you already have at home.

Fashioning your own Christmas planter to hide the base of your tree is the perfect budget Christmas decorating idea and alternative to a store-bought tree skirt. 

And we found 3 ingenious ways you can stylishly hide the bottom of your best artificial Christmas tree or your real tree, depending on what you prefer. So if you want to know how to make a Christmas planter, keep reading.

3 DIY Christmas tree planter ideas

Making your own tree planter makes for the ideal DIY Christmas decor idea. Even Taylor Swift fans are jumping on it as TikTok has been taken by storm with Swifties (as the one below) repurposing their Eras Tour popcorn buckets as tree planters. Taylor has had a lot of influence this festive season as she’s released her own Taylor Swift Christmas ornaments as part of her merch. But we would expect nothing less from Time’s Person of the Year.

@maddi34_

♬ Mastermind - Taylor Swift

But even if you’re not a Swiftie yourself, you can easily make a Christmas planter from other things you might have around the house.

1. Waste bin

A waste paper bin like the IKEA FNISS waste bin that somehow almost everyone has at home is the perfect base for an improvised Christmas tree planter. But you can also use one that’s completely smooth like the John Lewis ANYDAY glossy waste paper bin. But the trick is to create a stable foundation on the inside like Ideal Home’s Ecommerce Editor, Molly Cleary has done using an upturned planter with wire legs.

‘Once my Christmas tree arrived this year, I was keen to DIY a planter to avoid another expense,’ she says. ‘The ideas I found online all involved still spending a fair amount of money, so we settled on using our waste paper bin to house the tree. When we quickly found that the bin alone wouldn't be sturdy enough to hold up the tree, I rooted around for something else to hold the branches in place. My solution was to upturn a planter, which looks a lot like this one from Amazon, that we have in the house and put it into the bin before we lower the tree down onto it, which meant the tree stayed perfectly in place.’

2. Woven basket

If you’re after a more rustic look or already have some woven or straw storage baskets around the house, why not repurpose one of them as a tree planter?

‘You could try a woven basket that matches your tree’s base dimensions. A quick, simple DIY trick that will be perfect for creating a rustic and unconventional tree base,’ says Ben Wightman, product expert at Christmas Tree World.

Social media content creator Sarah Hornsey of @mybudgethomex on TikTok used Dunelm’s Round Seagrass Log Basket and went even further by adding a blanket on top to further hide the tree base.

@mybudgethomex

♬ original sound - 🎄🎅

3. Box

Alternatively, you can also use a box. Whether you have a wooden (or other storage box) or a cardboard one, which you can paint. The trick is to make it look like another (though bigger) Christmas present under the tree. So adding a bow is an essential part of the illusion. But it’s definitely one you can get creative with – you can even cover it in gift wrapping paper.

Happy tree planter making!