Using old or worn household items to decorate your yard is a fun and interesting way to recycle items destined for the trash bin. This is an economical and uncomplicated method to add texture and colour to your lawn. Using an old cowboy, rain or work boot or any type of leather or rubber shoe to make an outdoor planter gives your lawn area an old-fashioned, country look. A vine-covered wooden chair looks as if it has been in the outdoors for years and adds whimsical charm.
Paint an old wooden chair with one or two coats of exterior paint. Wait for the first coat to dry before adding another. Choose a paint colour that coordinates with the exterior of your home. Using a deep purple, red or navy shade coordinates well with a dark exterior. Use white, yellow, lavender or another pastel colour if your house has a pale-coloured exterior.
Pick a location for the wood chair that receives full or partial sunshine each day. Morning glory vines bloom best in sunny areas.
Loosen the ground at the site with a cultivation tool, metal rake or hoe. Push the legs of the chair into the soil a couple of inches deep and then press the soil firmly around the legs. This prevents the chair from blowing over during storms or windy weather.
Plant about six morning glory seeds approximately 3 or 4 inches from each chair leg. Plant it at the depth recommended on the seed packet. As the vine starts to grow and create tendrils, thin the plants to one or two per each chair leg.
Water the morning glory vine weekly, or as directed on the seed packet. Soon you will have an attractive vine twining around the legs, seat and back of the chair.
Drill six to eight holes into the sole of an old boot or any other shoe you want to transform into a planter. Use a drill and narrow drill bit. You can also create the holes with a hammer and nail.
Place about a half-inch of pea gravel into the sole of the shoe. This increases the drainage.
Pour a quality potting soil or equal parts of sand, peat and soil into the shoe. Make sure the soil settles into the toe area before filling the rest of the boot to within an inch of the top of the leg area.
Plant small cacti, curly chive, hens and chicks or trailing vines into the shoe planter according to the directions on the seed package or young plant. Water and care for the plant as directed.