You can find many kinds of glass lamp shades at secondhand stores or yard sales.
Just flip the lampshade upside down and put at least 2 layers of screen to cover the hole at the bottom.Don't skimp on the screen - it will be supporting soil and plants.





Fill container with potting soil and add plants. You want to choose a lampshade that will be stable when upside down.


Voila! Cheap but beautiful plant containers

This is a great idea. My younger daughter moved recently and we have a full box of glass shades. Too pretty to throw out and thrift stores do not appreciate receiving them. I will put this idea to use asap. I don't use screen material but I do use scraps of landscape fabric that will work just as well to keep the planting medium contained.
Thanks for the great idea.

Please show us pictures of your planted glass shades

Although not a gardening idea, I also repurpose glass shades as candle holders in my patio.

That's a great idea. How pretty!

Not a single place to hang pots. So I got several lampshades for a dollar or two. They were fabric ones. I tore off the fabric, turned the 'remains of the day' upside down, and viola! Now have a nice place to set some hanging planters. Problem solved.

@Frenchy, I love the dish garden you created with the glass lamp shade; your cactus look really nice in there!

Your shade is similar to a pair of my small lamps that belonged to one of my aunt's who would be 109 years old if she were still here! I think one of the lamps must have gone to the thrift store when we moved because I only found one when unpacking; the glass shade has a slight chip on the bottom edge but I've been thinking of re-purposing it for something or other since they hadn't been used as lamps since the 1970's. It has a much narrower shape though and isn't quite stable enough to stand erect for use as planter but I'm thinking it would make a pretty vase surround if I can just find a skinnier container that will hold water that I can sit inside the glass shade!


I love re-purposing something that was intended for one purpose to use for an entirely different purpose! I had an old tin kitchen colander once that I turned into a hanging basket and it hung in my backyard with ivy planted in it for quite a few years. Old shoes and boots make interesting planters too.

@tx_flower_child I hope you will share some photos of your creations, sounds like a great idea using the metal lamp shade forms for hanging baskets!

At one time I had 3 small glass light shades that I think came from an old ceiling fan and I didn't want to throw them out so I decided to use them for planters. I had my husband cut a pvc pipe (painted green) into to 3 different lengths and he then connected the base of the glass shade to the pipe with those small pvc connector thingies. I placed window screening inside to hold in the soil, potted them up and stuck them in the soil of a planter on the patio. I think I posted a tutorial in this forum but it was six years ago so I'd have to search to find it. This is one not so great old photo that I still have on my computer of the finished product.


@comgoddess, I love the idea of repurposing the glass shades as candle holders, great job and I love the looks of your succulent shoe planter too, very nice!

Good look, Lin. I'm so not handy I would need a partner in crime to copy your setup. Would love something that doesn't require hanging plants (that sounded weird) to hang. My trees are too high and my house doesn't have any eaves.

I will take a picture of my naked lampshade get up. Later.

Great ideas all

@plantladylin Love your work of art, as well as the others. What is the plant that has the grassy like leaves and the tube-like red flowers? I want one!

@Zuni, Sue that plant is Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetiformis)