45 Ideas to Create the Perfect Vintage Garden

Trista - September 3, 2019
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45 Ideas to Create the Perfect Vintage Garden

Vintage items are a great deal of fun to hunt for, especially in summer with farm auctions and yard sales galore. Many vintage things that might not immediately seem useful as garden decor can be repurposed and upcycled into stunning and unique pieces for your backyard oasis. Vintage plates can turn a bare wooden fence into a stunning art display while various parts of sturdy galvanized metal can create floral showpieces. Even items like old ladders or damaged teacups can be useful with a little bit of elbow grease and creativity. Read on for 45 vintage garden decór ideas to spruce up your yard!

45. Hang vintage plates in a garden area for special tea and cookies.

Be brave and place some glass plates on a fence near a table and chairs to create a garden seating area. Photo Credit: Pinterest

Vintage plates are a dime a dozen at many thrift stores, antique shops, and even garage sales. Thanks to not being food-safe and taking up a fair bit of display room, decorate vintage plates have been rapidly falling out of favor over the years, leading to low prices and abundance availability. With that in mind, now is the perfect time to upgrade your outdoor spaces with beautiful vintage plates! They can be hung along your fence to make a stunning border. Broken in half or partially buried, they can also create an incredibly elegant garden border.

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44. Paint a chair and place some flowers for a secret garden vibe.

How easy would it be for you to paint a wooden chair and place a plant in the seat part? Photo Credit: Diy Network

Have you ever gone to a thrift store and found the most beautiful vintage chair, but the seat is broken? Typically, that leads to sadness and frustration at a beautiful chair lost. However, if you keep outdoor and garden decorating in mind, those busted chairs could be a huge boon! Chairs with broken seats, especially those with busted caning or rattan, make excellent plant stands! You can sink a pot into the damaged part of the seat, so it looks like flowers are growing right out of the chair. Even functional old chairs can be turned into adorable plant stands, mostly if painted in a fun color.

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43. Plant flowers in an old wheelbarrows for a rustic, antique feel.

It’s okay if the wheelbarrow is a little beat up or broken — it looks more vintage that way! Photo Credit: Pixachi/Shutterstock

While working vintage wheelbarrows tend to fetch a premium price due to their robust construction and durability, those that have lost to the ravages of time; that is, they are no longer usable for garden work tend to be pretty reasonably priced. Sometimes they are even given away on swap and upcycle groups. A vintage wheelbarrow that can at least stand stationary and hold a bit of weight is the perfect backdrop for a cute selection of flower pots full of colorful annuals. Trailing annuals are another great choice, as they will add a bit of whimsy to the old wheelbarrow’s frame.

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42. Keep your metal ladder safe in the shed, but pull out the wooden one as a vintage plant stand.

Make sure you test the weight limit so you don’t spill any plants you have been growing for years. Photo Credit: Good House Keeping

While we would never advise standing on a vintage ladder, pick one up if you have the chance at a rummage sale or thrift store. Old wooden ladders, especially those with wide planks, are ideal for plant stands, inside or out! When refinished or painted a cute color, a vintage ladder can hold a surprising number of pots and hanging baskets, especially if the wood is still in decent shape to protect the wood from the outdoor elements. The tiered stands replicate the look of much more expensive new leaning desks and ladder-style bookcases.

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41. Use a tea set – including the pot, cup, and spoon – to create your own DIY wind chime.

If the set is porcelain, don’t add too many string items for fear of clanking and breaking. Photo Credit: Pinterest

Much like vintage plates, vintage teacups without matching saucers are incredibly abundant and often as cheap as 99 cents or less. For a teacup chime project, you could even use stained or chipped cups since these defects won’t be noticeable from a distance. There are many ways to create a teacup wind chime, with varying levels of skill required. The simplest method is to tie the cups together from a wind chime base using staggered twine or rope lengths. More advanced approaches can include drilling through the cups to make more secure chimes.

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40. Get a galvanized bucket and repurpose the old-school metal tub as a flower planter.

An old wash bucket screams vintage. You can place a washboard full of flowers up against it. Photo Credit: Pinterest

While galvanized buckets and other standard pieces of farm equipment may fetch a pretty price in urban markets, you’ll likely be able to find them readily at junk jaunts or farm auctions in more rural areas. Galvanized metal, which is made to withstand outdoor conditions, is ideal for beautiful, rustic outdoor planters. Make sure you add drainage holes to anything you intend to use as a planter or use a very loose potting mix that will allow water to drain away from your plants’ roots to avoid root rot.

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39. Galvanized basin vining planters are another way to go vintage in the garden.

This shiny bin is still vintage but gives off a more polished and organized feeling. Photo Credit: Pinterest

If you’re in an area where you’re lucky enough to find an even larger version of a galvanized bucket like a washbasin, you can get into all sorts of fun decorating. A basin is large enough to accommodate additional items like a trellis, allowing you to create a vining planter. Look for a beautiful vining annual, and plant that in a large galvanized basin with some trellis behind it. Chicken wire would give the most rustic look, while a wood trellis would provide a more industrial feel. Gently tie the plant to your trellis as it grows, and by mid-summer, you’ll have a stunning lawn centerpiece.

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38. Mason jars are great for a rustic, chic look — in this case, they are used as hanging candle holders.

Anyway you can incorporate mason jars into your garden decor will reflect a vintage, rustic chic. Photo Credit: Earth 911

What vintage design project could ever be complete without the pure beauty and utility of a mason jar? Those ever-present multi-functional and reasonably priced glass jars can serve countless roles in a garden decor scheme, but a uniquely whimsical idea uses them to create lanterns. Battery-powered LED candles inside mason jars mounted with brackets or hung from the rope can create fairy light-like chandeliers or rope lights that bring a bit of magic to a porch or garden. When filled with citronella candles, mason jar lanterns can even provide some much-needed pest relief.

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37. Add a splash of color with vintage coffee can planters — the more metal, the better.

You don’t have to spend a lot of money or have a green thumb to create an enchanting garden. Credit: Homedit.com

If you brew your own coffee or keep an eye on your local recycling groups, you’ll no doubt be able to find some large metal coffee cans. Many vintage shops also offer vintage metal cans for very reasonable prices, especially if the old labels are primarily worn off. If you can get your hands on some nice metal cans, try painting them with a matte finish in various bright colors like turquoise or orange. Once painted, mount them to your fence with zip ties or brackets for colorful, lightweight flower or herb planters. Coffee cans are also easy to puncture with nails to create drainage holes!

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36. Speaking of metal, try a pitcher as a planter. Pair it with red roses for a romantic look.

Include some burlap twine around white candles paired with a table cloth or doily for an intimate and soft feeling. Photo Credit: Uabirkhan

Vintage metal pitchers are incredibly elegant and come in a wide range of styles, from very functional farmhouse simplicity to far more ornate Victorian-inspired designs. If you don’t have access to vintage pitchers, they are also very commonly reproduced and sold online and in many hobby stores. Pitchers make an ideal planter for plants that like to cascade or spill downwards like creeping jenny, purple heart, or sweet potato vine. The image of a plant gently pouring out of your pitcher planter will make a lovely, gentle focal point for any garden display.

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35. Create an instant hit with this vintage sink planter.

These deep vintage sinks are not easy to come by, unfortunately. Photo Credit: Pinterest

A vintage sink will be a more challenging item to come across than a simple pail or pitcher, but if you can manage to snag one, it will be worth its considerable weight in decorating gold. Vintage enamel sinks, especially apron sinks, are a beautiful and sturdy addition to any yard as a planter or planting bench. Used as a potting bench, a vintage sink unit provides some ample counter space for potting as well as a broad and deep recessed area to catch dirt or store tools. Used as a planter itself, the large sink can hold many annuals with room on the side countertops to hold additional pots of flowers or herbs.

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34. Illuminate your garden as quick as the clap of your hands thanks to whimsical string lights.

Twinkling lights will make your garden sparkle during the evening hours into the night. Photo Credit: Party Lights

While this item isn’t vintage itself since vintage string lights are hard to find and typically unsafe to use due to lead and poor wiring, vintage-style string lights from a home improvement store are a great way to add some illumination to your decorated garden. Bare vintage-style bulbs are a great way to incorporate the vintage style and evoke the feel of an old-time barn dance. Vintage lights can lean towards the rustic or the industrial, depending on your preferences, and come in a wide variety of styles to fit every taste. However you use them, and whichever style you prefer, string lights are a must for a whimsical garden space!

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33. Install a door entrance to your garden and you will enjoy who comes to knock.

You don’t need a giant, solid fence to put up a door into your garden. You’ll actually adore this look. Photo Credit: Country Cathy

Suppose you’re renovating your home and have spare doors or have access to a building store like a Habitat ReStore. In that case, you should consider using a vintage door to create a magical gateway into your vintage decorated garden! Using a vintage door and frame, or just a vintage door suspended from a pole or fence post, creates an incredibly welcoming sight at the border of your garden. Paired with a rustic fence, a doorway makes sense of space and an invitation to your garden. Consider adding a hand-painted rustic welcome or monogram sign for an even more personalized touch!

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32. Wagon wheels are an immediate win if you want to create a rustic, vintage garden.

From rusty metal to peeling wood, old farm equipment can create a whole atmosphere. Photo Credit: miammaria/Shutterstock

Whether vintage or new reproductions, wagon wheels are an iconic part of vintage, farmhouse, and Southwestern style decorated gardens. They are ideal both as a backdrop for a planted perennial bed or as a hanger or background for a collection of potted annuals with their great size and beautiful spokes. When using a new wooden wagon wheel, be sure to seal the wood with a varnish or paint to ensure it won’t rot over a few seasons of use. If you get heavy snow, you may want to store them in a garage over the winter to reduce decay and wear. With large wagon wheels, try hanging a small basket of bright annuals from the top for a fun, radiant look.

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31. Birdhouses should grace your outdoors as much as possible.

What is an outdoor oasis without a spot for your feathered friends? Photo Credit: Telegraph

There are a few pieces of outdoor decor that are more charming than birdhouses. With their tiny windows and adorable Hobbit-like round doors, they bring a touch of whimsy and a faerie garden-like feel to any outdoor space. If you wish to decorate with birdhouses and use new reproductions intended only for decor, or vintage birdhouses that are no longer structurally sound, cover the entrances with a bit of plastic or tape to ensure a bird doesn’t try to nest in an unsafe house. The cute decor is excellent, but keeping your local birds happy and healthy is even better!

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30. Metal bucket fairy gardens are a fun DIY project with your children.

These cute craft ideas are fun to create and will equally make your space look stylish and unique. Credit: Pinterest

Another great use for large galvanized and other types of metal buckets is to create adorable little fairy gardens. Fairy gardens typically feature miniature versions of popular houseplants and annuals and decor similar to aquariums, like small houses and tiny fairy figurines. To make an outdoor fairy garden, look for tiny ground cover annuals or perennials, small mosses, and dainty flowers. Many garden centers are not selling plants specifically grown and selected for fairy gardens, and some even sell miniature decor to go along with them. A great craft for children is to create small houses or furniture out of Popsicle sticks.

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29. Repurpose a sewing machine stand into vintage garden decor.

Do you have an old sewing machine stand? It is the perfect vintage prop. Photo Credit: Pinterest

Sewing machines used to be so large and heavy, being often crafted entire of cast iron, requiring their own large and very sturdy wood and metal stands to be used. These stands, now often found as furniture without the incredibly heavy old sewing machines, are ideal for use as a planter, with the former recessed housing of the device making a perfect basin for plants. Old fashioned English garden plants like daisies and lavender look incredibly charming in a vintage sewing machine stand, as do nasturtiums and other more old-fashioned blooms. Plants that vine or cascade down from the basin also give the shelves a whimsical, aged look.

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28. You can build a garden station by repurposing a wooden stand.

Even if the stand is brand new, you can paint it and distress the wood to reflect a vintage style. Photo Credit: Diy Network

Anyone who is even moderately into gardening knows just how useful a dedicated potting bench can be. Trying to re-pot plants, even house plants, indoors is an incredibly messy task that will leave any surface (and the floor) littered with dirt and leaves. A simple vintage dining room table is an ideal potting bench to place outdoors next to a shed or garden. Paint an old table or varnish it to protect it from the elements. Attach storage hooks to one side to hang your tools, and you’re ready to re-pot and divide your plants like a professional!

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27. Build a small storage shed using a log cabin concept.

You can use the shed for storage and the style to enhance your vintage garden. Photo Credit: Onekin Design

Vintage windows are very on-trend for several DIY projects from Christmas and welcome signs to photo displays. A great outdoor use for vintage windows is to create hanging tool storage on a fence or shed, or even a tool storage backdrop to a repurposed table planting bench. Once you’ve found a vintage window, treat any exposed wood to prevent rot if you intend to leave the window uncovered to the elements. Then, use any mounts you would like, ranging from vintage doorknobs to hooks, to create storage and hanging space for all of your garden tools.

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26. Purchase a metal dress form and place it in your garden instead of your wardrobe area.

Plant flowers or vine plants around the dress to mimic the idea of a booming gown. Photo Credit: Pinterest

If you want to add a very chic and feminine structural element to your garden, look no further than a vintage or reproduction dress form. An older version of today’s sewing mannequins, the metal ribbing on a vintage dress, makes them an ideal trailing structure for vining garden plants. A clematis trailing up a vintage or reproduction dress form would be a truly stunning centerpiece for a full-sun perennial garden. Ivy of any kind would also be gorgeous, but you’d have to prune it regularly to keep the ivy from completely overtaking the form. Any trailing plant would be an attractive choice, so unleash your inner garden designer!

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25. Set an old-school dresser outdoors and plant some flowers in the drawers for a fast and easy vintage stand.

From a ’70s styles to a ’50s vibe, you can create the perfect vintage decade. Photo Credit: Decoration Ideas

It seems like every yard sale or estate sale has at least one old dresser that’s either seen better days, is a bit too big for modern tastes, etc. While these dressers may be a terrible fit for your home, consider your yard! Dressers, when treated against rot and mold, can be beautiful, rustic planters. Whether you use just the drawers or the entire dresser, the drawers are a great size and shape for succulent planters, vining plants, or any annual your heart might desire. You’ll want to make sure any exposed wood is painted or stained to prevent rot.

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24. Nail large spoons to a wooden beam. Bend the handles so you can hang coats, hats, or flower baskets.

You can purchase spoons from a thrift shop if you are a budget. Photo Credit: From Scratch Club

Vintage silverware is useful for all sorts of indoor DIY projects, from curtain ties to napkin rings. What might surprise you is that they have their uses in outdoor decorating as well! You don’t have to worry about rot, like with so many wood projects, and vintage silverware is easy to find at thrift stores and garage sales. When choosing silverware for hanging little planters from, while it may be counter-intuitive, you want to avoid nicer sterling silver pieces as these are much softer and able to hold far less weight than silver plated. Bend the handles, mount them to your fence or another flat surface, and hang a cute little pot from them with a bit of twine!

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23. Label your herb garden using rustic silverware makers.

You can purchase spoons from a thrift shop if you are a budget. Photo Credit: From Scratch Club

Unlike the potted plant hanger project we just discussed, for this project, you should keep your eyes out for vintage sterling silver pieces, as their softness will come in handy for stamping the names of your plants onto the flattened spoon faces. While this project takes a bit more elbow grease and dexterity, you will end up with beautiful, one-of-a-kind row and plant markers that will last for years to come thanks to their metal construction. There are tutorials online to hammer sterling silver spoons flat and then use a metal stamper to stamp in your plants’ names.

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22. Monogram succulent planters will enhance your garden and only take a few supplies.

Feel free to paint the box or distress the wood to make it look even more rustic and chic. Photo Credit: Pinterest

Many big box stores, garden centers, and hobby stores now sell large, hollow letters made from metal, glass, and wood. These cute accent pieces are ideal for filling up with succulents to make beautiful little gardens that can welcome people to your property all summer and add a bit of green to your home in a sunny spot all winter. There are fantastic tutorials online for making succulent hanging planters. However, the most critical step is to find a material that will hold your potting mix and the plants tightly against the frame, like wire mesh or heavy-duty landscape fabric.

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21. Antique doorknob herb dryers are the ultimate way to create a vintage garden space.

This vintage garden decor is perhaps the favorite because of the mysterious aroma. Photo Credit: Pinterest

There are few sights more homey and welcoming than seeing bunches of beautiful, aromatic fresh herbs hanging to dry. While there are many automatic herb dryers on the market, like dehydrators, and fancy racks that can dry many herbs at once, we recommend a far simpler solution for the rustic, vintage garden. In a sunny, breezy spot in your yard, whether it’s along a fence, next to a shed, or on a patio, select an area. Next, mount an eclectic combination of vintage doorknobs, far enough apart that bundles of herbs won’t touch each other and high enough that children and pets won’t be tempted to play with them.

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20. Vintage soup ladles are simple yet lovely as succulent hangers.

You can buy a handful of metal soup ladles for cheap. They are just the size for one plant each. Photo Credit: Midwest Living

Succulents are one of the few plants that can thrive and often enjoy small planting spaces and being relatively rootbound. This fact, along with their low water requirements, makes them ideal plants for small, decorative hangings. Try mounting a cute vintage soup ladle to a fence post, wooden light post, or other decorate vantage point in your yard in a very sunny spot. Once installed, put a small amount of gravel or different extremely well-draining soil (or puncture a hole in the bottom of the ladle) and plant a couple of small succulents for a whimsical, farmhouse touch.

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19. Instead of throwing away that rusty watering can, plant a flower in it and place the decor in the garden.

If you have rusty items, don’t get rid of them; these are ideal for a vintage-looking space. Photo Credit: Pine Cone Cottage Retreat

Much like a vintage or old fashioned pitcher, a beautiful old watering can is capable of creating a truly stunning centerpiece, especially when mounted to look as though it is pouring out some beautiful trailing or cascading plant. If hunt from its handle, so it looks like it’s pouring, a watering can planter can be an incredibly eye-catching sight. Fill the planter with something that traits beautifully like eucalyptus or sweet potato vine. To add an extra bit of sparkle, try suspending a few wires with crystal beads from the spout to give the effect of falling water in the sun!

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18. If you want an enchanting garden, teapots and cups are a must.

Create a way to put your tea set on display in your vintage garden. Photo Credit: Pinterest

If a teacup wind chime doesn’t add enough whimsy and Old English charm to your garden, the next step up is a teapot and cup garden stake DIY project. While vintage teapots are harder to find than teacups and may cost a bit more, a new reproduction teapot can easily be used to replicate a vintage feel. For these projects, mount a teapot to a garden stake, whether through drilling the pot and attaching with a screw, hot glue, or any other method you find through a trustworthy DIY tutorial (or your own know-how.) Then, stake a teacup below the pot, as though it is about to receive tea. Beaded wires can be hung from the cup’s spout to simulate the appearance of water or tea being poured!

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17. It only takes a few minutes to transform a kitchen strainer into a vintage flower pot.

You can purchase a colorful strainer or paint an old one. Photo Credit: Wikihow

We’ve mentioned a few times throughout this list that succulents require proper draining, whether through well-draining potting mix or gravel or adding drainage holes to their planters. With the vintage strainer succulent planter, the drainage problem is automatically solved for you! Vintage strainers are easy to find and often come in fun, unique colors like avocado or harvest gold. These colors pair beautifully with many succulents. The draining holes that make the strainers useful kitchen tools also make them ideal for succulents, prone to over-watering and rot!

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16. Spray paint an old bike and place it in your garden with a couple of flower baskets.

Adding a retro bicycle in the garden will create a charming vibe. Photo Credit: Pinterest

If you happen to have a vintage bicycle lying around, or you find one at a tag sale or vintage shop, they make relatively weather-proof and adorable pieces of garden art. Bikes can serve numerous purposes, being precious objects of art in and of themselves. But they also provide baskets that make beautiful planters and horizontal beams that can work for support hanging planters or even window boxes. The most important step for using any vintage bicycle as the decor is to ensure it has a complete paint job that will protect it from rust, mostly if left outside year-round. As long as you keep rust at bay, a vintage bicycle can be a beautiful garden focal point for many years!

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15. If you want to have a vintage garden, you should have a birdcage somewhere in there!

Whether you plant flowers in it or not, a birdcage is an instant win in a vintage garden. Photo Credit: Diy Network

Birdcages are having a significant moment for floral decor. Many big box stores and hobby stores are now carrying reproduction vintage birdcages. Some even modified to direction work as planters, as a love for the ornately wrought style comes back into vogue. Whether you use vintage or reproduction, a lovely metal birdcage can be the perfect home for any plant. This range includes annual, perennial, or even house plant flowers, but they especially shine when planted with something that can vine and reach up and out through the bars, like a bird taking wing.

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14. Hide modern-looking (or plain) nursey boxes in stylish baskets instead.

A wicker pattern is much more pleasing to the eye then a dirty pot. Credit: kollektivevintage.com

While many of us rush to replant a beautiful new plant as soon as we get it home from the nursery, this may be a bad idea. The reality is that some plants don’t like to be transplanted, and some even thrive in the root-bound, well-draining conditions of a nursery pot far better than a ceramic or terra cotta pot. If you have recently purchased one such plant, but don’t like the simple black or green plastic of the nursery pot, try using a vintage wicker or wood basket to hide the pot, while still allowing for draining and airflow. If you use a plastic-lined basket, be sure to empty any standing water after watering your new botanical friend to avoid rot!

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13. Paint some old wooden crates and fill them with vintage wonders like plants, books, and birdcages.

Place a ladder and crate boxes under a shutter with shelves and you might have enough wood to create a masterpiece. Photo Credit: Sogo 24

Much like vintage windows and vintage birdcages, old shutters have a significant moment in the home decorating world. While they are often pictured being used to display photos or indoor window coverings, vintage shutters can be used throughout the garden to mount window-boxes full of gorgeous annuals. Suppose you don’t want to risk water damage to your siding through traditional window boxes. Why not put some beautiful old distressed shutters on your fence, shed, or just partially buried in the ground and mount some lightweight, moss-filled window-boxes to them for a cottage garden look?

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12. Install a couple of wooden posts and attach a wire gate for the entrance to your garden.

Even if the gate stands alone, it will create an enchanting appearance. Photo Credit: Pinterest

Proper vintage fencing is often hard to find and collected by hobby farmers for their acreages and outbuildings. It can also be quite heavy and sometimes dangerous, especially if you haven’t had a tetanus shot in a while! Thankfully, many companies make modern reproductions of safer and more lightweight material that mimic some beautiful vintage styles. Once you find a style you like, try pairing some vintage-style fencing with a vintage wooden door to create a truly magical garden entrance. Or, use a vintage gate at the bottom of a driveway for a secluded, vacation-home like vibe.

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11. Find some retro coffee pots made of metal to enhance your vintage garden.

If you don’t own one, maybe you can pick up a metal coffee pot at a thrift shop. Photo Credit: Funky Junk Interiors

If vintage coffee cans aren’t enough caffeinated art for your garden, vintage coffee pots are another fantastic idea. Old coffee pots are cheapest when they lack their lids, making garden-ready pots cheaper and easier to find! Enameled metal pots are an attractive choice. But any variety of old coffee pots can make for an incredibly cute planting. If you’re planting an annual that lovers water, you can throw in some soil and go to town. But if you want to plant something like a succulent in a coffee pot, you need an extra step. You’ll want to make sure you include gravel in the planting medium to ensure drainage.

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10. Tie antique cheese graters to a post and plant flowers inside of them for a unique vibe.

Create a statement wall by mounting several different size graters as planters on a wall. Photo Credit: Farmers Almanac

If space is lacking in your garden or backyard, wall planters are a great option to grow flowers, vegetables, and herbs. Cheese graters are a perfect choice, as they can be screwed onto a fixture of wood upside down and are already designed to provide excellent drainage for your garden plants. These cleverly designed planters can be found at yard sales and flea markets quite easily. Create a unique display by mounting several in different sizes onto a wall in your patio or yard. They could even be spray painted to make a more colorful statement or blend in more easily with your existing backyard style. 

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9. Set up a vintage fan — don’t worry if it doesn’t work.

DIY tutorials are easy to find online to help you create this unique garden decoration. Credit: Shutterstock

These garden decorations are full of life as they lend their vintage style to your backyard or patio. Fan blades can be salvaged from flea markets, and the older they look, the better for this project. This DIY project uses four salvaged fan blades and a table leg that serves as the dragonfly’s body. Tutorials can be found online to guide you in creating this garden decoration. As the metal hardware on the fan blades is usually already distressed to fit the vintage style, after assembling, your dragonfly needs nothing more than to be carefully placed in its position to keep a watchful eye on your garden and plants. 

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8. If you don’t have a complete tea set, make a wind chime with vintage spoons.

Vintage silverware can easily be transformed into a beautiful decoration for your yard. Photo Credit: Amazon

Silverware can usually be found in abundance at yard sales and especially flea markets, at budget-friendly prices. Gather a collection of various utensils, or just one type, all spoons or all forks, for example, which would make a unique statement piece. By drilling holes at the end of each piece, you can easily string the silverware up and create an eye-catching wind chime to add to your backyard decor. Other accents could be added, such as glass beads or other metal embellishments, adding another level of interest to this unique garden decoration. The silverware could be mounted with a clear fishing line to a metal ring, or even to a vintage plate or bowl to finish off the project. 

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7. Use a vintage metal box spring as a garden planter.

Metal box springs are a great way to add that vintage flair to your garden space. Credit: Shutterstock

An antique metal box spring can make a great addition to your garden space, as it can serve as a unique planter option for displaying and growing several plants in a small area. The frame will not weather or rot as quickly as wood and will stand up to the outdoor elements for many years in your yard. Small pots can be mounted to the frame to grow a variety of flowers and even herbs. Another option is to use the bed spring’s spiral design as a ready-made planter, just line with peat moss, add soil and drop plants right in. Herbs can be grown in this style of planter and succulents, which can create a beautiful work of art when planted in a group. 

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6. Teacups aren’t only great as planters — they also make beautiful birdfeeders. 

Vintage plates can easily be glued together to create this fun and quick DIY project. Credit: Shutterstock

Vintage plate ware has yet another use with this easy DIY project that is perfect for your vintage garden. You can easily find vintage plates and cups at a yard sale or flea market. Just attach the teacup to the saucer on its side; make sure you create a space for the birdseed to “pour” out from onto the saucer. This idea is a charming little feeder for your feathered friends to perch on and eat while they visit your garden. 

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5. Use old-school wagons or vintage toy trucks as planters.

Antique metal trucks can be used as planters to add character and personality to your garden decor. Credit: Shutterstock

Metal toy trucks are the perfect vehicle for a creative way to grow plants in your garden or on your patio. These trucks come in many different sizes, styles, and finishes, and the older, the better, as any imperfections add more character to this great vintage planter. Adding a coat of paint if you desire will not detract from the vintage feel these trucks can add to your garden. The truck bed can be planted with shallow-rooted plants, such as succulents; even the cab can be used as a planter, with plants in the windows on each side. 

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4. These garden arches are easy to find and create a romantic garden area. 

A wooden archway in your garden can make a space more welcoming, as it invites you in to explore and still a while. Credit: Shutterstock

Chances are you or someone you know a couple of these wooden ladders lying around already. First, decide on the dimensions for your archway based on where you want to place it. You can set this arch in an entryway to your garden to create a welcoming feel, or even nestle the assembled ladder arch into an area where vines can be grown across it. The look of the wooden ladder immediately puts an antique touch on your garden space.

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3. Create a milk jug planter and your garden will appear vintage right away. 

Milk jugs make a low maintenance addition to any vintage garden space. Credit: Shutterstock

Antique milk jugs are a classic vintage addition to any garden. They have that unique, old-world charm and can be planted with tiny, flowering plants or vines that will help decorate your space and add a vintage vibe at the same time. Milk jugs can be found at yard sales or flea markets, and they are ready to go with a weathered condition that showcases their classic vintage appeal. Most planters have great character as they are with their worn metal finish, but adding a coat of paint is also a great option to add a burst of color in your yard as well.

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2. Stack glass plates and cups in your garden to create color-faux stalks. 

Assemble glass plates and cups in contrasting colors to create beautiful vintage flower stakes for your garden space. Photo Credit: Goerie

Vintage glass plates, bowls, and cups can be easily assembled to create this eye-catching project. To do this project, find various plates and cups in different sizes and coordinate or contrast colors to create a beautiful flower sculpture that will also act as a suncatcher as it hangs out among the flowers in your garden bed. Pinwheel hardware kits can be purchased online to give you all the necessary tools to assemble these fun, colorful works of art for your garden.

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1. Place antique-looking keys throughout the garden for an magical atmosphere. 

Imagine finding a key in a garden as a child — and it worked in a special gate! Credit: Shutterstock

There are a number of items that create a vintage theme, including bicycles, birdcages, and tea sets. Any type of rusty metal that you can place in the garden also works. Keys are one of those pieces that can join the list of vintage pieces. You can tie keys to a tree branch, let the hang like leaves, or place them throughout the garden. If you have a gate, place the actual key to that gate in the garden. It will create an enchanting vibe that is completely nostalgic. 

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