DIY | Terrarium

Terrariums are such an easy summer project that will instantly liven up any space in your house. You can place them by your window, on your desk, or another well-lit spot. Cacti and succulent plants rarely need to be watered so they're very low maintenance plants. All you need is about 30 dollars and 30 minutes to make your own adorable terrarium filled with bright succulent and cacti. 

I've been obsessed with terrariums ever since I saw these ones at the adorable boutique called Pigmet in North Park. As cute as their terrariums are, they are certainly not cheap. The globe terrariums range from $12 (for a very tiny one) to $100+ and that's only for the glass sphere! Although I wish I could have a couple of the globe terrariums hanging in my room, I just don't have the money to do that so I decided to make my own. Here's what you'll need.

What you will need
Vase- You can use whatever size vase, jar,  pot, or dish. I bought deep dish at Ikea for $10 but I saw a very similar dish at Walmart for $5.
Succulent and cacti- You can find them at Walmart, Home Depot, or Lowe's. I bought $16 worth of succulents and cacti (6 plants in total) at Walmart.
Soil- I bought a huge bag at Walmart for less than $3 but you can definitely pick up a smaller bag if you don't do much planting.
Bright sand or rocks- I got the orange sand from Ikea for $1.99 but you can also find bright material at Michael's or other arts & crafts stores.
Spoon or shovel
Gardening gloves- Gloves are a must! You don't want to prick your fingers with the cacti.
Total: Mine was about $30 but you can certainly make one for less or go wild. It's all up to you.

Step 1: Add the first layer of the bright sand on the dish or vase. Make sure to completely cover the surface with the sand.

Step 2: Add soil. You can use a shovel for this but I just used my hands so I could spread it evenly. Don't add too much soil right now because you'll be adding more once the plants are in.

The layer of soil should look something like this. As you can see there's still space for the plants to go in. I wish I would have gone with a deeper dish or vase though.

Step 3: Time to start planting your cacti and succulent! There is no right way to organize your plants, just play around until you like the arrangement. Make sure to space them out a little since some might grow a little.

This is how I ended up arranging mine. The tall cacti went in the back, and all the stubby succulent and cacti in the front. My mom was kind enough to give me some of the spiky cacti with the red tips to add to my terrarium. When she got the cacti they were super small but with some TLC they've grown quite a bit.

Step 4: Add more soil. Make sure to cover all the roots and that the tall cacti are not falling down. After you've added enough soil you should water the plants a little. Add enough water so that the soil is nice and moist.

Step 5: Cover the soil with the colorful sand. The layer shouldn't be too thick because you'll have to water your plants in the future.

And that's it! You now have your own terrarium with colorful succulent and cacti. Doesn't it look so damn adorable? I feel like such a dork for admitting this, but I can't help but smile when I see it. Here's a couple more pictures of my terrarium.

 If you need more inspiration check out these terrariums: Inspiration #1 | Inspiration #2 | Inspiration #3

Terrariums not only brighten up any space in your house but they also make great gifts. I loved making this one so much that I'm planning to make another terrarium once I have my own office area in my house.

If you decide to make your own terrarium please send me pictures! You can either leave the link below, tweet me, or even tag me on Instagram. I'm @Neuzeth in both of those platforms.

Hope you enjoyed my first DIY and have a lovely day.