Making a wooden planter for succulents

[Kim2]

Hi peeps, 

I'm completely new to woodworking and in dire need of help! I tried making a wooden planter with 45 degree cut corners and glued it together with Sellys aquadhere -the first one looks okay but the rest of the corners are terrible 

This was made with scap wood I found on the side of the road. I would like to try again with some 12mm thick tasmanian oak I bought from bunnings and coat it with tung oil (apparently it cures the wood and makes it waterproof?)

I want to create something like the planter on the right...any help would be greatly appreciated. Oh and I bought a corner clamp from bunnings but it never clamped the corners properly ... either that or I didnt use it properly?

Please help 

Kim

[Jason]

Great project! You've come to the right place @Kim2. I'm sure some of our community members who love woodworking will be able to help, including the likes of @Yorky88, @Wayne, @She_Skills, @AndrewJones, @Brad, @woodalwaysworks, @darylhewston, @LePallet and @Rusty-Saw.

Let me also extend a very big welcome to the Workshop community and a thanks for joining us. It's terrific to have you as our newest member. I'm sure that in addition to getting lots of great advice for this project, you'll find plenty of other useful information and inspiration on the site. Feel free to post anytime you need a hand. And we'd love to see some of your other projects and plans when you get a chance. 

Please let me know if you ever need a hand getting the most from the site.

Thanks again,

Jason

[Brad]

@Kim2is the clamp like this?

Or this?

The all in one clamping action is hard to get to line up properly while the double clamps let you adjust one side at a time for best fit.

To help with alignment you can use dowells, biscuits or glue joint routing.

Pocket holes are another choice you need the alignment right while screwing together though.

Through dovetails would be the holy grail of woodworking, not for the faint hearted though.

I would have a careful read of the label for Tung Oil to see if it realy is waterproof.

[LePallet]

Hi @Kim2

@this is not a bad effort you have done there and also a nice choice of timber. I'm not sure about that sealant you are using, not familiar but I would ask some one at Bunnings or I would be looking in the Varnish section as there is a good range of oils and clear varnishes that work great for outdoor use if this is what you intend to use it for.

with the angles you will be able to get some good advise on different ways you can attack it all equaling the same outcome but i some times cut my timber to sizes with the angles MAKING SURE EACH CUT IS 45o degrees, then simply place them on the bench with a little bit of Hand pressure and you should see straight away how much of a snug fit each corner is. That tool sounds pretty handy so hop onto YouTube and type it in, there will be plenty of videos to explain the uses of the tool. If you have expandable clamps they are the ideal way or I've some times been lazy and just put a brick on each corner whilst I glued the corners together and adding a little bit of pressure, even put a screw on each side edge where it sits on the bench so it doesn't blow out and locks it right in.

Pleaae do share your second attempt 

one more thing and for the inside, you can get this special black tar waterproofing paste from Bunnings and comes in a tin, it goes a long way and can be painted in the inside waterproofing the box and the good thing about succulent is they don't need a lot of water so maybe add some pebbles or rock down the bottom so it can circulate the water 

[Jason]

@Kim2,

Great to see you receiving fantastic advice. 

I should have also referred you to @ProjectPete's wonderful floating planter box which is similar to what you are building. I'm sure Pete will be happy to assist. 

Jason 

[ProjectPete]

Hi @Kim2 - great to see you having a crack at it.

If you like the look of the planter box I made which @Jason linked to then I'd be happy to go intil detail of how I made it. Although you'll need a Biscuit Joiner or Pocket Hole Jig for the hidden and strong joins I used.

Line the inside with some black plastic to make sure it lasts 'forever'. Oils can help to make timber more water resistant but it requires annual oiling to keep it that way. 

[Kim2]

Wow, so much advice and so quick! Thank you soooo much @Brad @LePallet @Jason @ProjectPete

@Brad I have double clamps (the Trojan Mitre corner clamp), perhaps I didn't cut the wood properly...my mitre saw was a bit wobbly when I made the cut. Is that normal or is it a novice problem? I'll give the mitre clamp another go although I love @LePallet s idea of using brick.

And I love biscuits (the woodworking kind and dovetails. They are gorgeous but beyond my current woodworking skills I will endeavour to get there one day! I'll get back to you guys with my second attempt.

Thank you so much for the help thus far!

[Kim2]

[Kim2]

Hey guys @Brad @LePallet @Jason @ProjectPete.

Check out the planter in Gallery!! I can't seem to embed photos in Quick Reply.

Isn't it gorgeous!?!? I used @LePallets idea of using brick and gave up on the mitre corner clamp. I'll paint the inside with bitumen paint tomorrow. Can I use boiled linseed oil to protect the outside of the box ? I like the colour of this wood as is....

[Jason]

@Kim2,

I have moved your first gallery photo here so everyone can see it. It looks fantastic. Well done.

The always open Quick Reply box is just text only. If you want the full editing capabilities, including adding images to a discussion post, please hit the reply button.

Jason