What happens after you finish that plastic reuse cup Starbucks puts your delicious cold coffee in? At the very least, it’s our hope that it gets rinsed and recycled, but what if you could go a step further and make use of the cup instead of sending it off to the bin?
We concocted the wildly fun idea to turn the plastic reuse cup Starbucks gives you when you’re on the go into an adorable planter! This could also double as a spiffy gift for a coffee-loving pal!
You read that right; in this DIY, we’re going to take you through 4 super easy steps to create your very own repurposed reuse cup Starbucks planter.
So, get that Ventie latte ordered, and let’s get to crafting!
Although this is a reuse cup Starbucks planter DIY, we would always encourage you to support your local coffee shops and get your tasty caffeine there. But, if you’re going to swing through the ol Starbucks anywho, this DIY is for you!
Reuse Cup Starbucks for Planter DIY
Starbucks has been making grand strides to become an even more sustainable and green company for its customers and the world. Why not run alongside their efforts by making some repurposing actions of our own?
What’s neat about this reuse cup Starbucks planter DIY is that the plastic found in their cups is the same type found in common planters. The name of the plastic found in the Starbucks to-go cups is called polyethylene, and there is a high-density polyethylene found in planters that you would purchase at a gardening store.
Now that we’ve got covered our fun facts, you can see a picture below of what the finished product will look like, and we can get into this fun plater DIY.
If you want to take your planter a step further, check out our simple DIY Self-Watering Planter Pot!
Supplies Needed for Reuse Cup Starbucks Planter
First things first, let’s rally up the supplies we’ll be needing for this awesome planter DIY. Also feel free to jazz it up if you’ve got some fun and creative ideas of your own!
There are really only 4 essential items you need for this DIY; the rest is completely optional and mainly for decor purposes.
- Cleaned out plastic Starbucks to-go cup
- Exacto knife
- Plant
- Potting soil
- Plant Saucer (optional)
- Acrylic paint (optional)
- Decorative String (optional)
Step One: Clean Your Reuse Cup Starbucks Gives You & Create Your Drain Hole
After you’ve drank your yummy bean juice, it’s nice to rinse all of it out and give it a nice gentle scrub; you don’t want to crack your cup!
Next, dry your cup and ready your exacto knife for creating the drain hole at the bottom of your reuse cup Starbucks gave you.
Carefully, poke through the bottom of your cup just enough for the tip of the blade to be sticking out on the other side.
Gently, move the exacto knife in a circular motion to create a small hole.
After extracting the exacto knife, turn your cup over and pull out any extra plastic, like in the picture below.
A good planter has at least one draining hole, and since these holes are a bit smaller, you can create a few of them. So long as they’re evenly spaced so you don’t accidentally crack the reuse cup Starbucks gave you.
Draining holes are vital for a plant to thrive; for when you water your plant, it’ll be able to absorb the water and then let it flow out. This way, the water isn’t just sitting at the bottom of the planter and making this yucky for your plant and you.
Plant Parent Tip: When you water your plants, water them in your sink and let them drain naturally for a little while. We promise, your plants will be thrilled!
Step Two: Ready Your Plant & Start Filling Your Planter (Halfway Full)
For this reuse cup Starbucks planter DIY, we’re using a spider plant, but you can decide on a plant that best suits your household. Spider plants are fairly easy to care for (Water once a week, place by a window with good sunlight), and they’re non-toxic to cats if you have some in your household (Although, you may want to keep it out of reach, because your cat may mistake it for a salad bar).
Set your ready plant aside and begin preparing your reuse cup Starbucks planter. We used the kitchen sink for this demonstration, setting the bag of potting soil on the other side for easy access! Plus, this DIY gets a little messy, so it’s easy to clean at the end.
Start by putting a few handfuls of potting soil in your reuse cup Starbucks planter and using a spray bottle or the faucet, lightly moisten the soil and pack it down.
Continue to do these steps until you have reached about halfway!
Step Three: Place Plant & Continue Filling Dirt Into Reuse Cup Starbucks Planter
We’ve almost reached the end of the reuse cup Starbucks planter DIY, isn’t this fun and easy?!
Using your finger, create a hole in the middle of the soil where your plant and its roots can be placed.
After the makeshift hole is created, you can gently place your plant in the hole. You don’t want to force it down, be gentle and patient so you don’t damage your plant’s roots. They worked hard to grow them!
Once your plant is placed, begin placing handfuls of dirt around the plant as you did in the previous step. After you have a few handfuls of dirt around the plant, moisten the soil and lightly pack.
Repeat these steps until you’ve reached the top of the cup! You don’t want the cup to be overflowing, but you don’t want to have too little soil.
Step Four: Clean & Find A Place For Your New Reuse Cup Starbucks Planter! (Decorate if Desired)
And now for the final step, and a fun one at that!
Once you’re all done playing with the dirt, spot-clean the outside of your reuse cup Starbucks planter and find the perfect spot in your house for this little guy to chill out and catch some sun rays.
You can also utilize this last step as a chance to decorate your reuse cup Starbucks planter if you’d like! You can use decorative string to tie around the cup, or even use acrylic paint to snazzy up your reuse cup Starbucks planter.
We decided to keep ours plain because we liked the idea of being able to see through the cup and get a peek into the soil. Plus, that Starbucks logo sure does pop with the background of that soil!
Isn’t it super cute that the potting soil looks like a tall cup of black coffee? This is definitely a unique Java DIY or a quirky gift for a coffee lover!
We hope you got a kick out of this fun and simple reuse cup Starbucks planter DIY, and we thank you for repurposing and looking for ways to do better for our environment.
Don’t want the garden party to end? Learn How to Make Raised Garden Bed from Pallets; you won’t be disappointed!