DIY Decorative Terracotta Pots With Scalloped Edges

 I found these beautiful decorative terracotta pots with a scalloped edge at a fancy home store and thought they would be a beautiful addition to the windowsill herb garden.   At $30 bucks each, I decided to figure out how to make my own. 

My husband was the one who figured this one out for me.  We tried a few different methods and a few different tools before we finally found the method and the results that we liked best. 

I have to say they turned out pretty cute. 

Easy DIY Terracotta Pot Transformation

Don’t let this craft fool you into thinking it’s difficult and time-consuming. So long as you have the right tools, and follow the instructions, you will be able to recreate these mini decorative terracotta pots in about 15 minutes.

This is a great way to take a plain cheap old standard pot and make it into something with a bit more oomph. The texture adds a really nice touch and makes the pots look a lot more custom made.

Once you understand the method you can adapt and make larger scallops, or smaller ones or even straight lines – it all depends on the tool attachment you use.

Painting Terracotta Pots – Optional

Painting your decorative terracotta pots is completely optional. If you do want to paint them I have the quickest, easiest way to do so that won’t chip crack or peel.

The spray paint I use is a primer, sealer, and paint all in one, and the paint dries to a shiny coating. That shiny coating gives these pots a ceramic look, upping the oomph factor even more.

But if you like the look of your scalloped edge terracotta pots and don’t feel like you want to paint them, you don’t have to at all. Just skip those steps.

I think they look so pretty painted white – very dainty.

Materials Required To Make DIY Terracotta Pots

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• 4 -inch Terracotta pots with thick rims
• Rustoleum glossy paint and primer spray paint
• Drop cloth, or old sheet or tarp you don’t care about
• Small indoor plants, herbs, or flowers.

Tools Required

• Dremel
• 1/2 inch sanding drums (large)
• Outdoor hose with running cold water
• Eye protection
• Face Mask
• Gloves (for painting)

Important Safety Tips

How Messy is This Decorative Terracotta Pot Project?

It’s not too bad actually but a few things you need to keep in mind.

#1. This is 100% an outdoor project. Do not even attempt to do this indoors, because it will create one glorious mess. Step outside, and away from your house. The terracotta residue will spray. It will rinse off with a strong stream from a hose, but it’s not worth the hassle. Avoid those extra cleaning steps by getting away from anything you don’t want to be coated in red clay.

#2. Wear clothes you don’t care about and be prepared to take a shower afterward.

Step One – Prepping The Pots

You will need a hose with running water set to a light trickle. You can see in the video below how fast we had our water running.

The cold running water is required for two reasons. Without water to cool the bit, the bit will start to burn and wear out long before its time. The second reason is the terracotta will burn and turn black. Not a great look.

Before you start working with the Dremel run the terracotta pot under the running water to get it good and wet.

Step 2 – Carving The Scallop

Insert a sanding drum bit into your Dremel and put on a fresh drum.

Turn your Dremel to high – but not maximum – speed.

Keep the water running on the rim of the pot.

Press the side of the drum to the top edge of the rim of the pot at a slight angle. Make sure you keep the water running on the spot you are working on – it will dry out and heat up immediately otherwise.

Use steady pressure to let the drum bite into the pot until you reach your desired depth. The deeper you go, the larger the scallop will be.

Once you are satisfied with the depth of the scallop, move the drum so it’s right next to the spot you just sanded, and repeat until you get all the way around the rim of the pot.

Step 3 – Painting (Optional)

Allow the decorative terracotta pots to dry overnight before applying paint. The pots should be bone dry before painting.

Shake the spray paint can very very well and do a test spot on your drop cloth, or in an area you don’t care about before spraying the pots. This ensures that any air that is trapped in the nozzle is expelled before spray painting. That air creates big globs of paint, we want to try to avoid that.

3 light coats of paint are better than one heavy coat. Spray 6-8 inches in wide sweeps leaving behind a light coat of paint. Repeat twice. Once the pots are dry, turn them upside down to make sure you get all the spots painted.

Let dry completely before adding plants.

Can I make Larger or Smaller Scallops, or use Larger Pots?

You can use any size sanding drum you want. Each one will make a different pattern depending on how far apart you make the indents.

You can use this method on larger pots, but I would advise using a larger sized sanding drum so that the pattern is visible.

Get That Designer Look For A Few Bucks

All-in these little decorative terracotta pots cost me $15.00 for 6. That included the 6 bucks for the pots themselves and the spray paint.

They are almost identical to the ones I scoped out for $30 bucks each. Sure, mine may have a few imperfections, but that’s fine, I just spin my pots around to the good sides.

If you try this project, let me know, I would love to see what you create!