Terra Cotta FlowerPot Girl

Begin by painting the “face” onto the head pot. I found a pattern online that I traced with carbon paper and filled in using sharpie pens. If you want to paint the body, arms or legs, now is the best time to do that since it’s difficult to go back and paint after you assemble the pot person. Any accessories, such as the apron, can be added after. Let the paint dry and then spray with several thin layers of acrylic sealer.

Next, mark the pool noodle foam in 1 1/2 increments and cut into 26 pieces with a large knife. You will need these to string into the rope and fit into the inside bottom of the clay pots for spacing and support.

Assembling the Legs (5″ pots):

Cut rope 3 yards long, taping one end to make it easier to pass through the pot holes. Tie a double knot on one end of rope and string on a cut noodle piece pushing down to the knot. Push the taped end through the hole inside the bottom of the pot and out. The foam piece and knot should rest against the bottom of the pot on the inside. This is the first of six pots. Continue adding foam and pots this way until you have all six pots lined up on top of one another. This is the first terra cotta leg.

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Leave about 12 inches of rope between the last pot and the next pot. String another pot onto the tope, but face this pot in the opposite direction of the other six pots. Do this by pushing the rope into the outside hole into the pot, adding a piece of foam to the rope like before. Add another clay pot, then foam. Continue doing this until you have strung all six pots going in the opposite direction of the first 6 pots.

Assembling the Pot Body:

Place one of 8.25 pots, right side up. Using rope from the legs, wrap it under the exposed 12 inches of rope of legs and insert it into the bottom hole of the body pot, pulling both pieces through the holes and through a foam piece inside the pot, double tying a knot. Do the same for the second 8,25 pot, only upside down, using the rope from the arms.

Assembling the Arms: The arms are made the same as the legs, using the foam pieces, rope and the twelve smaller pots.

The two body pots are glued together using E6000 by gently laying all the pots on their sides on a padded surface, and running a bead of glue around the top edge of each pot and then upright the pots and let dry overnight.

And finally, glue the painted face pot on top.

To dress up my pot girl, I added a plastic apron and glued it to the body and tied mesh tubing around the top of the face pot. For a special touch, flowers are planted in the face pot.

There are so many creative things you can do with making terra cotta pot people.. You can add an outfit, hat, gloves and shoes . . . even hair out of raffia! So have fun making yours!