A DIY way to add a touch of vintage charm to your fall porch is to assemble mum planters in olive buckets. Includes photos and instructions, and it’s so easy!

Mums are a classic choice for fall porch decor, and placing them in vintage olive buckets adds instant charm. This easy idea is budget-friendly, takes just minutes to assemble, and works beautifully with other seasonal touches. These fall mums in olive buckets were one of my favorite ways to dress up our front porch.

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About the Olive Buckets
Vintage olive buckets can be hard to find. If you live in a large city, they can be found at antique stores, flea markets, and craft fairs. An easy way to obtain them is to do some savvy online shopping. I found my two olive buckets on eBay. I had to pay a hefty amount of shipping, but the day they arrived was so fun! Vintage olive buckets can also be found on Etsy. Unlike the vintage variety, olive bucket reproductions are much easier to find. For an outside planter, reproductions would be perfect. Olive buckets range from 16 inches to 20 inches tall. Mine are about 18 inches tall. My olive buckets do not match, and one is slightly taller than the other. But to me, they are wonderful.

Olive Bucket Sources

Supplies needed for two buckets
- olive buckets (or other similar container)
- pots for inside the olive bucket
- grapevine wreaths
- greenery
- bunches of berries or dried bittersweet
- 2 large mums in a pot

Assembly Steps
- Place any sort of pot inside the olive bucket upside down. I used 8 inch terra cotta pots that I had in the garage. Plastic pots can also be used. These will act a risers to lift the mums over the edge of the olive buckets.
- Place a grapevine wreath just inside the rim of each olive bucket. I totally lucked out with the size of the wreaths that I had on hand. I used 15 inch wreaths, and they fit perfectly inside the tops of the olive buckets. It would be fine for the wreath to sit on top of your container too. It doesn’t have to fit inside. The size of the wreaths depends on the opening of the olive buckets.
- Place your potted mum inside the middle of the wreath, and set it on the upside down pot inside the olive bucket. Place your greenery and berry bunches into the grapevine wreath. You may have to cut the stems apart with wire cutters.
- Stand back and enjoy your beautiful mum planters!

You don’t have to own olive buckets to use this method. It would work with any sort of large pot or planter. I think it would look amazing with terra cotta pots because they are the perfect fall color, and they are very budget-friendly.

Additional Information
- Our front door color.
- The blue doormat is no longer available. This floral doormat is very cute and the same colors, and this geometric doormat would work beautifully too.
- Our mailbox and our address plaque.
- If you’re looking for more ideas, I’ve gathered all my favorite porch displays in one place. Take a look at this collection of 10 Fall Planter Ideas for even more inspiration.


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This is a beautiful front doorway. Can you please tell me the paint brand and color painted in the door? Thank you!
Very pretty, as usual, Ann. You take the everyday and make it awesome!
Great idea, Anne! I put your idea to work and made two pots! Since I don’t have the lovely olive buckets, I used what pots I already had. And you inspired me to make my own grapevine wreaths from the many wild grape vines that grow in my backyard. Love the look!!!
Anne, So pretty! I love the olive buckets.
Hugs,
Sherry
I love the olive buckets, Anne! I don’t think I have ever seen them. I love your front door updates, thanks for the ideas.