Let’s get colorful and whimsical and create some DIY painted toad houses for the garden!
The toads have already started to serenade us at night and I just love that sound of nature. I didn’t have time to make any toad homes last year, so I got busy this week and completed two.
I look forward to sneaking a peek to see if either of the clay pots will be occupied, especially in the summer when the heat comes and they are in need of some shade.
I remember seeing a mommy and baby near a corner downspout last year, so I’ll be placing my toad homes near that spout and some plants.
DIY PAINTED TOAD HOUSES FOR THE GARDEN
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SUPPLIES NEEDED:
- 6 inch clay pot
- 4.5 inch clay pot
- matte acrylic or multi-surface craft paint
- 2 foam paint brushes ~ small and medium
- artist paint brush
- cardstock or paper
- scissors
- pencil
- dotting tool
- spray sealer
INTERESTING TOAD HOUSE INFORMATION:
A toad house is a shelter where toads may lounge, protected from the sun and potential predators.
- Location is key when establishing toad houses. Find a shady spot adjacent to the garden where they can hunt for protein-rich insects or other prey.
- Easy access to water is also important to these garden friends and may be as easy as placing a shallow reservoir nearby.
- Use a trowel to expose bare soil and make sure the house does not rock when bumped.
- A small handful of leaves may be placed inside the house to provide bedding material.
- Via ~ Mick Telkamp ~ HGTV.com
4 STEPS ~ DIY PAINTED TOAD HOUSES FOR THE GARDEN
STEP 1: PAINT THE BASE COLOR
- Use the medium size foam brush to paint the larger pot and the smaller brush for the small pot. Two coats of paint will be needed for both pots.
STEP 2: PLAN THE FLOWER DESIGN
I drew my own flower pattern, but you can Google “flower coloring pages” and find an easy flower to print on cardstock and cut out to use as a pattern.
- Tape the pattern to the pot and hold in place while tracing.
- I painted a simple circle for the main pattern on the small pot.
STEP 3: DRAW AND PAINT THE DESIGNS
Ya’ll know how crazy I am over polka dots, like when I painted my birdhouse, so I’m using dots again on my toad houses. Love me some polka dots!
LARGE CLAY POT:
- Start painting the base color of the flower light green….let dry.
- Paint yellow petals on the green flower….let dry.
- The yellow paint doesn’t give an opaque color so paint up and down the petal so some paint is in more areas than others.
- Add a turquoise circle in the middle….let dry.
- Paint the center pink and add pink swoops….let dry.
- Use the end of the artist brush or a dotting tool to outline everything in dots.
- Add larger dots in the center of the flower.
SMALL CLAY POT:
- Paint a pink circle in the center.
- Outline the circle with pink dots.
- Add multiple rings of different colors of dots.
STEP 4 ~ APPLY SEALER
- Spray a sealer to protect your painted design.
- This is optional but recommended.
So what do you think? Won’t these DIY toad houses be fun to paint for your garden? Paint some for your yard or give them as gifts!
CHECK OUT THESE FUN GARDEN FLAGS!
MORE PAINTED OUTDOOR PROJECTS YOU MAY LIKE:
Itâs time to join in again with my blogging friends for â10 on the 10th,â where we make a craft that cost $10 or under to share with our readers. UPDATE 2023: this project will most likely be more than $10. The theme this month is “Gardening or Outdoors!” Youâll find their craft links at the end of this post, so be sure to visit their fun projects. Donât miss out!
NOW, SEE THE GARDENING/OUTDOOR PROJECTS FROM MY BLOGGING FRIENDS!
PATINA AND PAINT ~ Outdoor Coasters
THE APPLE STREET COTTAGE ~ Herb Sign
DECORATE MORE WITH TIP ~ Tablecloth for a Patio Table
CLOCHES & LAVENDER ~ Melamine Plates
PANDORA’S BOX ~ Gardening
FRENCH ETHEREAL ~ Quick Garden Craft Idea
Sharing my painted toad houses at these fabulous blogs!
Allyson, we had a pond put in right by our bedroom window at our old house. One night about this time of year we heard the LOUDEST ‘Screams” in the middle of the night. Turns out it was a group of frogs doing their mating call in unison. This went on for DAYS! Lots of sleepless nights. I had never heard of such a thing. Even the neighbors were calling asking us to keep whatever was in the backyard quiet. Needless to say it took us days but the frogs were relocated down the street to a lake. I like to think both they and us were much happier! lol. I love these toad houses. So pretty and colorful! They would be perfect in a garden!
Oh my goodness, sounds like ya’ll were on nature overload with your frogs! Glad you love my toad houses.
Very cute Allyson, I’ve never heard of toad houses!
Glad you think my toad houses are cute, Jenna! I’ve added the houses to my critter watch list ~ can’t wait to catch one in use lol.
In our old house we had tree frogs and they kept us up for nights when they were mating. Amazing is doesn’t make you crazy
Anyway these pots are adorable and it’s great to have you back!
We must not have many males in our ditch as their deep throaty sound is not overbearing. I love the sound ~ call me crazy! Happy you like my toad houses and good to be back after Covid. Thanks!
Adorable!! Love them!! Thanks for the inspiration!!
Hugs,
Deb
I’m happy you think my toad houses are adorable! Thanks for dropping by. đ
Allyson the pots are adorable. I didn’t know fogs would live in the pots. Not only is it protecting them but it sure makes the garden look so cute.
Thank you, Terrie! They get in the houses to shade themselves from the summer sun, too. Last year, I found some of our toads hiding under our mulch.
These little toad houses are adorable, Allyson. It’s important to take care of all the little critters- noisy or not!
They were fun to paint and I still want to paint some more. Happy you like my houses!
I have never considered little homes for roads!! We have a pond near us and the bullfrogs are very noisy. I imagine the roads stay close to there as I havenât seen any in our yard! The pots are cute!
Patti, glad you think my toad houses are cute. đ The majority of our toads are in our ditch, but I have seen some in other wet areas in our flower beds. They like to hide under our mulch.
I cant believe my phone autocorrected toads to roads!! lol
LOL ~ I figured that’s what happened!
Allyson, these pots for your toads are adorable!!! We had a toad in our house in a 20 gallon tank for 6 years and we enjoyed his antics. đ I have had a very few outdoor ones here at our new home since we’ve moved to Texas and it would be nice to have them stay. The small house I had with pebbles all over it I think got left in California at our last home (I haven’t seen it since).
Enjoy your cute pots and it’d be fun to make these with my daughter when she comes up to visit,
Happy hopping with you,
Barb đ
Thank you, Barbara! Glad you like my pots. I bet that was entertaining to watch your pet toad. Nice “hopping” with you, too. đ
Never heard of toad houses before, but makes perfect sense. These are really cute too!
Alexandra, I’m so happy you think my toad houses are cute! They were fun to paint with designs and I hope to find the time to make some more for my flower beds.
This looks like a fun project and they look so cute!
Glad you like my toad houses! Yes, the designs are fun to paint on the pots. Thanks for visiting!
Very very pretty decor.
Thanks for your compliment on my toad houses and thanks for visiting!
How cute, bright, and colorful!! Thanks so much for linking up with me at the Unlimited Link Party 27. Pinned!
So happy you think my toad houses are cute. đ Thanks for pinning!
These are adorable Allyson and perfect for my fairy garden. Great tutorial too! Thanks for sharing and have a wonderful weekend.
Denise, thank you for the compliments and dropping by!
Allyson,
I just love those flower pots. Congratulations, you are being featured at Thursday Favorite Things. I hope you stop by. https://www.eclecticredbarn…
Hugs,
Bev
Awesome! Thanks so much for featuring my toad pots! đ
So cute! When i was young and lived in Florida, I would make “frog houses” as I called them in the white, moist sand but i used my fist and pounded the sand around my fist and then would pull my fist out slowly and thought the frogs would sleep there that night lol. Your version is cute and more grown-up! Pinned to our Crafty Ways board.
Thanks, Donna! Love your story ~ too funny. Thanks for dropping by and for pinning!
What a fun craft! Itâs perfect for any backyard and I love that itâs colorful and whimsical!
Maureen
Thanks, Maureen! The toad houses were fun to paint and our frogs appreciate the shade. Thanks for dropping by!
These are so cute Allyson! Just the other night our pup found a toad in our yard. He licked it, and shook his head like YUCK! Maybe they need a house to keep them safe, thank you for your inspiration!
Thanks, Cara. That’s funny about your puppy learning he dislikes the taste of toad!
Hello,
May I use painted plastic pots for the toad shelters! I donât have any clay pots. Love yours! Thank you for sharingđ
Hi Lisa! I think a plastic pot could also be used as a toad house. I would place it in a shady spot since plastic would probably heat up more than clay pots. I’ve found that I have to use extra coats of paint on a plastic pots, whether using spray or craft. Using a “multi-surface” paint, like Apple Barrel, may solve that problem since it’s thicker. Apple Barrel also makes an “outdoor” paint, but I’ve never invested in it. Regardless of what kind of paint you use, I would spray on an extra coat or two of sealer (outside only) just to be on the safe side since paint on plastic has a tendency to crack/peel off if sealer isn’t used. Have fun painting your pots and thanks for visiting!