The Stunning Standing Vase You Can Create Using Only A Pool Noodle And Place Mat

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If there's one thing that's a challenge for house-proud homeowners, it's finding a vase that ensures a neat and tidy flower arrangement. Blooms tend to splay out in a decidedly ungainly manner in vases that are too tall with mouths too wide, while narrow, squat vases necessitate so much stem cutting you end up with almost no flower or foliage left. You've probably never considered the humble pool noodle as the solution to these verdant dilemmas ... But it is! To make a surprisingly sleek vase, glue a pool noodle end-to-end, spray paint it black (or any hue you like), and glue a rustic placemat around the top to create a neck. Fill the vase with water and pop in your choice of long-stemmed dried or fresh flowers or foliage.

Since you're spray painting the pool noodle, you can use anything you have lying around the house or can get for free. Just make sure it's hollow inside and doesn't have a lengthways slit. If you need to buy a noodle, a 6-pack of Oodles of Noodles Deluxe Foam Pool Swim Noodles in White costs about $28. You'll also need a rectangle placement made from natural fibers, like this set of four Trademark Innovations 16" x 12" Rectangular Woven Indoor or Outdoor Placemats of Natural Water Hyacinth for about $23. You'll also need to spend about $14 on a two-pack of Krylon Fusion All-In-One Spray Paint for Indoor/Outdoor Use in Matte Black. Tools-wise, all you need is a hot glue gun, some glue sticks, and maybe some scissors or a box cutter if you want to shorten the noodle.

Now that you have the common household items you should reuse as a beautiful decorative vase in hand, it's time to get making! Fold your pool noodle in half — keep the curve gently rounded rather than creating a sharp bend — and glue the ends together using your hot glue gun. You can also use electrical tape to secure the noodle ends if the glue isn't strong enough, or even both together for extra stick. Don a mask and gloves and head outside to spray paint the entire noodle black. Once the paint is dry to the touch, fold the placement in half horizontally and wrap it around the top of the noodle loop, which you've added more glue to in advance.

Since this pool noodle vase is freestanding, you'll need to lean it against a wall, in the corner of a room, or in a tall niche to ensure it doesn't tumble over. Once you've selected the perfect location, it's time to fill the vase with water and plants. The hole through the center of most pool noodles isn't that big, so use a funnel or a thin-spouted watering can — something like the Etarewilt 1/2 Gallon Long Spout Watering Can for Indoor Outdoor Plants with Removable Nozzle in Dark Green – to avoid spills when filling the vase with water. Add your foliage — two single stems of eucalyptus, calatheas, bird of paradise (the leaf, not the flower), to name a few ideas.

Knowing how to style vases in the home means coordinating your new creation with your existing decor or channeling design trends. This could be as simple as changing the color of the spray paint to a hue in your current interior design palette. In keeping with the natural vibes of this DIY, replace the placemat with plant fiber rope or twine, wrapping it tightly around the top half of the vase or encasing the entire vase. Or, if you're channeling a dreamy cottagecore aesthetic, decoupage the noodle in place of spray painting it.

Create a free-standing vase you can use anywhere in your home by adding a base. Cut a slice from the bottom of the curve to make it flat. Attach a small cardboard box a little wider than the noodle to the flat area using your hot glue gun or other craft glue. Switch out the box for a live edge wood slice — ZYNERY 13-15 Inch Unfinished Natural Paulownia Wood Rounds cost about $29. Join multiple colorful noodles together to make an upside-down rainbow vase. You don't even need to paint them! If you're using dried or artificial flowers or foliage, push the stems into the soft outside of the noodle as well as through the vase holes at the top. You could insert a bulb and wiring into one side of the vase and artificial flowers into the other, creating a unique floral light feature.