How to make an inexpensive and festive plant pot, ideal for adding additional festive cheer to your Christmas decorations. Christmas plant pots also make fantastic Christmas presents for any plant lover. They can be used inside or out. Super for potting springtime bulbs, or a little Christmas tree or dwarf conifer.

You will need...

• A terracotta plant pot in whatever size you wish.
• A base colour paint. Gloss or silk emulsion is great. Use up leftovers from the shed, they have just come in handy.
• Metallic spray paint, scissors, selotape, paper, newspaper and paintbrushes.

Before you begin you need to cover your work area in newspapers to that you don't spoil any furniture with paint.

Take your plant pot and apply two coats of the base coloured paint. This will take a couple of days to complete because of drying times. Complete as directed on the back of the paint tin. Only continue when the paint is completely dry.

To add a snowflake design you need to make paper snowflakes. Take a square piece of paper and fold it in half to make two triangles. Then fold in half again, and fold one more time. Always fold the paper in the same direction, and keep the centre of the piece of paper at the tip of the folded triangle. Now using the scissors cut interesting shapes along the folds, along the top and snip the point off your folded triangle. Don't cut too much paper away so that it all drops to bits. Unfold the paper to reveal a beautiful snowflake. Make several different snowflakes, you can also make them in varying sizes if you wish.

With small amounts of selotape or blue-tac, tack the snowflakes to the plant pots. The snowflakes mask off parts of the pot. Any part of the pot masked off will remain the base colour.

Once youre happy with the snowflakes, you're ready for the metallic paint. It is important that you use spray paint in a well-ventilated room and that there are now naked flames present. Read the paint ca for full instructions.

Spray your plant pot and snowflakes with a thin coat of paint. Keep the paint tin moving at all times. You need to avoid a build up of paint because it will run and spoil your design. You can always spray another coat later.

When the paint is dry, carefully peal off the snowflakes to reveal a beautiful frosty snowflake theme plant pot, great to keep for your self or to give away as a gift.