A few months ago I was digging around at Goodwill and found a sweet little silver plated Gorham bowl for about $3.00. Since I figured I could find a use for it, I picked it up. I was disappointed to discover when I cleaned it that the bottom of the bowl had some erosion (it was seriously so dirty before that I couldn’t tell!). Otherwise it was in good shape.

Here’s the outside:

Look what a little cleaning can do!

Since there was no salvaging the interior of the bowl, I had to come up with some other creative way to use it. I’ve been loving the use of antique silver for wedding centerpieces, especially planted with succulents. So I picked up three little succulents at Home Depot for about $3 a piece. I planted them in the bowl using bagged cactus potting soil. Didn’t it turn out cute?

Note: When planting succulents, it is really important to make sure that they drain properly. If their roots sit in water they could rot. Ideally you’ll want to plant succulents in a container with good drainage holes (even drill some if possible). If planting in a non-draining container, definitely use a soil specifically for cacti and succulents, and water sparingly.