Pretty Rain Barrels: 3 Cheap DIY Rain Barrel Ideas That Actually Look Nice!

DIY Pretty Rain Barrel Ideas

Do you wish you had a rain barrel to harvest rainwater from your roof — but don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars for a nice-looking one?

And you don’t want to settle for an ugly blue plastic container either, right? That’s certainly not appealing.

Good — then you’ve come to the right place!

I think you can make a pretty, aesthetically pleasing rain barrel for CHEAP!

I’ve got 3 clever ways to turn ugly rain barrels into pretty rain barrels… without spending much money.

Why Are All The Pretty Rain Barrels So Expensive?

Why does something as simple as harvesting run-off rainwater from your roof have to be so pricey?

Answer: Because it’s trendy.

There are ridiculously priced rain barrels out there that everyone has seen — like these planter rain barrel combos for $100 and up!

Then, of course, there is the CISTA rainwater harvesting system that looks amazing, but who knows what the price tag on that bad boy will be? (My guess is $300+.)

So how can you build your own rain barrel that doesn’t cost you an arm and a leg and that you will actually want people to see?

Here are 3 DIY cheap rain barrel ideas for you… and they look great too!

Top 3 Affordable & Pretty Rain Barrel Ideas

#1 – Grow flowering vines down the sides of ugly 55-gallon barrels to make them look pretty.

One of my absolute favorite (and cheapest) DIY rain catcher barrel ideas is from designer Michelle Kaufmann.

Michelle recommends spending about $10 to get any cheap 55 gallon barrel.

Here’s how to find a 55-gallon barrel for cheap or for free.

Then she suggests growing beautiful vines up around it on cheap wire mesh and placing potted flowers or plants on top to completely hide it!

Check out her awesome how-to video for this cheap and attractive DIY rain barrel:

Michelle also shows you how to ditch your downspout and make your own rain chain to carry your rain water to your new rain barrel!

Here’s her how-to video for DIY rain chains:

#2 – Paint ugly barrels, place a few potted plants around them, and you have pretty rain barrels.

Another cheap and easy way to make an attractive rain barrel is to find a cheap or free 55 gallon barrel and paint it to match your landscaping or your house.

You could even give it a terra cotta look:

If you can’t (or don’t want to) grow vining plants around your rain barrel, as in Michelle Kaufmann’s idea above, you could simply place some potted plants or flowers on the top or sides of the barrel.

If you choose creeping plants, they’ll look nice falling over the side of the barrel..

#3 – Reuse old rustic barrels to make your own wooden rain barrels that look great.

Lots of home and garden stores, nurseries, wineries, and the like will sell you used oak barrels that make beautiful wooden rain barrels.

I happen to live in the heart of whiskey country (within 1-1/2 hours of both the Jack Daniel’s distillery and the Maker’s Mark distillery) — and barrels from distilleries work perfectly as rain barrels.

Many people think that a wooden rain barrel looks the most “natural.”

So… what do you think about these 3 DIY cheap rain barrel ideas?

Do you think you could make one of them work for your home?

Have you found another way to make a rain barrel that you’ll actually want to incorporate into your landscape, and not hide behind a fence?

READ NEXT: Another Easy DIY Wooden Rain Barrel Idea