Contributor Madison Ricard recently relocated her talented string of jumpers to a dressage barn which welcomed her with open arms, but it did mean having to get creative developing her own jump equipment. Madison has kindly agreed to share her secrets with us over the next few weeks in a series of DIY arena gear!
Have some old pallets lying around? So do I! Have horses that are spooky at flowerboxes? So do I! The solution: pallet flower boxes! Super simple, and look very nice once finished.
Step 1: Select your pallet.
PC: ThreeBaysJumping.com
I liked this one because it had the double planks on either end, which would make a very nice base for the flower boxes! There are so many different variations of pallets though, pick one you like and get started!
Step 2: Remove the middle boards.
For my pallet, I took out the middle boards on both sides to save for later. I did this with a crowbar and a whole lot of effort… Those nails did NOT want to give! But perseverance pays off.
PC: ThreeBaysJumping.com
Step 3: Cut the pallet in half.
Okay, so not really in half. With the middle boards out of the way, I took a circular saw and cut the lengthwise 2x4s as close to the new “top” boards of my flower boxes as possible. Thus, two flower boxes were born! Stand them up and check out your handiwork.
PC: ThreeBaysJumping.com
Step 4: Take the middle boards you removed and screw them on the back.
The pallet I picked had a large gap between the top board and the bottom two boards, so I took the two boards I previously removed and screwed them on the backside. That way my fake flowers would have something to “brace” against and not fall through the top.
PC: ThreeBaysJumping.com
I might have broken one of the middle boards in my feverish attempt to remove them… But it’s not a structural element so it’s okay 😉
Step 5: Fill to your heart’s content!
I raided my fake flower bin and started stuffing my new boxes! For the top I used about 6 bunches, and the two lower sections have 2 bunches spread out as much as they can be. I probably could have used fewer bunches on the top, but I liked the fuller look.
PC: ThreeBaysJumping.com
I planned to use the flower boxes separately, but you can definitely use them together! Just make sure to coordinate flowers, as I clearly did not.
Step 6: Enjoy your new flower boxes!!
Go Jumping.
Madison Ricard of ThreeBaysJumping.com grew up on the Arabian show circuit, but was bitten by the show jumping bug at an early age. As a teenager, she and her two intrepid Arabians took the show jumping world by storm, with great success up to 1.10m. After taking down one too many rails with her own feet, she moved onto bigger warmbloods who actually take up her long legs. Her current show string is Manny, Diego and Seven (the three bays in Three Bays Jumping!), competing up to 1.30m. She is most likely found either at the barn, or studying for her veterinary degree.