Are you looking to arrange and design your garden with beautiful, showpiece pots? Mexican pottery planters are a fantastic way to give a rustic chic feel to any garden area. Read our guide for more facts & information…
Pottery in Mexico enjoys a long and proud history that dates back to pre-Columbian times. Mexican pottery in the form that it takes today was established hundreds of years ago at the time of Spanish conquest, and the methods have been handed down from generation to generation. Genuine Mexican pottery is still made in family owned workshops to this day, and age-old techniques continue to be used to preserve the unique, handmade quality of Mexican pottery. Mexican pottery has a diverse range of uses, and outdoor pottery planters are simply one of many ways that it can create a wonderfully rustic ambience.
Pots
As you can imagine, pots for the outdoors come in a myriad of different shapes and sizes. There are a few favored styles in the Mexican tradition, however, that are extremely popular. The most popular shape is the jug-type shape, with its bulbous body and cinched in neck. Often, the neck area will also feature handles, which are meant for show rather than functionality. It is also common for this type of shape to have a wrought iron stand, giving it a rather sophisticated silhouette.
Another classic shape for Mexican pottery planters is the honey-pot shape. It has a rounder barrel, and is often shorter and squatter looking than the jug-type shape, and can often have an ornamental rope tied around the lip.
Pots can be finished in a variety of ways, depending on its origins. Styles differ from workshop to workshop, and finishes can include a polished, burnished finish right through to a vibrantly glazed and painted finish. Etchings and carvings are also a popular decoration, and paintings of floral motifs are also fairly standard.
Ornament planters
For smaller scale plants, there are also often a wide range of ornaments that double as planters. These include figurines and sculptures with openings at the top to allow for small plants such as cacti and herbs to be planted. Most ornament planters feature small animals that look quite at home in the domestic garden setting, such as ducks, frogs, fish and lizards. Depending on the origins of the ornament, the clay may be glazed, unglazed or colored in bold pigments.
Wall planters
Another hugely successful line of Mexican pottery planters is the wall planter. It is a half-pot, often with a tile background, which can be mounted onto an outdoor wall as a stunning accent. The clay itself can have a slightly Italian terracotta look, but more prevalently, the Talavera style is favored for a much more genuine Mexican style. With its intricate floral and geometric patterns as well as its proclivity for bold, bright colors, the Talavera style really makes for an eye-catching centrepiece. Ferns and large, bushy plants look fantastic spilling over the edge of these beautiful pots. They are also great for very small gardens with limited floor-space, and for adding new dimensions of height and variety to any outdoor area.
