Spring is here and everyone is ready to get started on planting outside. Don't just limit your planting to gardens and flowerbeds, think outside the box...literally. Get creative with this DIY tiled window box to add punch to your exterior home decor.

Materials:

• wooden window box
• notched trowel
• tile adhesive
• grout
• tiles
• sponge

You want to measure your wooden window box ahead of time to know how many tiles you will need. This is a relatively inexpensive project based on the types of tiles you want to buy. Most your local tile centers or home improvement stores sell tiles individually 2"x2" or you can get mosaic tile 12"x12" sheets.

When buying your grout, most home improvement stores have several different types of grout you can buy. You can buy dry grout that you have to mix yourself, premixed grout and quick drying grout. I suggest buying quick drying, premixed grout for this small project. It costs a little more, but it's worth it for this small project.

Make sure you get a good notched trowel. They come in many different sizes and for this project, it won't take a very big trowel, so it will be very inexpensive. You want to make sure it's a trowel for grout and not just a putty knife, as the notching is very important in laying tile.

Once you have your materials, you want to lay your window box on a table covered with newspaper or some type of protection for your work surface. Tae your notched trowel and apply a layer of grout with the smooth edge of the trowel across the surface, then turn the trowel around and use the notched side to create a grooved surface in the grout.

Take the tiles you have chosen and start applying them, gently pushing them into the grout in a slight twisting motion so they set firmly into the adhesive. You can push the tiles close together or leave a small space between the tiles for you to have a grout line you can see. Setting the tiles so you have a small space between them may be necessary to adjust them to fully cover the box.

Once you have let the grout dry for an hour, you can then apply the grout for between the tiles. You want to use your trowel to push the grout between the tiles, leaving no holes for water to seep into.

Immediately after fully grouting your window box, take a damp sponge and wipe the grout off the tile surfaces. If you leave your sponge too wet then you will cause weakness in your grout, so make sure you wring it out very good.

After you finish wiping the grout off the tiles with your sponge, allow the grout to dry for at least 30 minutes, then you can follow up with a soft cloth to shine up the tiles.

Now all you have to do is decide where you want to show off your beautiful new window box! I know we will be thinking outside the box, with these boxes, for our patio decor.