It seems that we are always looking at different methods to raise funds at church. There are so many things to pay for with youth activities and also items that are needed for different functions. We try to raise money throughout the year so we can avoid holiday seasons when people are usually strapped for cash. We also try to have original ideas as well as useful items. This spring we decided to make and sell painted flower pots.
Each person on the committee was responsible to bring ten clay pots. We had talked about a number of places to look for the pots including garage sales, our own garages and also discount stores. The pots could be in any sizes we could find and should be as inexpensive as possible. My neighbor had four clay pots that she gave to me and I found three more at a garage sale. I purchased the other three at a closeout sale. My ten pots cost two dollars and I had three different sizes.
We had agreed that no one needed to spend a great deal of time cleaning the pots because we put them through our dishwasher at church. Once they were cleaned we were ready to create our painted flower pots. We are fortunate to have the art teacher from the high school on our committee. She was able to order the painting supplies for us and also the school gave us used paints that would not be stored over the summer. We gathered one Saturday morning and started creating our painted flower pots. Some of us brought our children along and let them help. At first it seemed quite overwhelming to have one hundred pots to paint. But as we started experimenting with different colors and seeing each others creations we found that we were able to complete the project in one afternoon. The painted flower pots were beautiful. Each pot was different from the next. We painted some in exterior paints so they could be placed outdoors. All of us had spent very little money on the pots and the paints were also inexpensive. We decided that we would charge five dollars for the small pots, ten dollars for the medium pots and fifteen dollars for the largest pots. If we sold them throughout the summer we would make a thousand dollars.
We sold the one hundred pots the first weekend. Many church members offered to donate clay pots to be painted. We have found that the painted flower pots are a quick way of making money and we have fun making them. We have over three hundred pots waiting to be painted for the next sale.
