Grant commissioned Kayla to create an ottoman that looks like the Piranha Plant from Super Mario Bros. and is documenting the process so you can make your very own!

Written by Grant Davis | Constructed by Kayla Kromer

After a long day of punchin the bricks and stompin the ‘shrooms, don’tcha just want to put your feet up on a nice Piranha Plant Ottoman and relax? “But, Grant, I have no Mario Piranha Plant Ottoman to kick up my feet onto.” First off, don’t end your sentence in a preposition! Second, now you can make your very own Piranha Plant Ottoman by following this handy-dandy Geek Techniques DIY! Third, I apologize for saying “handy-dandy”.

But what is a Pirahna Plant Ottoman?
Well, surely you are familiar with and have likely played “Super Mario” (a.k.a. the greatest video game series in existence) in some form or another, right? If not, then you need to leave this site immediately and really reassess where you are really going in life…

Ok, now that they are gone… As we all know, Mario Mario is a plumber who, in his quest to rescue Princess Peach, gather stars, or race go-karts, frequently runs afoul of these pesky piranha plants (sorta like more aggressive Venus Flytraps) who try to eat him. Well, haven’t you ever looked at those rad Piranha Plants and said “those are cool, but they would be much cooler if I turned them into ottomans for my house!”? Of course you have! The Piranha Plant Ottoman acts as an ottoman when the lid is flipped one way so you can sit on the pipe (euphemism… totally intended!), and when not in use you flip the lid and now you have yourself a rad art-piece for your place. But how do we get there?

Onward to the materials/tools list!

Materials:

(A) 1 5-Gallon Bucket with Black Lid (or spray paint it black)
(B) 1″ thick and at least  18″ x 6″ Poly Foam
(C) 12 x 12″ Red Felt
(D) 12 x 12″ White Felt
(E) 2 yds. Green Felt
(F) 2 – 18 x 18″ Black Felt
(G) 1 Package – 12″ Pipe Cleaners (any color)

Tools:

(A) Tape Measure
(B) Scissors (or an Exacto Knife)
(C) Hot Glue Gun
(D) Pencil & Paper (maybe a marker)

 

Step One: Making the Piranha Plant

 

Fig. 1a

Fig. 1b

Fig. 1c

 

The first step is to create the stem of the piranha plant. Braid together 3 pipe cleaners [Fig 1a]. These will provide the stability for the head of the plant and hold the structure up. Leave about 3″ at the end [Fig 1b] which we will use to adhere it to the lid in Step 2. Draw out a pattern for the leaves and stem [Fig 1c] either on a piece of paper or directly on the green felt. 

 

Fig. 1d

Fig. 1e

Fig. 1f

 

Cut out 2 copies the of the pattern on the green felt. Put the pipe cleaner between them and glue them together, leaving the 3″ of pipe-cleaner at the bottom still [Fig 1d]. Now, sketch out and draw the head of the Piranha plant and cut out both sides on the red felt and glue them around the top of the stem [Fig 1e]. Using the white felt do the same for the lip of the plant and the white dots [Fig 1f]. Feel free to add teeth as well, if you want (we did not). Now you have the Piranha Plant!

(Note: We are creating the red Piranha Plants that first appeared in Super Mario 3 because they look cooler and are the more common design we see today. Feel free to make a green or orange version.)

 

Step Two: The Lid

The cool thing about the lid is that it is reverseable! On one side is the pirahna plant, but when you flip the lid you get a padded seat to sit on!

[IMPORTANT NOTE: The top of the lid will be the seat side and the bottom side will be the plant side. This prevents any potential shifting of the lid while you sit.]

Using a black lid is ideal for this project, but if you do not have one you can do like Kayla did and spray paint the lid black before beginning. Trace an outline of the lid either on a piece of paper as a template or onto the black felt and cut out 2 copies (one for the top and bottom of the lid). Lid lips can vary so trim the felt size down as needed and glue onto the bottom (inside) of the lid. Now we need to attach the Piranha Plant we made in Step One. Find the center of the lid and from the bottom and through the black felt poke a small hole. From the bottom of the lid, push the  three-pronged end of the Piranha stem through the hole so the plant would be hanging upside down from the lid [Fig 2a]. Bend the ends of the stems on the top side of the lid down so they are flat on the lid and then glue them down [Fig 2b]. Now glue the other circle of black felt to cover the top of the lid and stem ends. Lid and plant are now complete!

 

Fig. 2a

Fig. 2b

 

Step Three: The Pipe

 

Fig. 3a

Fig. 3b

Fig. 3c

 

So now we make the pipe! Measure the top lip circumference of your bucket. It should be about 18″. Using the 1″ thick poly foam (we used 2″ foam for ours but recommend 1″ for a less bulky lip to the pipe) cut out a piece of foam 6″ x 18″ [Fig 3a].  Take your swath of green felt and wrap it around the foam [Fig 3b], leaving some extra felt on the ends for when we attach it to the bucket. Wrap the green felt foam around the top of the bucket going about 2″ higher than the lip of the bucket and glue it all in place [Fig 3c]. Note that Kayla also has a bit of green felt extending down from the foam part prior to her gluing it all in place [Fig 3d]. This will help with ensuring none of the white bucket is seen. Cover the bottom of the bucket in a green felt cut circle and glue in place. Wrap the rest of the bucket in green felt and glue in place [Fig 3e]. Fold the edges to make a cleaner line where the felt will overlap. Now your bucket is complete [Fig 3f]!

 

Fig. 3d

Fig. 3e

Fig. 3f

 

Final Result:

 

Put it all together and you have the reversible lid Piranha Pipe Ottoman fit for a plumber! Store stuff like a mario quilt in the bucket when not in use. Flip the lid and have a seat or kick up your feet!

 

Gross, Mario! That’s not a toilet!