Chive Lilo large porcelain planter in olive color, with no drainage.
Chive Lilo large porcelain planter in olive color, with no drainage.

Plant Pots Without Drainage

Lilo Large Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot - Olive

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$58.00
Cache Pot
Cute
30-day return policy

The large Lilo in Olive is a porcelain plant pot, the most expensive thing we make, and one of the few large objects we have ever managed to make adorable instead of imposing. The odds are the same as the small Lilo, which is to say bad.

The round, precise shape means roughly sixty percent never make it out of the firing, and the ones that do come out perfect or not at all. Olive is the color for people who want the softness of the shape without the obviousness of white, a quieter green that settles into a room rather than announcing itself. It is the size of something you want to hug, which remains a strange ambition for a plant pot and a stranger one to achieve. There is no drainage hole, so plant a succulent or use it as a cover pot. You are paying for the ones that came out right, and Olive, when it does, is worth the wait.

Product detail
  • Color: Olive
  • Material: Porcelain
  • Glaze finish: Matte
  • Finish variation: Natural variation between pieces
  • Drainage: No drainage hole
  • Saucer: No Saucer
  • Dishwasher safe: Yes
  • Indoor / Outdoor: For indoor use and covered outdoor temperate weather use
  • Designed by: Chive Studio
  • Year Designed: 2021
Dimension
  • 6 inches diameter, 6 inches tall
Plants that love this pot
  • Succulents
  • Cacti
  • Haworthia
  • Echeveria
  • Jade plant
  • Aloe
  • Snake plant
  • Air plants (Tillandsia)

Potting in a Pot Without Drainage

  1. Add a 1-inch layer of small stones or LECA pebbles at the bottom to create a small reservoir, since there is no drainage hole.
  2. Use a well-draining cactus or succulent mix. Not garden soil.
  3. Transplant from the nursery pot, or set the nursery pot inside and lift it out to water.
  4. Water sparingly. Without a drainage hole, less is always safer than more, so let the soil dry between waterings.
  5. Keep it in bright, indirect light, and pour off any standing water pooling at the bottom.

Which pot size for my plant? →

Repotting guide →
Pot Care instructions
  1. Dishwasher-safe. Can also be hand-washed with warm soapy water and a soft cloth.
  2. The glaze is dipped and kiln-fired — it is sealed, durable, and not looking for trouble. No special cleaning products required.
  3. For pots with saucers empty the saucer periodically. Standing water in the saucer defeats the purpose of having a drainage hole, which is a thing we feel strongly about.
  4. Not frost-safe. Designed for indoor use and covered outdoor temperate weather use. Freezing temperatures are not recommended.
Shipping & returns

Shipping

  • Free shipping: On qualifying US orders — threshold shown at checkout
  • Standard: 5–8 business days Express 2–3 business days (at checkout)
  • International Ships: to 40 countries — rates at checkout
  • Packaging Ships: in outer box to protect gift box

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Returns

We accept returns within 30 days of delivery on unused items in original packaging. If your piece arrives damaged, contact us within 14 days with a photo and we will replace it at no charge.

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Wholesale Inquires

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What Customers Are Saying

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Lilo Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot - Chive Ceramics Studio - Pots - Chive US

The Shape, Without the Shouting

Olive is the Lilo for people who love the shape and would prefer it did not shout. The shape is the same one that defeats roughly sixty percent of every batch in the firing, a round, exacting curve that porcelain treats as a personal challenge, and the survivors are perfect or they do not leave the building.

Where white announces the form, olive lets it settle. It is a quieter green, the kind that reads as considered rather than decorative, and on a shape this soft it does something we did not fully expect until we glazed the first one: it makes a large object feel calm instead of imposing.

That remains the Lilo's strange trick, the one we keep being surprised by. It is big and it is huggable, two words that do not usually share a sentence about a plant pot. There is no drainage hole, so plant a succulent or use it as a cover pot for a nursery container you lift out to water. Olive, when it comes out right, is worth the wait, and waiting is mostly what making the Lilo involves. Olive is the rare color that reads both earthy and a little expensive, which is roughly how the Lilo carries itself in every room we have put one.

Potting a plant with Chive

  1. Place a 1-inch layer of small stones or LECA pebbles at the bottom of the pot. Optional, but it helps with airflow.
  2. Add well-draining potting mix appropriate to your plant. Not garden soil. We know your grandmother used garden soil. She was wrong about this one thing.
  3. Transplant from the nursery pot, leaving about 1 inch at the top for watering.
  4. Set the pot on the matching saucer.
  5. Water thoroughly until water runs out the drainage hole into the saucer. Empty the saucer once the plant has absorbed what it needs.
Repotting plants with Chive | Chive Studio

The Ultimate Repotting Guide

For those who have killed a plant. Or several. Or, frankly, many.

Before you put a plant into your new pot, you have to get it out of the nursery pot — a process that ends badly more often than any gardening influencer will admit. We wrote a full guide: when to repot (early spring, and not when you're feeling impulsive in October), which soil to use, how to tell your plant is root-bound, and how to avoid the three mistakes that kill perfectly healthy plants within a week of a well-intentioned repotting.

It is the guide we wish someone had handed us twenty-five years ago. It is written by people who have personally committed most of the errors in it.

Read the guide we wish we had
Lilo Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot - Chive Ceramics Studio - Pots - Chive US

The Rest of the No-Drainage Range

The large Lilo in Olive is one finish among a whole shelf of holeless pots, from porcelain to resin. The full no-drainage range rewards a slow look.

Shop pots without drainage

No Drainage, No Problem

The large Lilo in Olive has no drainage hole, so lean drought-tolerant and water with restraint. A pebble reservoir helps. Want a hole instead? The drainage range covers every size.

Shop pots with drainage

Go Easy on the Watering

With no drainage hole, the large Lilo in Olive rewards a careful hand over a generous one. A narrow-spouted can lets you add a little at a time, which is exactly the point.

Shop watering cans & misters

Santa Barbara Botanic Stocks It, Somehow

The large Lilo is designed by Chive Studio, drawn in-house like everything we make and produced at odds that would discourage a more sensible studio. Our ceramics are stocked by botanical garden gift shops and museum stores across the continent, including the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and the Chicago Botanic Garden. Olive is a quieter version of a shape that already tests us, and it is held to the same standard as the pieces in those shops, because the studio keeps one standard and the porcelain meets it or it does not leave the building.

We design everything we sell, keep our work in independent shops and our own stores rather than big-box shelves, and ship to more than forty countries. The Lilo is the clearest example we have of caring more than is strictly reasonable, which is, more or less, the whole point of the place.

About Our Story

Plant Tips from Chive Studio

Quick tips, straight answers, and the occasional reminder that overwatering kills more houseplants than neglect does.

How to Repot a Plant: Watch for the Linen

— Todd Newgren
How to repot a plant comes down to three signs, one rule, and one soil decision that most people get wrong. Chive Studio has been making drainage pots since 1999. The neighbor i...
Read more

Tradescantia Plant Care: The Complete Guide

— Todd Newgren
Tradescantia needs bright indirect light, well-draining soil, and water when the top inch is dry. Chive's Minute has a genuine drainage hole — a soggy tradescantia is not a thri...
Read more

Frequently asked questions

What is the Lilo Olive porcelain pot good for?

The Lilo is a porcelain pot for indoor plants. It works well for succulents, cacti, and other plants that like to dry out and suits modern, boho, and minimalist rooms. As a large porcelain pot, the Lilo fits a shelf, sill, or desk and pairs cleanly with the rest of the Chive pot range. This listing is the Olive colorway.

Does the Lilo pot have a drainage hole?

No, the Lilo is an indoor pot without a drainage hole, so it is best used with plants that tolerate less frequent watering or as a cachepot. Either plant succulents directly and water lightly, or drop a nursery pot inside and lift it out to water. Without a drainage hole, the trick is to add water slowly and avoid leaving any pooled at the bottom.

What size plant fits the Lilo large?

The Lilo large is a porcelain pot that holds a nursery plant of a similar width, so match the grower pot to the opening rather than the mature size of the plant. Good choices include succulents, cacti, and other plants that like to dry out. For a large indoor plant pot, size up by about an inch when you repot so roots have room without swimming in soil.

Does the Lilo come with a saucer?

The Lilo does not include a saucer, which suits its use as a decorative pot. If you plant directly in it, water lightly so nothing collects at the base, or set a nursery pot inside and lift it out to water over a sink. A small cork pad underneath protects furniture if you keep the Lilo on a shelf. As an indoor pot without a tray, it is forgiving as long as you water with a light hand.

Is the Lilo pot porcelain?

Yes, the Lilo is a porcelain plant pot. Porcelain is fired hard, holds glaze color well, and does not break down with watering the way untreated materials can, which makes porcelain plant pots a reliable choice for indoor plants. The Lilo is glazed to seal the surface, so it wipes clean and keeps its finish on a sill, shelf, or table.

How do I water a plant in the Lilo?

To water the Lilo, add small amounts and stop before anything pools at the bottom, since this pot has no drainage hole. The easiest method is to keep the plant in its nursery pot, lift it out to water over a sink, let it drain, and set it back. Watering a pot without drainage is mostly about restraint, less water, less often.

Is the Lilo good for succulents?

The Lilo is a good porcelain pot for succulents. Succulents like the tighter, fast-drying conditions of a pot without a drainage hole, as long as you water lightly. For anyone searching for a porcelain pot for succulents, the Lilo covers both looks and function. Match the nursery pot to the opening and the plant settles in without fuss.

Is the Lilo a good gift for a plant lover?

The Lilo makes a practical gift for a plant lover because it is a finished porcelain pot that solves a real problem rather than adding clutter. It pairs easily with a plant they already own and suits most modern interiors. For a plant pot gift that gets used, the Lilo is an easy choice, and it suits anyone building an indoor plant collection.
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The pot is sorted. Now what goes in it?

Shido seeds come vacuum-sealed, non-GMO, and packaged well enough that people keep the packets after the seeds are gone. Which is either a design success or a problem, depending on how you look at it.

Your new pot is waiting.

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