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Plant Pots Without Drainage

Lilo Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot | 4.5 inch

Name: Lilo Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot | 4.5 inch
Brand: Chive Studio
SKU: LILO4O
Price: 28.0 USD
Availability: InStock

cache pot

$28.00

Colors: Olive

Cache Pot

Cute

30-day return policy

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The Lilo is a small porcelain plant pot, and it is the most expensive thing we make, which we mention up front because it is the first question and we would rather answer it than dodge it. The shape is the reason.

It is round and precise, the kind of curve that is either exactly right or not right at all, and roughly sixty percent of them do not survive the firing. The ones that do are perfect. Not marketing perfect. The kind where you pick it up and your shoulders come down half an inch without asking your permission. That is what the price buys: not the porcelain, not the difficulty, just the small overwhelming fact of something being exactly as cute as it was meant to be. There is no drainage hole, so plant a succulent or use it as a cover pot. We make no apology for the cost, and the Lilo has never once apologized for being worth it.

Product detail

Color: Olive, Pink Blush, White
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

4.5 inches diameter, 4.5 inches tall

Plants that love this pot

Succulents
Cacti
Haworthia
Echeveria
Jade plant
Aloe
Air plants (Tillandsia)
Lithops

Potting in a Pot Without Drainage

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.
Use a well-draining cactus or succulent mix. Not garden soil.
Transplant from the nursery pot, or set the nursery pot inside and lift it out to water.
Water sparingly. Without a drainage hole, less is always safer than more, so let the soil dry between waterings.
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

Dishwasher-safe. Can also be hand-washed with warm soapy water and a soft cloth.
Glazed pots are dipped and fired in the kiln — they are sealed, durable, and not looking for trouble. No special cleaning products required.
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.
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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Lilo Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot | 4.5 inch

Olive – Change

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

The Most Expensive Pot We Make

We will start with the part everyone asks about, which is the price. The Lilo is the most expensive pot we make, and it earns that the hard way. The shape is round and precise, the kind of curve that is either exactly right or wrong in a way you cannot un-see, and porcelain does not forgive the difference.

Roughly sixty percent of them do not survive the firing. We have made our peace with that number, mostly, in the way you make peace with a thing that is never going to change no matter how much you would like it to. The ones that come through are the only ones we sell, because a Lilo that is almost right is not a Lilo, it is a lesson, and we keep those to ourselves.

What you are paying for is not the porcelain and not the difficulty. It is the small, slightly overwhelming fact of something being exactly as cute as it was always meant to be. You pick one up and your shoulders come down half an inch before your brain has signed off on it. There is no drainage hole, so it is happiest with a succulent or as a cover pot. We could make it cheaper. It would not be the Lilo, and you would know.

Potting a plant with Chive

Place a 1-inch layer of small stones or LECA pebbles at the bottom of the pot. Optional, but it helps with airflow.
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.
Transplant from the nursery pot, leaving about 1 inch at the top for watering.
Set the pot on the matching saucer.
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

The Rest of the No-Drainage Range

The Lilo has plenty of company in the no-drainage range, from a low Moog dish to a resin pot built for poolsides. None of them have a hole; all of them have a reason.

Shop pots without drainage

No Drainage, No Problem

The Lilo has no drainage hole, so plant a succulent, add a pebble layer, or use it as a cover pot for a nursery container you lift out to water. If you would rather have a hole, the main pot range has one in every size.

Shop pots with drainage

Verte Rx Plant Food and Vitamin Collection - Chive Ceramics Studio - Chive Ceramics Studio

For the Part You Cannot See

The Lilo is the part of the plant you can see. Verte Rx is the part you cannot, an indoor plant food that works on roots and color long after the pot has done its share.

Shop plant food

Three potted large houseplants in Chive Virago ceramic plant pots arranged on a terracotta shelf against a red brick wall.

The Huntington Knows How Few Survive

Designed by Chive Studio, the small Lilo is part of a catalog we draw entirely in-house, original work we guard closely because anything this carefully made tends to attract imitators. Our ceramics are carried by botanical garden shops and museum stores across the continent, including Longwood Gardens and the Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens. The Lilo is the most demanding thing we make, and the standard it is held to is the same one those shops expect, because there is only one standard in this studio and the hardest pieces meet it or they do not ship.

We design everything we sell, keep it in independent shops and our own stores rather than big-box shelves, and ship to more than forty countries. Most Lilos never make it out of the process, which is precisely why the ones that do carry the full weight of everything we expect of ourselves.

About Our Story

Plant Tips from Chive Studio

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

Do Plant Pots Need Drainage Holes? Yes. Here’s Why

June 16, 2026 — Todd Newgren

Plant pots need drainage holes — without one, water pools at the root zone and suffocates roots. Chive has made ceramic pots with drainage for over two decades, stocked at botan...

Tradescantia Care: The Complete Guide

April 29, 2024 — Ryan Hearst

Tradescantia is one of the fastest-growing trailing houseplants you can own — bright light and consistent water are all it asks for. It comes in varieties from subtle green-and-...

Frequently asked questions

What is the Lilo best suited to?

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 4.5 inch porcelain pot, the Lilo fits a shelf, sill, or desk and pairs cleanly with the rest of the Chive pot range. It comes in several colorways to match different rooms.

Is the Lilo a plant pot without 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 4.5 inch?

The Lilo 4.5 inch 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 4.5 inch indoor plant pot, size up by about an inch when you repot so roots have room without swimming in soil.

Does the Lilo pot include a tray?

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.

Are porcelain plant pots good for indoor plants?

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 care for plants in the Lilo pot?

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 a good porcelain pot 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.

Does the Lilo work as a housewarming gift?

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.

Shido Vegetable and Flower Seeds Vacuum sealed for peak freshness

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.

Explore Shido seeds

Lilo Porcelain Modern Indoor Plant Pot | 4.5 inch

What Customers Are Saying

The Most Expensive Pot We Make

Potting a plant with Chive

The Ultimate Repotting Guide

The Rest of the No-Drainage Range

No Drainage, No Problem

For the Part You Cannot See

The Huntington Knows How Few Survive

Plant Tips from Chive Studio

Do Plant Pots Need Drainage Holes? Yes. Here’s Why

Tradescantia Care: The Complete Guide

Frequently asked questions

What is the Lilo best suited to?

Is the Lilo a plant pot without a drainage hole?

What size plant fits the Lilo 4.5 inch?

Does the Lilo pot include a tray?

Are porcelain plant pots good for indoor plants?

How do I care for plants in the Lilo pot?

Is the Lilo a good porcelain pot for succulents?

Does the Lilo work as a housewarming gift?

The pot is sorted. Now what goes in it?