15 DIY Patio Fire Bowls That Will Make Your Summer Evenings Relaxing And Fun

I love summer. From the warm nights and the longer days to the crickets chirping and birds singing, there isn’t one single thing that I don’t like about this season. I especially love sitting out on my patio at night and just listening to the wonderful summer sounds. We use our patio a lot during the warmer months which got me wondering about how to really make it fabulous. I started seeing these amazing tabletop fire bowls and thought “What a great DIY idea!”

So I started gathering ideas for how you might be able to make one of these amazing fire bowls yourself. Whether you have a large patio, small deck, or you just want something to bring a bit of glow to your porch in the summer evenings, these DIY fire bowls are as easy to make as they are wonderful to use. Now, if you want full sized fire pits, I’ve got a nice collection of 33 DIY fire pits that you can make. If you don’t have room for a full sized fire pit or you just want a little something extra, these tabletop fire bowls are perfect.

Some of these are so easy that you can make them in about an hour or less. Others are a bit more complicated but will still give you that wonderful glow at your patio table. Speaking of patios, there’s a great collection of 30 amazing patio makeover ideas that you should totally check out before summer. You’ll be able to DIY yourself an entirely new outdoor living space by the time warm weather arrives.

Let’s get back to our fire bowls. These table top bowls give off the perfect amount of glow for a romantic evening on the patio. You can also use them to roast those marshmallows and make s’mores! They’re all easy to make and you’ll be able to use them on any patio table or deck. Imagine having your own little tabletop fire bowl! You can with just a little bit of time and a few materials – some of which I bet you never even considered for building a fire bowl.

1. Easy DIY Flaming Centerpiece

This is a gorgeous little fire bowl and it’s so very easy to make. You will need a container of some sort that is fireproof. You can use a galvanized bowl for this and paint it a nice bright color or something that matches your patio color and décor. Then, just add recycled tempered glass chips and a can of gel fuel. Just light it up and it will stay lit for hours – until the gel fuel runs out.

Tutorial/Source: bhg

2. Beautiful Customized DIY Fire Bowl

The thing about DIY is you can literally make things look however you want them to look. Take this gorgeous DIY fire bowl for instance. You make it yourself from concrete and a bowl for a form and then add decorations while the concrete is setting – like leaves for imprints. Hosta leaves look beautiful but you could use anything that you want to give your bowl the look you want it to have. Then you add your filler and a can of gel fuel and you’ve got a beautiful customized tabletop fire bowl.

Tutorial/Source: glenda-jsworld

3. Simple Ceramic Bowl Fire Pit

Building your own tabletop fire pit doesn’t have to be difficult. You can use any number of materials so long as they are fireproof. Just get a ceramic bowl – you can get these at most hardware or home improvement stores – and fill it with aquarium or pea gravel or tempered glass. This really is the easiest way to create your own little fire bowl and it will only take you a few minutes to put it all together.

Tutorial/Source: birdsandblooms

4. Cheap And Easy Personal Fire Pit

Cheap and easy – two of my favorite words. This personal tabletop fire pit is both and you’ll love the gorgeous design. For this one, you’ll be creating your own little glass box and when it’s finished, it really is the perfect fire for your patio table. You fit the glass box over a square metal planter and then add river rocks or other stones and your fire source, which can be any number of things, although the can of gel fuel really is the easiest fire source.

Tutorial/Source: theartofdoingstuff

5. Lovely Orchid Fire Pot

This tabletop orchid fire pot isn’t so much a DIY project as something I found on Etsy but it is certainly worth considering. It’s a beautifully artistic fire pot that would look beautiful on your patio table. Most of the fire bowls in this list are going to cost from $20 to $40 depending on the materials that you need. You can get this lovely orchid version for $99 and it’s made from fire glass and steel.

Tutorial/Source: etsy.com

6. DIY Fire Bowl From Planter

A concrete or ceramic planter is perfect for creating your own tabletop fire bowl. Just fill the planter with river rock or any other suitable filler and add your fire source. This is one of the easiest tabletop fire bowls on the list and you can get all of the materials to make it for around $20 or so.

Tutorial/Source: todayscreativelife

7. Easy $3 Dollar Store Fire Bowl

If you just don’t have the budget for a more expensive fire bowl, you’ll love this one that’s made completely out of Dollar Store supplies. All the supplies together shouldn’t cost you $3 or maybe just a bit over depending on your preferences. You’ll need a medium sized flower pot – not a plastic one – a chafing fuel cup and a bag of those assorted mini stones. That’s it. Just put it all together and you have one of the easiest and cheapest fire bowls you could possibly make.

8. Easy DIY Concrete Tabletop Fire Bowl

This DIY tabletop fire bowl incorporates two different bowls which gives it a great look. You’ll need nesting bowls and some lava rock. You’ll create molds of your bowls with concrete and these will be your fire pit bowls. One bowl will fit inside the other and you’ll fill in the edges with lava rock or other stones. Then add your fuel source and you’re all done.

Tutorial/Source: instructables

9. Easy DIY Fire Bowl Table

How about a fire bowl that is built right into your table? I really love this idea and it’s much easier than it looks. This is an Adirondack fire bowl table and it is simply gorgeous. You can even use those old pallets to build the table and size it to whatever fits your space needs. The little fire bowl is built right into the center and uses gel fuel to burn. This is the perfect DIY patio project if you need a fire bowl and a new patio table.

Tutorial/Source: interiorfrugalista

10. Mini Fire Bowl Centerpiece

This little fire bowl centerpiece is a bit different but just as gorgeous as the others. Instead of just creating the fire bowl, you can set it up to be an entire centerpiece for your patio table. This one is also safe for inside burning. You’ll need a glass fish bowl or base, an empty soup can (repurposing!) and a few other supplies. It’s the perfect size for adding to a wonderful centerpiece and making your patio table extra warm and welcoming.

Tutorial/Source: dna-designs

11. Mini Tabletop Glass Fireplace

Imagine a tiny little fireplace in the center of your patio table! This doesn’t look like a traditional fireplace but it still gives you that warm and inviting glow that you want. You can even roast marshmallows on it. It’s on Etsy for $29, so if you prefer to just add an already made fire bowl, this is a great one to try. It’s small and personal but gives off loads of light and warmth.

Tutorial/Source: Etsy.com

12. DIY Fire Top From Pizza Pan And Flower Pot

This amazing tabletop fire pit is made from a flower pot, a pizza pan, and a few other key necessities. It’s amazing! It lights up the entire top of your table so if you’re looking for something that offers a bit more fire for those colder winter and fall evenings, this one is perfect. It takes a bit more time and requires you to have a fire pit kit which has the propane hookups and other materials, but it’s so worth it just to have that wonderfully large glow.

Tutorial/Source: fresnobee

13. Concrete Tabletop Fire Bowl

For this one, you’ll mold your own fire bowl out of concrete. You’ll also want two bowls, one just a bit smaller than the other so that you can press down the concrete to form the bowl. Add some fire safe stones and a can of gel fuel and you’re all done. You could also burn charcoal in this one since it’s concrete – it won’t get too hot for the concrete – and roast marshmallows or even add a small screen and cook on it.

Tutorial/Source: scrappygeek

14. DIY Terra Cotta Fire Bowl

This little fire bowl is made from a terra cotta planter, some aluminum foil, and charcoal. And, it costs less than $5 to make and that’s including the charcoal! To make it just cover the inside of your terra cotta planter with aluminum foil and then add your charcoal. Did I mention that this one is cheap and easy? You can roast marshmallows easily over this one or even take the supplies camping with you to have your own little fire bowl by the campfire.

Tutorial/Source: westerngardens

15. Tin Pan Fire Bowl

Anything that resists heat can be used to make your patio tabletop fire bowl. In fact, this is a wonderful opportunity to repurpose some of those old kitchen items. Cast iron skillets if they’re deep enough or an old tin pan could be used. Just fill in around the gel fuel can with some sort of rock or glass and that’s all you need. Using those repurposed items also saves you money so you may be able to build your fire bowl for free – depending on what materials you have on hand.

Tutorial/Source: evite.com