Paper baskets have many uses in the home and make a great gift. These baskets can be made from materials you already have and are fun and easy crafts for all ages to make. Develop your basket weaving skills and experiment with the shape, size, color and appearance of your basket to increase creativity.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Simple Paper Basket Construction
Step 1. Prepare long strips of paper for weaving baskets
Use three pieces of cardboard measuring 21.25 x 27.5 cm. On the paper that will be the base of your basket, draw a horizontal line 8.75 cm from the top and another 8.75 cm from the bottom. These lines will help lay out the bottom of the basket. Then cut the paper with a width of 12.5 cm.
Choose a sheet of thick cardboard in a neutral color such as brown, black, or white. This will be the base of your basket. The other two sheets can be any color of your choice. This will form the decorative side of your basket
Step 2. Weave the base of your basket
Place 8 long strips of paper (the color has been selected as the base) side by side so that the lines of each cut are facing up and form a continuous line. Starting at the top of the line, weave another piece of the same color through the piece you've laid out, over one piece and then under the paper strip. Center the strip of paper horizontally according to the cut you have laid out. Using strips of the same color paper, weave through the other pieces in the opposite direction to the first, so that one of these pieces will go under the first piece you woven up. Then slide the pieces of paper so that they are parallel and tight.
- Repeat steps on eight strips of paper.
- The finished base will be a 10 x 10 cm square that fits inside the lines you drew on each piece of paper. In other words, you'll have a square with eight strips of paper sticking out 8.75 cm on each side.
Step 3. Fold the strips of paper out each side of the basket, each side will stand at a uniform height
It can be helpful to place a 10 x 10 cm box or piece of wood in the center of your basket and fold the strips of paper toward the box. This will make the following steps easier
Step 4. Weave the colored strips of paper between the strips now vertical to the base, folding them to fit into the corners of the basket
- You will need to use approximately one and a half strips of paper to get around the basket. You can glue the two strips of paper together with tape or glue. Try placing the joints in the basket and hidden by strips of paper from the bottom. This will give your basket a clean, seamless look.
- Weave the strips of paper around the basket. When the two ends meet, glue them with tape or glue, hiding the joints in the same way.
Step 5. Repeat the steps above with strips of paper of the same color
Be sure to alternate it down and up the strips of paper, until you have a chess box pattern with the strips of paper connecting from the bottom.
Keep repeating until you reach the top
Step 6. Finish and tidy up your basket
Tape the ends of the base strips with tape or glue to the tops of the woven strips of paper. Then tape or glue a slightly wider strip of basic cardboard to the top of the bottom of your basket, placing it on top of the vertical strip of paper. Add similar panels to the outside of the basket, securing the inside as well as the outside of the basket.
If you want to add handles, just glue the two ends of the paper strips with glue or tape to the basket on the opposite sides, before you add the top panel
Step 7. Done
Method 2 of 2: Newspaper Round Basket
Step 1. Roll the newspaper into a tube
First, cut four newspapers vertically – these don't have to be exact sizes. Then place the skewer on one corner of the paper. Place it at a slight angle so that the tube once rolled up will be longer than the newspaper itself. Then roll the newspaper around the skewer, making sure it stays tight. Once you're done rolling, apply a few drops of glue at the last corner to keep the tube in place.
- You will need a lot of paper tubes, so repeat this process for each piece of newspaper.
- In addition to the skewers, you can use knitting needles, 3mm diameter nails, or anything similar in shape, long, small and round.
Step 2. Use a circle from thick cardboard as the base
The size can be adjusted to the size of the basket you want. Glue the paper tube to the thick cardboard so that it is centered around the base cardboard. Make sure you use an odd number of tubes.
You will need more tubes to make a larger basket. The closer the distance between the tubes, the tighter the resulting weave
Step 3. Use a second piece of thick cardboard, similar to the first, to smooth out the base
Glue the second thick cardboard to the first so that the tube will be pressed tightly between the two thick cardboard.
Place a heavy object on the base as it dries so that it sticks in the same position
Step 4. Fold and tube and start weaving
Fold the new tube over one of the vertical tubes and glue the end of the fold over the end of the woven tube. Then weave the tube in and out of the vertical tube, up and down. Make sure it's as close to the base as possible – first on top of the bottom, then on top of the freshly woven tube.
When you weave, the tube will be flat. This will make your basket even stronger
Step 5. When you reach the end of each tube, connect it to the next tube, inserting the end of the tube into the next tube
This will essentially create a long tube that forms your entire basket.
Step 6. Continue weaving until you reach the top of the vertical tube or reach the desired height of the basket
When you are ready to stop weaving, fold the end of the tube you are weaving over the vertical tube and glue it to the tube itself.
Step 7. Fold the tube vertically to complete the basket
Cut each tube about 2.5 cm past the top of the basket. Then:
- For each vertical tube that is outside the basket (the last tube you weaved through the vertical), fold the ends over the top of the basket and glue it to the inside of the basket. Use clothespins to hold it in place while the glue dries.
- For each vertical tube in the basket (the last tube you weaved past the outside of the vertical tube), fold the end of the vertical tube over the top of the basket. Don't glue the outside of the basket, but tuck the end of the vertical tube into the second row basket braid from the top, so that it looks like part of the webbing.
Step 8. Done
