Transform wicker baskets into fantastic home decor items
Baskets made of wicker, straw or other natural fibers are objects created to be useful tools to carry out the most diverse functions, and the appearance of their intertwined, plaited fibers - even when they are aged, fraying and graying - always remains very appealing and attractive.
Old-fashioned picnic baskets, round baskets with two handles, low, shallow baskets (be they round, oval or square), baskets with a large arched handle in the center - all of these basket versions can be easily hang up around the house, and can be used in many different ways. You can put your laundry into them (a laundry hamper), or maybe put blankets and pillows in them as a storage item for the living room. But they can also be used augment various pieces of furniture or can even be converted to become lampshades. Take a look at the ideas below to transform woven baskets into beautiful pieces of furniture with a natural, rustic charm.
Among the most popular of ideas, is using baskets as containers to keep furtniture shelves tidy and in order, especially those that have are open faced. Baskets like this can also be used to transform an old chest of drawers into more modern piece of furniture.
Wicker baskets, an in particular those without handles, can become lampshades for DIY lamp and chandelier projects.
Those that are wider and lower, such as baskets which follow a tray-type format, are beautiful when hung on a wall. They look great in the kitchen, but also in the living room or on a wall behind a bed.
If they are sturdy enough, you can use baskets to keep fire wood in so it is always ready near the fireplace or your wood-fired stove.
When they have higher edges, they are perfect for tidying things up and keeping things in order. You can use them on kitchen shelves, but also in the bathroom or any other room where you want to gather up the objects which are usually scattered untidely on the worktop surfaces.
To use them as a vase or pot holder, it is always better to line the inside first with a thick plastic sheet, so that the water that draines out of the vases - even if it is just a small amount - does not cause the natural fibers of the basket weave to rot.
You could even use them to provide a ladder with a number of useful containers, and can be deployed as a single unit in the living room or the bathroom.
Depending on the time of year (or a personal occassion for celebration), you can set up themed compositions in baskets that can display iconic objects from the relevant theme.
If you don't particularly like the natural color of the basket, or if the baskets have faded and become bleached over time, you can always update their look by painting them. And perhaps even more attractive than just changing the color of the whole basket to one tone, it's even nicer to create combinations of two or three color hues.
Another way to embellish and decorate a large basket is by using a macramé finish around the edge, perhaps even with a contrasting yarn.
Would you like to furnish your home with recycled wicker baskets?
