Ta-Da! Give Basic Wire Baskets a Colorful Makeover

When it comes to taming my ever-growing collection of stuff, there’s really nothing simpler or more useful than a wire basket. To be honest, I have five (is that too many??) in my bedroom alone. And while I love how functional they are for stashing everything from notebooks to ribbons, they can start to feel a little utilitarian. So, drawing inspiration from the colorful coiled rope baskets that have been showing up in stores all over town, I decided to give a couple of my baskets a colorful, rope-wrapped makeover. A can of spray paint, some rope, and a few sticks of hot glue later, I now have some vibrant containers that do an even better job of concealing my clutter than the originals.

Materials

• Woven wire baskets (I used the Container Store’s Zinc Marche Wastebasket and H&M Home’s Large Wire Basket)
• Spray paint (I used Montana Gold spray paints in Pure Orange and Frozen Strawberry, $11 from Dick Blick)
• 5 mm White Cordeliere Cotton Trim, $3 per yard, from M&J Trimming
• RIT Liquid Dye, in Golden Yellow, Tangerine, and Fuchsia, $4 for 8 oz.
• 1/4- and 3/8-inch Natural Sisal Rope, by Everbilt, from $6 for 50 feet, from Home Depot
• Hot glue gun and sticks

Tools

• Bucket or plastic bin
• Gloves

Instructions

1. Spray-paint the baskets: Shake the can of spray paint for at least 2 minutes. Choose a well-ventilated area to work in, and cover the ground with newspaper before coating the basket with an even layer of paint. Let it dry, then give it a second coat.

2. Dye the cotton cord: Fill a bucket or bin with a few inches of the hottest tap water possible. Wearing gloves, pour in 1 cup of dye; stir to combine. Wet the cotton cord thoroughly with clean water, wring it out, then submerge it in the dye bath. Let the cord soak up the dye until it’s vibrant, about 15 minutes. Remove the cord, rinse it under running water, and let it dry on paper towels.

3. Wrap with rope: Begin by hot glueing the sisal rope around the basket, starting at the bottom. I used the thicker rope for the larger basket, and the thinner rope for the smaller one. When you reach the second row, you can adhere the rope to both the wire and to the previous row of rope. When switching from sisal to dyed cotton cord, cut off the sisal, seal the end with glue to prevent fraying, then start attaching the cotton cord. When you’ve covered as much of the basket as you’d like, snip off the end of the rope; secure it with one last drop of glue.

And voilà! These colorful, rope-wrapped baskets are ready to fill with blankets, books, or anything that needs corralling. If you decide to upgrade your baskets, share the finished projects on Instagram with the tag #ATinspired.

Curious about those graphic orange pillows above the baskets? Find the sun print how-to here.