Tutorial Tuesday: Burlap Basket Liner

I picked up two, large wire baskets at a garagle sale for fifty cents each. Living in a small home has made me appreciate creative storage solutions. I love the look of vintage locker baskets and industrial, wire baskets on shelves. These two wire baskets are not, however, in those categories and would look better hidden away in a closet or under a bed. I had to do something to bring these boring storage baskets out of hiding.


I decided to use burlap because the baskets are large and burlap is inexpensive at $3-$6/yard. I also happen to like burlap and since I cannot afford linen (unless I get lucky enough to find it at an estate sale), this is the next best thing.

This is how you can make a basket liner of your own:
First, measure the four sides and bottom of the basket adding 1" to each side for the seam and four inches for the top of the sides that will fold over. After cutting out the fabric according to the measurements and seam allowances, hem all four sides of each piece. Then, lay the pieces in the basket and pin them together. When you take it out of the basket, it should retain its shape being held together by the pins. Next, sew all the sides together removing the pins as you go. Before placing the liner in the basket, iron a crease where it will fold over to make it lay flat.


I was just going to leave it like this and possibly stencil on the burlap, but it looked a little plain and still boring. So....I did what I always do in this situation - I added a ruffle! I used vintage pillowcases to make the ruffles. The thing I love most about using vintage cotton sheets and pillowcases, is that I can tear it instead of cutting. This makes it much faster and the strips of fabric come out straighter than if I were cutting. Continuing the tutorial....Next, rip several strips of fabric for the ruffles. The total length of the fabric strips needs to add up to twice the perimeter of the basket because you are going to be gathering it. To make the ruffle, sew a straight stitch, the length of the fabric strip, about 1/2" from one side. I left the other edge of the ruffle raw because, let's be honest, that would be too much sewing. Besides, I think the raw edge fits with the rustic quality of the burlap fabric.




Oh, and if you have a cat, you might want to lock him in another room. Whenever I try to lay out my fabric for cutting, my kitty, Beau, likes to tangle himself up in it and then scratch me when I try to get it away from him.


I don't get it! Everything is a game to him or something :)



The last step is sewing the ruffle to the underside of the burlap.




No more hiding under the bed. Here they are on top of my armoire.