DIY a Rope Basket

       The miniature rope basket is made in much the same way as it's real life version. This basket was designed to move dirty laundry back and forth from the bathrooms to the utility room. A rope basket can look very different depending upon the materials used to craft it. I chose natural colors that will coordinate with many of the colors in our doll's house, but you could use brighter, bolder colors if you wish.

Barbie's pets are romping around in the laundry again!

Supply List:

• recycle an old plastic cup
• enough burlap like fabric to cover the surfaces of the cup
• needle and thread
• hot glue and hot glue gun
• twine (I chose a natural looking twine)
• two beads for handles

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Wash and dry the recycled plastic cup.
2. Cut out enough fabric to wrap around the outside of the cup with ample amounts to tuck inside the cup and cover it fully.
3. Hot glue the fabric to neatly overlap the sides.
4. Thread and needle and sew a straight stitch around the cup bottom edge. Pull the end of the thread taunt and sew it down.  
5. Hot glue the ends of the fabric flat against the bottom of the cup.
6. Tuck the left over fabric inside the cup and hot glue this down neatly. 
7. Hot glue a circle of the fabric to the interior of the inside bottom of the cup.
8. Now take you twine and begin to turn it round in a spiral shape on the bottom of the cup. Use a bit of hot glue to push it firmly into place. (see photo below)
9. Keep turning the spiral of twine around itself while adding a bit of hot glue to the outside burlap surface as you go. Twist the twine all the way up the sides of the covered cup until you reach the approximately 1/2 an inch from the top.
10. Now make the handles of the rope basket by stringing on one bead and then glue a bit of twine to the other side of the basket. String on the second bead handle just opposite to the first on the other side of the rope basket.
11. Keep gluing and twisting the twine rope all the way up to the lip of the cup to finish the basket.
12. Clip of the end of the twine and glue it firmly in place.

Left, recycled plastic cup. Center, covered plastic cup in a finer, burlap like fabric.
Right, Now take you twine and begin to turn it round in a spiral shape on the bottom of the cup.

The doll sized rope basket seen from a variety of angles.

Twisting a basket with heavier rope.