How to Make

A Flower Girl Basket

This was made in Ivory because it is for my sister's wedding. But the basket could easily be made with darker colors like burgundy or even black. The flower girls are dressed as Faeries and will be throwing daisy petals.

Materials:

A roll of tulle in your choice of colors
2 yds each of two contrasting colors of ribbon
A small basket
Opalescent beads on string
A piece of foam core large enough to cover the bottom of the basket
Box cutter
Aleene's Tacky Glue

First of all, I chose small baskets because I thought they were more appropriate for little people. You can do this with any size basket, however. Take the foam core and place the basket on top. Trace around the bottom edges. With the box cutter, cut through the foam core a little inside of the line you drew. Place the circle inside the basket to ensure its fit. Trim edges until it fits nicely.

In craft stores, you can buy rolls of tulle like you see in the picture for very cheap. They are about five inches wide and the roll contains 25 yards. I think I paid $2.99 for this. Place one end of tulle into the inside center of the basket and wrap out and around and back into the center. Cut. Lay this piece out flat and use it for a guide to cut about ten more strips. Put glue on the inside bottom of the basket. The first couple layers, don't squish the tulle, just wrap around the basket in more than one area and press the ends into the glue. After you have a nice base, gather the strips of tulle in your hands a bit before wrapping around the basket and gluing down.

Continue this all the way around the basket until it is covered to your liking. You can add more tulle if you don't want the basket to show at all. On the bottom of the circle you made out of foam core, cover it with glue. Push it down into the center of the basket, tightening the tulle on the outside and holding it down on the inside. Place something heavy inside to apply pressure while the glue dries.

As shown in the finished product, figure out how far below the basket you want the tulle to dangle. Measure from there, over the handle down to even on the other side. Cut two more pieces along with a strip of beads on string. They sell this at the craft store near the wedding stuff. I think it was $1.99 for a container full. These are not beads for beading, although if you want to add work for yourself, go ahead and string a strand of beads. Cut two one yard pieces of each color ribbon. Place the tulle how it should rest on the basket, not worried about how it looks, and one of each colored ribbon around the handle, securing the tulle.

Braid from that spot up and over the handle, sending a strand under every couple passes. When you reach the other side, tie the tulle to the handle with the ribbons. Fluff out the tulle and it's done.

flower faerie at showtime

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