How to Make a Giant Easter Basket From a Laundry Basket

If you plan to give Easter baskets to grandchildren, nieces and nephews, neighbors or friends, making individual baskets for each child is not only time-consuming, but is also very expensive. Rather than worry about buying all those baskets, cellophane grass to line them, and the candy to fill all the baskets, why not construct a huge "family" Easter basket?
It takes no more time to make than shopping for and preparing all those individual baskets. After the holiday, parents do not have to worry about climbing into the attic to store the many baskets, since the large basket can be used to organize toys or hold dirty clothes.

Things You'll Need

• Laundry basket Crepe paper Scissors Tape Wire clothes hanger Pliers Newspaper Fake Easter "grass" Easter candy Small stuffed animals

Instructions

How to Make a Giant Easter Basket from a Laundry Basket

1. Purchase a large, oval or square, plastic laundry basket that has rows of square holes in the sides, from top to bottom. The basket may be of any color you choose; however, yellow tends to contrast more than most colors with the crepe paper (see Step 2) and the Easter Grass (Step 5).

2. Weave lengths of colorful crepe paper in and out of the holes on the sides of the basket. When you complete weaving around one row, cut the crepe paper a few inches longer and continue to weave over the previously woven areas and tape the end of the paper on the inside of the basket so it will stay in place.
   On the second row, start your weaving one hole ahead of the point you began the first row so that you will create a basket weave effect. Continue in the same manner until you have all the rows woven with crepe paper.

3. Untwist the wire coat hanger and bend it as straight as possible. You may have to use pliers to untwist the wire near the hook. Use the pliers to straighten out any bends or kinks in the wire. Attach one end of the wire to the center of one side of the laundry basket.
   Wrap one end of the wire around the top edge of the basket and twist. Do the same with the other end of the wire coat hanger on the opposite side of the basket. If you need to stabilize the handle more, use tape to wrap around the end the the handle and the edge of the basket.

4. Tear or cut long strips of Newspaper and wrap them around the wire "handle" until the thickness of the handle looks appropriate for the size of the laundry basket. Wrap crepe paper over the newspaper to completely cover the "handle."

5. Twist sheets of Newspaper to fill the basket. Cover the top of the newspaper "filling" with Easter grass, being careful to tuck the grass between the newspaper and the sides of the basket. Ensure that the layer of Easter grass is thick enough to hide the newspaper under it.

6. Place various types of Easter candy on top of the Easter grass. Center any boxed candies or small stuffed animals in the middle of the basket, nestling them into the Easter grass and newspaper below so that they will remain upright.

Tips & Warnings

• You may add a crepe paper bow to the covered wire handle of the basket. Use two complementary colors of crepe paper and alternate colors on the weaving rows.

• Do not attempt to lift the basket by the wire handle.