Miniature Tobacco Basket Tutorial

  Hello Mini Friends!  Today I am sharing a piece that I created for American Miniaturist Magazine, Issue 226.  This post will be a little bit different as I have simply copied and pasted exactly what I wrote to go along with the tutorial for the magazine.  So, I am sharing the written steps first and the tutorial pictures after.  It was fun working with American Miniaturist Magazine and I had tutorials appear in Issues 225, 226 and 227 of this year.  I really hope you enjoy this easy Tobacco Basket tutorial and make one (or more!) today!

  Hello mini friends! My husband grew up in Robertson County, Tennessee, where his family were tobacco farmers. Robertson County is known as “Home of the World’s Finest Dark Fired Tobacco.” Years ago, after the tobacco was stripped, they would lay the plants across the handmade baskets, with the plant heads on one side, to present a beautiful display to take to the tobacco auction, showing pride in their beautiful crops. 

 Many farm houses today have heirloom tobacco baskets hanging on their porch and on the walls in their homes as decoration. I thought it would be the perfect addition to my mini farm house to have a tobacco basket hanging somewhere to represent my husband’s family tobacco farming heritage. So, I created one made from cardstock and it wound up being the perfect tiny addition.

  Supplies: one 8x11 sheet of black cardstock, small scrap pieces of cardboard, wood glue or strong craft glue, one disposable plastic cup with a square bottom and brown shades of acrylic paint.

 Step one: using a the piece of black 8x11 inch cardstock, on the 8 inch side, cut four ¼ inch wide strips and cut nine 1/8 inch strips. Cut the nine strips in half. You will wind up having eighteen 1/8 inch wide strips. It is perfectly fine if the pieces aren’t exactly 1/8 of an inch as the real baskets were handmade and none of them were perfect. 

  Step two: using the four ¼ inch wide strips, glue two strips on top of the other two strips (for strength). You will end up having two strips for the main edge of the basket.

  Step three: turn the plastic cup upside down. The square bottom of the cup will pose as your mold for the basket. Cut scrap cardboard into small squares and tape onto the bottom of the cup so the basket will have a slight dome shape. Using one of the ¼ inch double strips, curve strip with your fingers and bend strip around the base of the cup. Place a dab of wood glue on one end to join the ends on top of each other. Secure with a small paper clip or rubber band and allow to dry.

 Step four: curve the 1/8 inch pieces with your fingers. Beginning slightly off center, place one strip over the basket frame and dab glue on the frame one two sides across from each other. Hold piece in place until it adheres.

  Step five: Turn the cup and place your next 1/8 inch strip the opposite direction, over the first strip and glue on the ends. Continue alternating 1/8 inch strips and gluing, weaving the strips over and under previous strips allowing the glue to dry. You will use only thirteen or fourteen of the four inch strips, depending on how closely the weaving is. You only need to glue the ends as the weave will strengthen the basket.

 Step six: Using the last eight inch double strip, place glue around the outside rim of the basket. Curve the last long strip and place it on the glue, securing the 1/8 inch strips. Use a rubber band to hold in place until the glue has dried. 

  Step seven: Once the glue has dried, remove the rubber band and carefully remove the basket from the cup. Trim the excess of the 1/8 inch strips. Step eight: using four of the remaining 1/8 inch strips, glue strips in a criss-cross square pattern on the inside of the basket. Allow to dry and trim off excess. Step nine: using brown shades such as tan, mushroom and dark brown, lightly brush paints in wood grain directions on strips.

Thank you for joining me today!  I hope this post found you well and was explained just as easy as this little basket is to make.  I actually came up with the idea while I was in my chicken coop.  I usually just use a large cup for their feed scoop and I remember turning around to see the bottom of the cup was square and I thought "hey, that could be used as a square mold for a tobacco basket".  And here we are!

If you like this tutorial please feel free to share the pictures on Pinterest.  If you would like to share anywhere else please ask permission from me.  

Until next time.. XOXO