Make your Own Tobacco Basket -- oh yes I did!!

Ever since Kimba got her tobacco basket I have been on a mission!!  Don't know what a tobacco basket is??  Check out all her obsessive photos here!  So what to do...what to do...  I mean I can't spend that kind of money on one....I would faint!! :)  So I made my own tobacco basket...DIY time girls!!  I created my own version for $1...yes a buck! :)  Are you ready to see how I did it?? 

First of all gather your inspiration!  Search google images for tobaccao basket and come up with great pics like this these...

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Aaahhhh...yes just what I am craving!!  I needed a base...something to start with.  Yes it took me a couple of months to find.  But I found this at the thrift store for $1!!  It is some sort of flat basket.  About 20 inches square. 

I figured I could work with it.  Yes it is the wrong color, wrong texture, just wrong.....but bear with me!!

I began by removing some of the vertical and horizontal pieces.  I removed 2, left 3, removed 2, left 3...etc.  Vertically and horizontally...

I then realized you could push those pieces and move them..hmmm.  I pushed my "threes" together so they looked more like one large strip instead of little puny ones...

And after that was done I was left with this...

Okay shape was getting better....color not so much.  So first thing I did was do a couple of really thin and completely uneven coats of spray paint.  One in a light tan and one in white...

It totally did not cover all of the original color.  Just a LIGHT and UNEVEN coat of both.  And I did both sides of the basket...top and bottom if you will.

Yep I still wasn't sold on the color.  I wanted more of that worn, been in a barn for too long look.  So I broke out some craft paint.  These are the colors I used for the entire thing.  (You love my polka dot birthday plate don't ya??)  I mixed and matched these colors.  I ended up using a little more brown.  But the other colors this is all I used for the entire basket front and back.  The key is to put the color on lightly with a dry brush.

I just picked colors dabbed a little on my brush.  Then made long fast strokes on the basket blending the colors in.  I randomly placed the colors on.  No rhyme or reason.  And when I was happy with it I stopped.

A lot of the images I googled has some sort of stamp on the sides.  So I added a few letters on the side for our state.  You would have to look to find them but I thought it was a nice touch.

Now it was hard to take pictures of but can you see the various colors all blended together. 

Looks more like it spent years in a barn huh??

So where does one put a faux tobacco basket??  On top of my vintage sewing machine is where mine landed for now!

I must say...I smile when I walk past it everyday!!  I must show off my new pitcher for a minute.  $1.20 on clearance!!  Score!!  It it like a really pale yellow!!  I can spray paint it later if I tire of that color.  For now, I love how it adds a touch of sunshine!!  And if you missed my faux pottery barn wooden dough bowl tutorial -- you will want to make that little gem too!  It is there with the wood spools in it..

And that little owl on the right came from a great etsy shop called Gnome Goods!  I love mine!!  But onto the star of the show...that basket!!  :)  I truely love the way the paint turned out.  And yes it is not authentic...but for $1 it will do for now!!

If I run into the real deal for a steal of a price...you bet I will bring it home!!  But this one will satisfy my cravings for a while!!  I get to look at this gorgeous faux finish daily...

So have y'all been dreaming of tobacco baskets??

Posted at Transformation Thursday on The Shabby Chic Cottage.

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~Thanks for stopping by!~

~Angie~

Posted in: before and after, budget friendly, foyer, spray paint, tutorials