I love making something out of nothing. Making bread from flour, yeast, and water, recycling old jars into funky storage containers: transforming something simple into something functional (and sometimes kinda pretty) makes me feel like a superhero.
Of course, this desire has the tendency to make me into a packrat. I can't get rid of those odd-shaped pieces of cardboard - they may be just the thing I need to make someone a journal cover. Fabric scraps are the worst! Small pieces can be perfect for sachets, or wrapping a small present, or patching a pair of jeans. But for every one of these small, incidental uses, I add five fabric scraps to my scrap-basket.
I tried to take on quilting in high school, but I lose interest very quickly. If a project takes more than 10ish hours, even if those hours are spread out over a few weeks (or months), it's just not worth it to me. I needed something faster and easier, so when my mom suggested braided rag rugs, I toyed with the idea. But I didn't need any rugs. What I did need was a nice foraging basket.
There really wasn't too much to it:
1. Cut the rags into strips.
2. Braided the strips in coordinating colors, sewing a new rag to the strip as it reached the end.
3. Sewed them together as I would a rug, just in a bowl shape instead of a flat one.
4. Added a simple cloth handle.
This was the perfect project for a week sitting on the couch watching the Winter Olympics with a cold. It gave my hands something to do besides shovel Wheat Thins into my mouth and shake my fist at a certain conceited Russian figure skater.
The basket looks great! And you have garlic from the garlic man! I'm so jealous! I hoarded my last few pieces and just used the last one this month. It was still juicy and mellow and perfect. I will miss it.
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