Basket Case

What is it about baskets?

I just adore them, but I'm not sure why.  I saw so many that I loved at No Minimalist Here, and I wanted some basket goodness at my house too.   

Maybe they just add a certain casual, warm French feel to a room. And I wonder about what was kept in them years ago.  I found this one at the antique auction.  When I brought it home it looked like this.

But thanks to a an old belt that no longer fit, I now have two straps on the front of the basket.  If you look closely, you can see that they are not the same.  

This beauty is much bigger and heavier than it looks. 

The baskets add texture to a room, and the bigger the better, in my book. 

To better show off the basket I removed the pediment from the armoire.  Okay, total disclosure here, I never liked the pediment.

I also purchased this fun Fortnum and Mason picnic basket on eBay.  I think with stencils and some black paint, it would be easy to replicate this look on any rectangular basket.  

This basket may look like another antique, but I actually found it at Hobby Lobby about a year ago. 

The basket below, another one from Hobby Lobby, is large enough to hold the extra pillows and bedspread at night.   

This little basket below was a vintage sewing basket at one time.  I set it on this antique French chair, and it covers up the fact that the chair is missing some of its rush seat. 

Here's another antique basket on my back porch.   I think it is more flat than it was when I bought it last year, possibly because one of my kids sat on it.  Oh well, more antiquing, right? 

The prices vary depending on where you find baskets, but certainly if you want a good deal, I would try consignment, resale shops, and auctions.  That concludes my basket tour.    

Here's a list of the parties that I visit on a regular basis.  I might have shared this link at any number of these.