How to Make a DIY Wire Basket (Less than $6)

Hello friends!

I've never posted on a Saturday (at least I don't think I have) but I just had to get this one out there! It's too fabulous to keep delaying the post.

This DIY Wire Basket will run you under $6 to make and really competes with the wire/metal baskets you see in stores.

If anything, this one has more character than the any metal basket I've purchased. All of the natural bends and imperfections just add to the charm of it!

I'm not gonna lie though.

At first, making this project was a bit of a challenge for me.

It tested both my patience and pain tolerance level, but once I got the hang of it (and wore gloves) this second wire basket I made went a lot smoother and less painful.

Here’s everything you need to know on How to Make DIY Wire Basket at Home, with just a few simple tools and materials.

What You Need:

- Hardware Cloth: Which is just a fancy word for wire and can be found at any home improvement store. I found mine at Home Depot and paid $6.

How to Make Your DIY Wire Basket

1. Roll out your hardware cloth and flatten it as much as you can. As I said earlier, you can put pressure on one side of the wire roll to help it straighten out easily.

Decide how wide and deep you want your basket to be and cut the wire according to these dimensions. If you are having a hard time deciding how big your basket should be, you can get a basket you already use and put it on top of the wire rod as a reference.

I cut mine by counting fourteen squares in from each corner and then counting another fourteen squares down. Repeat the same counting process to the other corner and you will end up cutting your wire into a shape of a cross (4 flaps) and each end or flap will end up being a side of your basket.

For this process, I suggest you wearing work gloves as you cut through the wire, so the wire edges don’t cut your hands. Also, if there are sharp edges that didn’t cut close enough, you can bend it back and forth as near the seam line as possible, and they should come off pretty easily.

Also, notice how I left excess wire on both sides of two opposite flaps while the other two opposite flaps were left with smooth edges/spines. This extra wire will be wrapped around the edge/spine of the side that is smooth.

I really hope I'm making sense.

Here's a close up of two sides, one with excess wire the other one smooth.

2. Now it's time to give your wire it's shape! Pick a ruler or anything with a straight edge and put it along the place where you want to fold the side up. Try to think the wire surface as your seam and try to bend each flap upward until all four sides are standing up.

Also, do your best to fold the edges up without bending it out of its rectangle shape.

We're getting there!

We're getting there!!!

3. Now that your basket is in shape it's time to connect each side to the other.

Remember that excess wire? You're going to use your nose pliers to wrap each piece of wire into the smooth edge/spine of the flap next to it.

Here's a close up of the wire bent (wrapped around) into the edge/spine.

4. Repeat the same process with all the other sides, until you have a wire basket. And you are done! Do a happy dance!

Isn't she pretty?

How to Paint your DIY Wire Basket

Even though most people like the plain steel look of the wire, you may choose to décor the basket by painting it your favorite color.

Pick a can of spray on your color of choice and a protective layer spray. Depending on how big your wire basket is, one can of spray should be enough.

Take the wire basket outside or on a safe-to-paint environment, and give it a quick clean with a paper towel.

Start spraying carefully each side until they are all covered up in paint. Then, give it a finishing protective layer spray, so the paint won’t chip or fall off in the future.

That’s it! Leave it to dry and you are good to go.

(Optional) How to Create Handles for your DIY Basket

If you want to make the wire basket a little bit more practical, you can create two simple handles to put into each side. They can be made with a piece of leather or vinyl. If you don’t like to use leather, you can use a piece of clothing or wool.

Take the leather piece (I am using leather but you can use whatever you feel comfortable with) and cut two pieces, around 1.5” with 5” each.

Fold each piece in half and poke four holes on the both ends of your straps. You can use an awl or any other sharp object, like a screwdriver. Make sure to be careful when poking the holes, since the Awl is sharp and can damage the surface underneath the leather. You can use a self-healing mat or push the holes through a rug or any soft surface.

Thread the needle and fold the strap over the edge of the basket. After you make sure the strap is positioned in center, and around 1/2-inch of a tab above the top, start sewing it. Start from the holes on the inside and make a ‘X’ shape with thread on the outside. Finish the thread on the same side you started and tie a double knot to complete the sewing.

Repeat the same process for the other handle.

Final Thoughts

That’s it for this easy and useful DIY wire basket project.

You can make a variety of basket in different sizes or different colors for decoration or to use it as storage boxes.

You can use your lovely wire basket for so many things, like storing towels, toilet paper, soaps, etc.

I put some books in this one and some hand towels in the first one I made and just love the way anything looks inside of it! So very pretty!

You can easily make 2-3 baskets out of one roll of hardware cloth (depending on the sizes) and have some wire left for some other fun DIY project!

What do you think? Did you learn how to make wire basket after this tutorial? Would you give this one a try? 

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