Eco craft- DIY Braided Rag bowl

Turn your old fabrics, T-shirt or sheets into a useful storage basket! This is an easy and fun project and a great way to reduce textile waste. Around 300 000 tonnes of clothing ends up in household bins every year, with around 20% of this going to landfill and 80% is incinerated. Increasing fabric lifetime is one of the most effective means of reducing their environmental footprint!

Follow our or easy step by step guide and turn your fabric scraps into a useful braided rag bowl.

METHOD:

1. Find some old fabrics that you no longer use or need. Old t-shirts, sheets or fabric scraps work well. For kids, try using their outgrown old school uniform or t-shirts, to make a toy storage basket. Use clean fabrics for best results.

2. Cut the fabric into 3-4 cm wide rags. A quick method, suitable for sheets and larger fabrics, is to make a make a cut along the weave of the fabric and then rip it. Your rip will be straight as it follows the weave of the fabric.

2 Braided Rag Basket Cut Strips of Rags Green Make Do.jpg

3 Braided Rag Basket Tear Strips of Rags Green Make Do.jpg

3. Tie three bits of fabric rags together and tape them to a board (or table). Start to braid them in a simple braid. Cross the right section over the middle section, then cross the left section over the new middle section. Continue the braid, alternating right and left sides.

4 Braided Rag Basket Tape on Board Green Make Do.jpg

4. Adding new rags to the braid. When a piece of rag end simply take a new piece of rag, place it over the old one and fold them over together. Twist the two pieces of rags slightly to secure them, then continue the braid like before. Keep doing this to create a long pice of braided rope.

7 Braided Rag Basket Attach New Pieces 2 Green Make Do.jpg

5. When you have enough braided rope for your project, its time to whip out the sewing machine. A sewing machine, capable of zig-zag stitch is best for this part of the project. Thread your needle with strong thread.

11 Braided Rag Basket Finished Start Sewing basket Green Make Do.jpg

6. Start by creating a flat base for the bottom of your basket or bowl. Sew a small section of rope together and keep sewing in a circle to create the base you basket or bowl. Then start nudging the base disc upwards to build the walls of the bowl or basket. Keep going until you have the size bowl or basket you want.