Fairy gardens must be a lot of work for those little beings to maintain! I thought these baskets might lighten their loads a little…

Materials:
1) Dried leaves of various sizes
2) Shallow bowl with water
3) Different shaped pens or containers
4) Natural colored string like cotton or hemp
5) Scissors
Cost: $0.00 (unless you need to go buy the string)

Make sure the containers you are going to mold around have straight edges. For instance, because the white knife has a taper to it, you won’t be able to get the leaf basket off once it is dried.

1) Soak your leaves in water until they are soft and pliable. I usually let mine soak for at least an hour. Also soak the thread you are using, it makes it fit much tighter once you tie it on.

2) Pick your leaf, and carefully wrap it around your container. Make sure the entire bottom of the container is covered or your basket will have a place to leak the contents. (This part can be frustrating! If you have another pair of hands to help you, that would make this step much easier!)

3) Tie the wet thread around your leaf (sometimes I also cheat and use a rubber band first, then just cut it off later)

4) Set your leaf on a flat surface and let it dry completely. Make sure your basket is standing upright so the bottom forms a nice flat base. This will help it stand up later once it is dried.

Different containers make different baskets…

5) Once your basket is completely dry, use your scissors to trim the ends of the thread you used. You are done!

It’s so fun to see what each basket is going to look like! Remember to handle them very carefully…

Now let the fairies start putting them to use in the pantry…

Good luck and have fun! I’d love to see your pictures if you make this project! I’m sure everyone has unique leaves where they live that would make slightly different baskets 🙂

~ Jessi

(Don’t want to forget this? Just pin for later: ♥)