Anyone else have Longaberger baskets that just don’t fit your style any more, or is it just me? There was a time when the mere thought of painting one these baskets was unthinkable, but not any more! It’s okay to paint your Longaberger basket. I mean, why not? There’s no law that says you can’t, right? Remember when I washi-taped a Longaberger Basket? Here it is, in case you missed it. Unless you’re a serious collector and think the baskets will hold their value or even increase in value, you might not want to paint it. I, on the other hand just want to use my baskets in a way that fits in with my current decorating style.
Here’s the picnic basket before I painted it:
And here it is after I painted it and added a graphic from The Graphic Fairy. I just love that site. Karen has a bazillion graphics and loads of ideas on how to use them. I framed a bunch of them last year and showed them in this post.
To update my picnic basket, I first gave it a good cleaning (it was a little dusty from being stored in the basement). Then I applied a couple of coats of homemade chalkpaint. After the paint was dry, I sanded the edges to give it a “worn” look.
To get the graphic on the lid, I followed this tutorial, but I used regular chalk, a ball-point pen and a black sharpie instead of paint.
Once the sharpie ink was dry, I gave the entire lid a good sanding so that it looks like the graphic has been on there for years.
I love the look of my new, old basket! It’s picnic time!
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Hey, I have one of those up in our attic. Maybe it’s time to resurrect it. Your’s looks great.
I love what you’ve done! Great idea. I have one Longaberger basket…I think they are way too pricey. 🙂
You are right Kim, they are pricey! Which is one reason I’m painting them….now I’ll use them!
I had to click into this when I saw it on pinterest because I couldn’t believe you painted a longaberger basket!! Haha I totally know what you mean though. I had a bunch that just did not fit in anymore. However, turns out a lot of people still buy them and I sold these tiny little baskets for like $25 each… craziness! 🙂
Now that I’ve started painting them, I can’t stop! Now I’ll use them!
I LOVE the after! I have no idea what a Longaberger basket is, but I like the after way better than the before 🙂
Basket looks very nice. I was wondering if you might share what diy chalk paint recipe you used for this project? I’ve noticed a variety of “extra” ingredients to give the distressed look. I like yours and would like to have that same outcome.
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I don’t have a problem with painting just about anything- it is yours after all. I do think it is nice when the finish matches the integrity of the piece. Longaberger isn’t the only manufacturer of split ash baskets in America (Bradford, Henn, American Traditions, Royce) and other companies did paint them. Henn put beautiful crackle finishes on some of their pricer baskets. I think the look of Longaberger is dated because of the fabric liners more than anything and also the similarity in finish for most of them. Plus collectors often fail to mix in some other types of baskets which makes their collections scream the 90s. A beautiful and interesting basket collection should include a few varieties of different materials and manufacturers.
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I have dreaded the thought of painting a Longaberger basket. I just inherited several baskets and already had some of my own. I don’t want mine to be so dated either. Thanks for the tips!