Easter Basket handle help??

[dillonandmarasmom]

I felted a basket for DD and I wanted to make twisted i-cord handles that could be pretty long. I thought I'd make 2, felt them, and twist them together somehow. Maybe weave a small flexible wire into one of them for strength.

Any thoughts or suggestions??

[Kayaking Mama]

Well, I did a felted basket for DS and made a 6-stitch I-cord handle, which does not have any wire in it and it's saggy and kind of sad. Other than that, the basket's great! So, I guess I don't have a suggestion other than, if I was going to do it again I think I'd felt the handle and the basket separately and run wire through the handle before attaching it...Maybe if you do 2-3 i-cords you can twist or braid them around a wire?

[dillonandmarasmom]

I ended up running wire through the i-cord and around the edge of the basket to add rigidity. It came out wonderfully. I'll have to post pics sometime tomorrow.

[Kayaking Mama]

Originally Posted by dillonandmarasmom

I ended up running wire through the i-cord and around the edge of the basket to add rigidity. It came out wonderfully. I'll have to post pics sometime tomorrow.

Please do! I'm considering re-felting the basket to see if I can make it stiffer. I'm assuming you added the wire post-felting? What did you use for wire?

[dillonandmarasmom]

Here it is, all loaded up pre-Bunny visit.

Close-up of handle and basket together. I ran the 16-guage wire through the i-cord after felting, then folded cord in half and twisted it, poked each end (doubled) through the felted basket, and then twisted it back up onto the rest of the cord.

I sewed the wire into a strip of folded over fabric. This was done very quickly on my machine, so forgive the messy edges.

I then added a pad of the same fabric to the bottom inside to give it a more finished look.
I think she liked it when I showed her. It held about 9 eggs without a problem, too.

[Kayaking Mama]

Looks great! Thanks for your pics. Now that DS's basket has served its function (in its floppy state), I think I'm going to felt it again and then probably try adding wire. I figure, if it doesn't work I'll just try it again next year--it only took a few hours to knit it to begin with.