Basket Cases: 5 Clever Ways to Repurpose Gift Baskets

If you were a lucky boy or girl at Christmas, you'll have gift baskets just begging to be repurposed. Try these 5 ideas for storage and decoration.



If you were a lucky boy or girl over the Christmas period, you may now have attractive gift baskets and hampers lying around just begging to be reused and repurposed. Whether you've received traditional woven wicker baskets, faux leather hampers or shabby chic wooden crates, don't let these beautiful items go to waste.

To breathe fresh life into your old hampers and empty gift baskets, we've curated 5 fabulous "basket cases" to provide a little design inspiration.

1. Hanging baskets
If you're green fingered, why not fill your empty wicker baskets with flowers and foliage? This is a wonderful project which is very easy to put together at home. Perfect for bringing a little colour and rustic charm to exteriors and outdoor spaces.

Simply string up your empty wicker gift baskets, fill them with compost, plant your favourite flowers then hang them up to beautify outdoors areas. We particularly like the addition of a trailing creeper in the lower basket to add pretty fronds and greenery to your creation.

Stacked baskets full of your favourite herbs also work wonderfully, great for cooking and wonderful for adding scent to a kitchen garden or patio.

 

 

 

2. Stencilled storage

 If you're a hoarder of clothes, shoes, records, perfumes or DVDs, larger gift baskets and hampers make brilliant, tucked away storage, which look pretty on the outside, while keeping clutter safely on the inside.

If you have larger wooden chests or baskets left over from bigger gifts, why not turn them in to beautiful and practical storage? You could even stencil them with their contents (we particularly like French versions: "Chaussures" for a touch of romance and culture). For sturdier chests, pop a couple of pretty cushions on top to provide extra seating.

3. Bathroom baskets

We're in love with these innovative bathroom baskets. Simply hung from towel rails, these are laid-back, repurposed
storage of the most inspiring type.

Customise to taste with your chosen rails and hangers and use to hold all of those bathroom essentials, without clutter. Perfect for those of you who dream of an elegant,  minimal bathroom with plenty of charm.

 

4. Basket bookcase

For avid readers, these basket bookcases are a gorgeous way to store, organise and showcase your favourite books. We love the customised labels, although we think alphabetical baskets would be even better. If you are particularly keen on a couple of authors, they could be given pretty labelled baskets all of their very own.

5. Spice baskets

A well stocked spice collection is essential for any self-respecting home gourmet - and airtight, former gift baskets look so much more beautiful than plastic or supermarket-bought alternatives. We especially like the look of this small, rustic wooden chest, wonderful for laid-back kitchens with a warm, vintage style.

To keep your herbs and spices fresh, make sure you use baskets with lids, or pick up some Tupperware which fits your baskets perfectly. You can even subdivide larger baskets to fit all of your flavours simultaneously. Delicious!

3 essential home design trends for 2014

Welcome in the new year with a revamp for your interiors. If you're searching for a little inspiration, look no further. Here are 3 trends to look out for.

New year, new start - if you're ready to welcome in 2014 with fresh interior design, we've compiled a handful of our favourite influences to keep you on trend. From copper accents to a powerful blue colour palette, we've scoured far and wide to bring you some of the most versatile, beautiful and inspiring interior design ideas set to be big over the coming year.

Decadent kitchens

Once a space for minimalist design, cool modern metal and bright simplicity, the style-conscious kitchen is set to become a more indulgent space in 2014. Forget clean lines, pared back appliances, medical metals, light woods and bright whites, this year the kitchen is given a touch of glamour.

Think rich, dark woods, art deco embellishments and deep hues. Where better to cook up something delectable than in a beautiful kitchen space, after all? We have warm, dark green paired with dark wood surfaces and a beautiful, feature piece of lighting as a key kitchen look in our 2014 scrapbooks this season.



Saturated turquoise

Banish beige and forget neutral shades, this year warm and bold blues are proving popular. Traditionally a cooler colour, there's a hot side to this shade which has made one of the most popular shades for 2014, alongside the recently announced Pantone Radiant Orchid colour of the year.

When it comes to the blues, however, there is a whole colour wheel of choice out there; from rich navy tones to beautiful ultramarine colour pops. Mixing and matching shades is a popular look, but it is a bright, saturated turquoise which is proving to be the favourite blue this year.

Don't go for feature walls, instead introduce turquoise to all corners of your room, accompany this bright, bold colour with tiled or medium-to-light wood flooring and decorate with mixed textures and materials to create a light, eclectic and naturally beautiful look.



Copper highlights

Copper is the interior designer's metallic inspiration of choice this year. The warm glowing metal makes a refreshing change from more clinical chrome and showy gold highlights. It has a homely, ethnic feel which adds a touch of brightness, without seeming cold or pretentious. Copper works wonderfully with bold patterns of all shapes and sizes, from chintzy vintage designs to bold, modern floral patterns and monochrome geometric designs. Use in moderation to add highlights to a strong decor.



What's your design inspiration this year? Are you introducing any of our favourite looks into your home? We'd love to hear what's influencing your decor in 2014, let us know with a comment below, or drop us an email at info@bluemahogany.com.