We recently made some really great hairpins with felt flowers on them, and then yesterday I had a brilliant idea to make crocheted baskets out of old jeans. Denim is not the easiest material to work with, I have plans to make other things with old t-shirts, but they turned out really cute and didn't take very long once I got used to the material. Denim is pretty to crochet with, because a pair of jeans turns into so many colors- the inside is lighter, the space where your pockets were is darker, and it looks really cool! Plus, who doesn't have a pair of old, torn-up, too-large or too-small jeans lying around?!
I used these instructions as a basis, and cut the denim into strips as long as possible, in a zig-zag pattern. I couldn't find my seam ripper, so I cut most of the seams off, or hacked at them until they went away. Definitely remove the pockets. Denim is thick enough as it is, add a seam in there and it's nearly impossible to work with.
I found the instructions on the above link worked best, however, because of the bulkiness of the material, I found myself adding an extra loop after each stitch. I must mention that I'm not the best crochet-er. I generally don't get it- I'm much better at knitting.
I knotted the strips of denim together, using a square knot. It made cute little bows randomly around the basket, which I love, but try to keep them to a minimum, they're hard to work around. Cut those strips as long as possible!
And it turned out like this! So cute! It would make a great Easter basket, but I'm going to use it to keep track of my hairpins and headbands that live all over my nightstand. I'm also going to attempt to make an extra-large one to use as a cat bed- I've been wanting to make a cat bed for years, but always thought they'd tear it up too quickly. Not only is this super durable due to its construction, but denim is so sturdy it'll be perfect!
I love how the basket turned out, hon! So proud to have such a creative daughter!
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