Once you see how easy it is to make custom storage boxes you may never buy them again. Granted, they may not be the most expensive purchase you make at a home store, but one of the great things about customized storage boxes is that you can make them to fit your taste and decor. You don’t have to settle for the steel gray ones you find at Bed, Bath and Beyond.
You can come up with ideas for useful storage baskets by repurposing items you would normally throw away. For example, you can use ropes or strips of cloth to make handles for your baskets. You can also use old clothes or sheets as the actual basket material. If you're feeling creative, you can make baskets from recycled materials like egg cartons or paper towel rolls.
Below are ideas for sewing your own box, gluing fabric onto an existing cardboard bin and refacing finished bins.
Sewn Collapsible Storage Bin
If you want to sew your own collapsible storage box, it’s certainly doable, but you’ll need a sewing machine, a few yards of fabric (complementary swatches create a nice visual contrast) and thick cardboard to give the container its shape. Sew Crafting’s video requires you to watch every step they make carefully. You may also want to read the comments underneath the video on Youtube for tips on which foot should be utilized on the sewing machine for specific connections. We also have suggestions for sewing simple storage bins on CraftFoxes.
No Sew DIY Fabric Storage Bin
You don’t need to know how to sew to create a fabric storage bin. You can glue fabric onto an existing cardboard box. To do this, you need a cardboard box, fabric, plus a box cutter, marker, packing tape, scissors, a ruler and adhesive spray. After assembling and taping the bottom of the box, cut off the top flaps.If any of the cut section of the box are uneven, you can help level out the edge with folded over packing tape.
Use the ruler to help decide where you want the handles located. Slowly cut out the space for the handles so you don’t make a sloppy incision.
Lay out the fabric and cut sections so the fabric will cover the box, allowing for an extra inch of overlay. (See the above video.) Save the cut out scraps, they’ll be use later. Then make diagonal incisions so the material will tightly fit around the box.
Now is the time to attach the fabric to the box. First, spray the adhesive onto the cardboard, then press the side of the box flat onto the fabric. Repeat attaching the fabric on the opposite side. Next, glue the overlapping edges to the sides of the box. For the sides, fold in the edges and then glue to the side. Line the inside of the box. Cut a line in the fabric covering the handles as well as snip the sides so the cloth can fold over to cover and stick onto the area where the side openings are.
IKEA Hack Storage Bin Facelift
Maybe you don’t want to make a storage basket at all, just give your existing ones a facelift. Perhaps the ones you have are still functional, but don’t match your room anymore. In this video, Dawn demonstrates how she bought $2 IKEA placements and faux leather from a craft store and refaced her storage boxes. She used a Cricket to cut out the “leather” handles so they would have a professional finish. To ensure a good fit, Dawn cut down the placemat so it will curl around the front of the basket.
Of course this concept can be approached with many different materials. As long as the new covering will adhere to the old one, and won’t quickly fall apart, numerous possibilities are available for your “new” storage bins.
Dollar Store No Sew Boxes
You don’t need a sewing machine or high end materials to impressive custom storage boxes. Storage boxes can be made from dollar store storage bins or even cardboard shipping containers you were probably planning to throw out.
For starters, you can begin with a plastic dollar store bin, pillowcase and twine. Then, starting at the bottom of the bin. You hot glue the twine around the bin in long, straight even lines. Use the glue sparingly since you won’t need much to keep the twine attached and too much may seep through the twine and leave residue.
You can leave a few inches of space, not covered by twine, at the top of the bin. These will be covered by the pillow case. Fold the pillow case so the printed side is out and stuff the sewn side into the bin so you can extend the open one over the edge of the top of the opening. The extra material can be folded over to create a fluffy bottom for the interior. The result container is farmhouse shabby chic.
Of course you don’t need twine to make a cute storage box. You can also make beautiful containers with just boxes, fabric and tacky spray. Measure the sides of your box and add an inch to all for overage. Place your box in the center of your fabric and draw all of those measurements out onto it. Then cut out the fabric so it will cover each side of the box with an inch extra at the top to cover the lip. In a well-ventilated area, spray tacky glue onto the box and attach the fabric to the cardboard. On the fabric for the sides, fold in an inch of fabric before gluing to the box. The result looks impressively professional.
To create the liner, measure the width and length of your box and add two inches. Measure the height and add six inches. Fold your liner fabric in half, inside out, and cut to your measured dimensions. Hot glue together the short ends of the fabric. The resulting liner slides easily in the box with the edges folding over the top. You may want to also add a little glue underneath the top of the liner, where the two materials meet. This extra line of glue helps keep the fabric from fraying.
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