Paper Baskets

Total Time Needed:: 1 Hour

Native Americans used baskets to store seed, gather crops and sift meal. Follow the lead of these resourceful crafters by weaving a basket out of newspaper "reeds."

Materials

Newspaper
Scissors
Glue stick

Tape
Craft paints and brushes

Instructions

Make a reed out of a 13 1/2- by 22-inch sheet of newspaper. Starting with a long edge, tightly roll the sheet into a tube. Flatten the tube and use a glue stick to secure the open edge. Assemble seven more reeds.
Lay four of the reeds side by side on a flat surface and weave in the remaining four. Slide the strips together to make the bottom of the basket. Fold the ends of the reeds up to form the side spokes.
Now, cut newspaper sheets into four 11- by 27-inch rectangles. Using the same method as before, roll four more reeds. Tape the end of a reed to the base of a spoke. Weave the reed in and out of the spokes, around the basket.
Tuck the end behind a spoke. Weave in the other reeds, one above the other. Fold the tops of the spokes into the basket and tuck them behind a reed.
Use craft paints to coat the finished basket inside and out, then add decorative symbols.