Turn A Tomato Cage Into A Crafty And Useful Storage Solution

No longer banished to the garden shed, tomato cages have become a popular material for upcycling into all types of clever household items. This garden tool that helps support homegrown, ripening fruit can be transformed into so many different DIYs, and when you look at the finished product, you'd never guess where they came from. Everyone has their favorite, but we think one of the best ways to repurpose tomato cages is turning them into easy-to-make, DIY storage baskets.

Some DIYers may want to head to their local nursery and pick up a few of these growing supports for various creative projects. Others may look to their own gardens and find a stack of unused tomato cages ready to upcycle, having moved on to different methods of supporting the juiciest of summer crops. Wherever you get the materials for your project, there's no doubt that repurposing old tomato cages into a versatile home storage solution can be both fun and rewarding, and if all goes well, your homemade basket will double as a lovely piece of home décor too.

To upcycle a tomato cage into storage, use a pair of wire cutters to cut off the section below the second ring from the top. This will give you a nearly cylindrical framework to cover with string from a ball of twine or yarn in your preferred colors and weights. Weave the basket bottom by tying the twine onto the smaller ring. Bring the ball of string across the circle and wrap it under and over the opposite ring. If needed, you can secure the yarn or twine to the ring with pieces of painter tape to keep it in place while you work. Repeat weaving the yarn across the smaller ring, under and over, moving along the edge of the framework until you come to where you started, then tie it to the frame and remove the tape.

Once the bottom is completed, repeat the same style of weaving along the sides to form your upcycled basket. Make the weave of the yarn or twine as close together or widely spaced as you prefer, making it fairly see through, or using more string to make the sides thicker. To personalize your storage basket, you can weave with multiple colors of yarn, either alternately, or at the same time. You can also attach tassels or pompoms to the top rim to add some decorative flair. The finished DIY makes a lovely solution for storing balls of yarn. When you're ready for another project, you can also turn a tomato cage into an affordable side table if you have more of these garden supports to repurpose.