Use One Affordable Addition To Turn Dollar Tree Laundry Baskets Into Stylish Storage

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Laundry baskets and storage bins usually fall into two categories: expensive or ugly. Let's be honest, those plastic baskets that cost less than $2 don't exactly look high-end. But it doesn't have to be that way. With a simple leather strap, you can transform something that's purely practical and budget-friendly into a piece that actually deserves a spot in your home. It's a quick, affordable, and beginner-friendly way to create a stylish storage solution that gives off designer vibes without the price tag to match. It turns a dollar store find into a stylish laundry basket you need in your home.

The idea for this DIY, which comes from YouTube creator Hometalk, is to weave leather straps for crafts through the sides of a Dollar Tree plastic laundry basket, which costs just $1.50. You can shop around for leather straps to find the perfect color and texture for your home, but these typically cost around $10 for a roll. In addition, you'll need a bit of glue (like this Rapidfuse All Purpose Glue from DAP), a pair of scissors, and an hour or so to get this done.

This is a DIY you can adapt just about laundry basket you have at home, as long as it has that "grid" design. Essentially, you need openings to fit the leather straps, which isn't the case with solid baskets or models with tiny holes on the sides. But as long as there are some holes or slits that are least as big as the leather strap's width, you can do this. This DIY is also a smart way to repurpose old belts, where you can cut the ends to create straps. However, you'll need many belts in order to completely cover a bin, so it's not the most efficient approach. 

The Dollar Store bin has a 17 inch diameter, so its circumference is around 53 inches. If you're using a different bin, use an online calculator to find out the circumference of yours, or simply use a measuring tape to find out. In this case, it means that in order to go around the basket once, you'll need 53 inches of leather strap with a bit of extra material to overlap. Multiply this length by the number of straps you'll need to weave through. For example, if you use Picheng's Faux Leather Straps that are 2 inches wide and 138 inches long, two rolls could be enough.

Once all of that math and prep is done, time to weave. Simply take your leather strap and work around the edges of the bin, going over and under each section of the plastic grid to secure it in place. Once you finish each loop, cut the strap of leather with an inch or so of overlap between the end and beginning pieces. Place these two ends on top of each other and use glue to secure them in place. You can use a binder clip to hold these pieces in place while the glue dries and start working on the next section. Wherever the leather strap ends before you've finished a wrap-around, use the same overlap-and-glue technique to extend it with the next roll. 

While this trick uses laundry baskets, it doesn't have to be for laundry. Once it's decorated and covered in leather, you can use this laundry basket to keep you organized, too. For example, use it to organize blankets by the couch, to hold scarves and hats in the entryway, or to collect toys in the living room.