NEON & NATURAL BASKETS

I don't know about you, but lately I've been seeing neon everywhere. Aside from the nostalgia for neon troll shirts declaring how awesome I am (people have the right to know), I am completely taken with the latest trend: natural materials mixed with a blast of neon intensity.

I decided to kill two birds with one stone and remedy my bathroom storage problem (there's only so long a person can survive using plastic baggies as storage containers) and get my neon and natural fix. 

Behold! Hand crocheted hemp and nylon string baskets ... garsh, they're pretty.

STEP ONE: GATHER THE GOODS

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Neon nylon string (Found at your local hardware store next to the rope)

Hemp (Yes. The kind you used to make friendship bracelets with)

Crochet hook (Size F should work fine, but base it on the thickness of the string you find)

Pretty little scissors (Regular work fine but flaunt it if you've got it)


STEP TWO: CROCHET THE BASE

Row 1: Ch 4, ch1 together with first stitch forming loop, ch2, start next row in the same direction.

Row2: Single Crochet 8 times, ch1 into first stitch, ch2, start next row in the same direction.

Row 3: *Single crochet 1, single crochet 2 in one stitch. Repeat from * to end of row. ch1 into first stitch, ch2, start next row in the same direction.

Row 4: *Single crochet 2, single crochet 2 in one stitch. Repeat from * to end of row. ch1 into first stitch, ch2, start next row in the same direction.

Row 5 - Desired # of Rows: Repeat row 4, Increasing the number of single crochets between double stitches by 1 each row. Continue until the base is your desired diameter (The pink basket is 9 rows, the yellow is 7, and the orange is 5)

STEP THREE: CROCHET THE SIDES

To make the sides, simply stop increasing. Yup, that's it! Just crochet in the round until the height is about an inch and a half short of where you want it to be.

Single crochet for a quarter of the stitches in the row. Chain 5, skip 5 stitches, single crochet another half of the stitches, minus five (just pinch the basket at two. Crochet across until you reach exactly opposite of where you ended the opening on the other side). Chain 5, skip 5 stitches, single crochet to the end of the row.

Switch to neon! Single crochet for another 3 rows. Bind off. Boom. Beautiful!

I made a handful of sizes using different neon string, but the same technique. I just varied the number or rows I increased for on the base.

So, that's it. Go forth and create!