How to Make Grapevine Furniture & Baskets
- 1). Prepare raw grapevine for crafting projects by placing it into a tub. Add enough water to cover the vegetation. Swish the grapevine around to shed superfluous leaves, loose bark and refuse and soak overnight. Bend sections of the grapevine carefully to test its malleability in the morning (the thicker the vine, the longer the soak) before removing and stretching it out for your projects.
- 2). Create a deep, conically shaped decorative basket that can masquerade as a plant or fruit stand when inverted. Recycle tomato cages and use them as bases. Flatten the wire projectiles that sink into soil. Wrap lengths of still-wet grapevine around the cage in any pattern as long as it's uniform: loop, circular, basket weave, etc. Fasten junctures with crafting wire. Allow the grapevine to dry on the cage before turning the project into a fruit stand or basket that can hold a display of dried floral stems.
- 3). Recycle discarded coffee cans to make a basket. Cover the can's inverted exterior with cooking spray if you plan to remove it. Cut lengths of grapevine measured to fit across the bottom of the coffee can and about halfway up the sides to fashion the basket bottom. Use craft wire to anchor pieces as you wrap them in concentric circles, covering strips that anchor the bottom. Allow the basket to dry. Keep the can in place or slide it out.
- 4). Make a decorative table base from a bundle of thick grapevine sections, all cut the same size (at least 30 inches). Stack and cement glue together a couple of industrial-sized cans so the bottoms are attached. Envision the way a tree grows with roots fanning out beneath the trunk to get a general idea of the table's final appearance as you wrap the double-decker cans with wet grapevine, using a circular wrap or vertical sections. Fan out grapevine branches at the top and bottom so the base is stabilized and a shelf is created for the addition of a tabletop once the vines dry.
- 5). Rejuvenate a table lamp scheduled for trash pickup by wrapping the base in wet grapevine and allowing it to harden into a shape that is primitive and natural. Alternately, roll skinny, wet grapevine sections into balls leaving open the centers. Thread the dried grapevine balls onto the lamp's post to create a unique decorative statement that's also practical. Use the leftover balls to fill a glass vase.
