Painting Longaberger {Bring Them Out of the Closet}

Yup. It make shock some... others may shake their heads, and some may not even get it!

I have painted Longaberger baskets. More than once. I've painted them black, brown and {shabby} white to date. I tried to restain one, but that didn't work very well.

If you don't know, Longaberger baskets are handwoven, one at a time, on a manufacturing floor in Ohio.  They're beautiful. They're strong, and they come in all shapes and sizes to hold everything you can imagine and decorate your home. I have many of them, and I've been selling them for over ten years. I've been painting those I had with green, blue or purple accents for the last three.

In that ten years, my taste has changed {more than once} and some of the baskets that had colored accents on them just didn't  match my decor anymore. And rarely have they been available in white, and never in shabby white!

So this basket, which is a lovely shape, needed a makeover. As in a Rustoleum Heirloom White makeover! Sorry I don't have a "before" picture for you.

Now, this ivory beauty will go just about anywhere in my home. Little pumpkins look perfect for the fall, but I can see Shiny Brite vintage Christmas ornaments looking even better in a month or so. And I still have the plastic protector insert that slips inside so that I can serve muffins or cookies in it.

So, I've done it. You don't have to be afraid to do it either. These baskets were made to hand down to you children. They're well made, sturdy, and some carry over 30 pounds. They are crazy useful... and you may as well love how they look rather than keeping them in a closet just because they don't match your decor.

Here's how I did it. I simply vacuumed them with a brush attachment, sprayed a little primer on the colored strip, and finished it off with two coats of Rustoleum Heirloom Ivory spray paint. You'll have to turn it upside down and all around to get the paint inside all the weaves. I recommend using spray paint just because it easier to reach all those tiny areas with it.

It's beautiful in not just function and shape, but also in color again; out of the closet to be used everyday. So go ahead, you won't be alone, and you'll love your Longaberger all over again.

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