DIY Your Own Basket Light
Let me show you how to make your very own basket light for less than $40. Presently, basket lights have been trending and I have been wanting one soooooo bad. However, when I started searching for a fixture that I liked, I wasn’t loving the price tag that came with it.
See below
Can you believe that?!?
No thanks!
As a result, I started searching for baskets that I could transform. I’ve made light fixtures before and knew it wouldn’t be difficult. I found a basket a Hobby Lobby when they were having a 50% off sale and bought mine for $25! Additionally, Home Goods, TJ Max, and Marshalls are all great places to find cheap baskets as well. Then I started searching for a pendant light kit at local hardware stores and subsequently ended up finding what I wanted on Amazon.
Questions I have been asked about this DIY: Is it safe? Yes, as long as the bulb is not actually touching the basket, you are good to go. I was worried about this as well and tested it by leaving the light on all day and checked the basket for heat. Guess what? NO HEAT!! In fact, if you refer to the images below, you will see that the bulb itself does not actually come into contact with the basket.
Materials Needed:
- Basket of your choosing
- Pendant light kit (which comes with a mounting bracket)
- Heavy duty shears
- Measuring tape
- Marker
- To get started, measure the center of the bottom of the basket and mark it with your marker.
2. Then, you will outline where your light kit will go with your marker
3. Then, you will use your shears to cut a hole just big enough for the light bulb socket to fit through.
4. Lastly, after you have cut your hole, fit the light bulb socket into the hole all the way to the base of the mount and then proceed to screw on the shade ring onto the bulb socket.
In short, the shade ring will hold the weight of the fixture and will prevent the basket from falling off of the bulb socket. To illustrate this, refer to the below image.
If you aren’t particularly comfortable attempting this with a hard wired light kit, they do sell light kits that have plugs on them as well.
In addition, if you mess it up, you can just fill the basket with something and use it as decor instead! The most important thing for you to remember, above all, don’t be afraid to try new things, we all fail at some point, but there is always a way to fix it. As Walt Disney would say “If you can visualize it, if you can dream it, there’s some way to do it”.
DISCLAIMER
Please use proper safety precautions and do appropriate research when attempting projects. You are responsible for your own safety.
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
Did your basket already have open weaved sides?