PLAYING WITH SOMETHING NEW: HARDWARE CLOTH

I found a new toy…hardware cloth!

And it’s a fun one, but I will say right from the start: you can poke an eye out with this stuff!

I am totally serious.  This wire is great to play with and I love that it keeps it’s shape much better than chicken wire, but it sure is poke-y.  Wearing gloves is a great idea when working with hardware cloth. At first I didn’t, and I ended up with a few cuts on my fingers. No big deal, but I think you could end up with a good gouge if you weren’t careful. Also, this is not good for crafting with kids.  Check out the poke-yness of hardware cloth.

So after all of those warnings, let me tell you how much fun you can have with hardware cloth!

You can make wire baskets of any size!  And they keep their shape fairly well, as long as you don’t load them with heavy items.  A basket made of hardware cloth would be perfect for decoration or for holding lightweight items in your craft room or kitchen.

Think fabric scraps and kitchen napkins!

***This is a good video tutorial for working with hardware cloth.

***And I LOVE the addition of the rebar wire on these baskets.

***One more tutorial.

Another fun thing about hardware cloth is that you can spray paint it.  I think an antiqued bronze would be great for an industrial look, and a brushed silver would be perfect for a farmhouse look.  Black would be a fun option too.

Of course, hardware cloth has a lot of other uses too, such as chicken coops, gardening projects and even furniture re-purposing.  I plan to use it in a couple of upcoming projects, including one that will be a tutorial in my Handmade Holidays email next week.  You can sign up here to find that in your inbox next Wednesday!

I found these “rebar chairs” at Home Depot for $.68 and I am looking forward to seeing how well they work when attached as a top rim and handle.  Could be cute, don’t you think?

You will definitely be hearing more about hardware cloth from me in the near future!  This one is a keeper in the craft room, for sure!