Weaving is one of the popular types of handicrafts that can turn many unnecessary newspapers into beautiful and durable masterpieces. This type of activity does not require a large capital investment. This article will tell you how to make products from newspaper tubes.

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Baskets and boxes woven from newspaper tubes have a special beauty and charm.
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Visually, this material resembles natural vine.

Newspaper tube weaving technology

Weaving is a method of joining materials by interlacing or using special knots. The use of paper blanks as a source material has only recently begun. Using newspaper tubes, you can make wonderful key holders, boxes, baskets of various shapes, pencil holders in the form of a fox, etc.

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The advantage of such products is that you do not need to collect vines to make them.
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You can weave the base of the box yourself, but you can also make the base out of cardboard.

The main stages of weaving consist of preparing the tubes. To do this, sheets of newspaper are cut into long strips 5-10 cm wide. Then a knitting needle is placed on the strip at 45 degrees and it is twisted, thus obtaining a tube. After that, it is necessary to glue the edges of the paper rods to prevent unwinding.

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You can give the basket a shape by putting something rectangular in it: a book, a notebook, a box, or packaging from something.

Next comes the process of weaving according to various patterns, of which there are a large number. And you can choose for any taste, both for beginners and for masters of their craft.

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You can decorate your interior with such wicker boxes and caskets.
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You can weave several identical items in different diameters: from small to large.

To add a shade to the product, you need to paint and dry the tubes in advance. The final product can eventually be placed in a case and complemented with various decorative details.

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A box or casket woven from newspaper tubes is very beautifully complemented by a lid.

How to choose paper

When choosing paper, you should first pay attention to its density. The thinner the sheet, the better, so newspaper is the best option. But when using it, there is a possibility of getting your hands dirty on the printing house paints.

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The lid can hide the contents of the box and decorate the product.
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In order for the lid to fit well on the box, it should be 1 cm larger in diameter than the box itself.

You can buy clean consumer paper in packs. It is also possible to buy paper rolls or newspaper scraps from a printing house.

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The lid of the box can be decorated with pictures, photographs, bows, lace, ribbons and much more.

Ordinary office paper can also be used to make woven products. Its density is almost twice as high as that of newspaper. Because of this, the tubes are a little more difficult to twist and are less easy to lay out during the weaving process (they bend). At the same time, the paper joints are much more visible when twisting.

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You can also make a box with a hinged lid that will close with a hook or loop.
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It is advisable to make the bottom out of cardboard, as this will make your work easier, but you can also weave it yourself.

Note: The density of newsprint is 45-50 g/m2, and office paper is around 80 g/m2.

What tools are needed to work with straws

In order to start work, in addition to the material, you need to prepare the tools:

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Prepare all materials in advance, having a large number of newspaper sheets in stock.
  1. Knitting needles are needed for twisting the tubes.
  2. Almost any paper glue (for example, PVA or glue stick) can be used as glue. The quality of the paper rods depends on the fixing properties of the glue.
  3. Scissors or any other tool for cutting strips.
  4. Brushes will be needed for painting.
  5. Clothespins are used to fix paper during gluing.
  6. Paint is needed to give the product the desired color. Paints for wool, fabric, food coloring, etc. are well suited.
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Roll up a large number of tubes to make your work easier.

How to make boxes?

Hand-woven boxes are quite beautiful and may not be visually different from natural wicker. Depending on their size and shape, such items can be repurposed for storing: cosmetics, jewelry, keys, sewing kits, etc. To make a box, you need to prepare the material and tools in advance so that you don’t have to be distracted from your work later.

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To make the product neat, do not forget to attach the tubes to the form and carefully tie each rod.
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Use a small metal needle or crochet hook to carefully thread the tubes and tie beautiful knots.

Important: The more tubes you prepare, the better.

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A box woven from newspaper tubes and decorated to your taste looks very delicate and original.

You can use either a woven base or cardboard as the base of the product. To give it shape, it is recommended to use a template to which the tubes will be attached later. Almost any object (a book, a notebook, a box, etc.) can be used as a template. Depending on the object, rectangular, square, and round boxes can be made. The step-by-step weaving process looks like this.

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Every needlewoman must have such a vintage box, because it is very practical to place any needlework kit in it.
  1. Take 16 tubes, then cross them together, 2 pieces at a time.
  2. The weaving process begins with bending each tube in a circle. The procedure continues until the desired size is reached.
  3. If the tubes are not long enough, lengthen them by adding new ones. Don't forget to secure them by tying each rod.
  4. After the bottom is woven, lift the ends up and start weaving the walls. Once the desired wall height is reached, the paper rods will need to be bent to obtain an aesthetically pleasing appearance of the product.
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These boxes are useful for storing cosmetics and much more.

Note: The lid for the newspaper box is made using the same principle, but the external dimensions should be 1 cm larger than the main product.

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It is not difficult to weave such boxes.
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A wicker box can become your favorite interior item and a storage item for personal belongings.

Using newspaper tubes, you can weave a key holder in the shape of an owl.

  1. It is necessary to make a round outline of the owl; you can use a plate as a template.
  2. Using the template, we weave the rods to the middle of the circle.
  3. The eyes are made separately. The tube must be twisted into a spiral and fixed with glue at the end.
  4. Eyebrows are also done separately.
  5. Glue the components onto the woven circle.
  6. We decorate the eyes and cover them with varnish.
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The "Owl" box looks very original and interesting.

The final stage is drying and installing metal hooks.

How to paint tubes

When choosing a decorative coating, it is necessary to consider the properties of the paints. Watercolor and gouache paints are recommended for coating blanks. Watercolors tend to fade after application, and gouache has bright shades, but also needs to be diluted with water.

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It is easy to store any small items in such a box, and it can also be used as a candy dish or key holder.

Acrylic is used for the finished product, wood varnish can also be used. Acrylic gives gloss, and varnish gives strength to the product and the effect of real vine.

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Photos of beautiful products made by skilled craftswomen will inspire you to create your own box from newspaper tubes.

VIDEO: Master class – a box made from newspaper tubes.

50 variations of boxes from newspaper tubes: