Fabric Buckets

I also got this idea from She's {kinda} Crafty.  These fabric-covered buckets are so cute, and incredibly useful.  I made these specifically for the party we hosted, but they're obviously reusable, and when I think about making more, the fabric options are endless.

I found the smaller buckets in the $1 section at Target, and I also have some bigger buckets that I plan on covering to use for containing Berkley's toys.  

When picking fabrics, it's probably good to pick one that doesn't have a specific "direction" it needs to go.  I bought some striped fabric, and am hesitant to cover a bucket with it because I'm worried about getting the stripes to run horizontally and not haphazardly.  Flowers, polka dots and other prints are a little more forgiving.

SUPPLIES

metal bucket

scissors

pencil

fabric (amount depends on size of bucket...about 1/4 yard covered a small bucket or two)

exact-o knife

spray adhesive

INSTRUCTIONS 

Lay the fabric on the ground (colored side down)

Put your pencil at the bottom of the bucket, and as you roll the bucket along the fabric, trace the arc the bottom is making.

Line the bottom up with the line you just made and repeat this step with the top of the bucket.

Cut out the top line of the bucket.

Add about an inch onto the bottom arc, and cut out that line.

Make sure there is at least an inch extra on one side as well.

 

Take the fabric outside and spray a healthy amount of adhesive all over it. 

I might change this step in the future.  I might spray the bucket instead next time & see if that makes a difference.  I'm thinking either option will work well, it's just tough to deal with the fabric if there's any kind of breeze outside.

Pick a place on the bucket to be where the seam is and place the fabric there. (I chose one of the sides where a handle connects, but I think next time I will just make one part of the bucket the "back", so that the seam can face the wall.)

Make sure the top of the bucket is lined up with the top arc of the fabric, so that the excess fabric is along the bottom of the bucket.

Start wrapping the fabric around the bucket, pressing out air bubbles along the way.

The great thing about spray adhesive is that it is forgiving, and you can pull the fabric up and down a few times if adjustments are needed.

Use a little spray adhesive to overlap the final edge of fabric.

Pull the extra bottom fabric over the bottom of the bucket and press down to seal.  

I also cut out an extra circle of fabric to cover the hole on the bottom...definitely not a necessary step, but easy to do if it's important to you.

Use an exact-o knife to deal with any frayed or weird edges.  You can cut them off or tuck them into the lip of the bucket.

Also use the knife to cut out any needed holes for handles.

 

Next time I may use a little ribbon around the top of the bucket- for decoration and to cover any frayed edges I couldn't tuck in.

When I get around to covering the larger buckets I already bought, I'll post more photos of the finished product...it'll probably be April before that happens, though.