Scandinavian Woven Paper Heart Baskets with Dresden Embellishments Valentine's Day Craft Tutorial

Delight someone sweet with a Scandinavian woven heart basket embellished for Valentine's Day! Usually created from red and white paper, these charming heart baskets are traditionally hung on Christmas trees and presented as gifts. Here we take inspiration from their classic color palette to make a Valentine version woven with patterned papers and embellished with fancy Dresden foil trims. Not including handles, finished hearts measure approximately 2-3/8" tall x 2-5/8" wide (Small), 3-1/2" tall x 4" wide (Medium), and 4-3/4" tall x 5-1/4" wide (Large).

Supplies:

Fancy Papers in several patterns

Assorted Dresden Trims like DF7601, DFW711, DFW830, DF8534, and DFW8106

Crepe Paper like DCP-3331, DCP-3353 and DCP-3300

Scissors

Clear Drying Craft Glue like Alleen's

Template: Click here to download a free pdf of the Woven Paper Heart Basket Templates.

Step 1: Cut out basket pieces. To make 1 basket requires 2 basket pieces + 1 handle.

Fold a piece of paper in half, place the dashed line of the template along the fold, cut along all cut lines. Cut out handle.

Step 2: Weave heart basket. Weaving in its most simple form is "over, under, over, under". However, to create an open basket shape, instead think of the weaving as "through, around, through, around."

Hold the basket halves with the folded edge up. Think of each cut strip as D, C, B, A and 1, 2, 3, 4, as shown below.

- Weave the first row: slide strip 1 through strip A. Wrap 1 around B. Slide 1 through C. Wrap 1 around D.

- Slide the completed row down away from the folded edges to give room for weaving the next row.

- Weave the second row: Wrap strip 2 around strip A. Slide 2 through B. Wrap 2 around C. Slide 2 through D. Slide the completed row down.

- Weave the third row: Slide strip 3 through strip A. Wrap 3 around B. Slide 3 through C. Wrap 3 around D. Slide the completed row down.

- Weave the fourth row: Wrap strip 4 around strip A. Slide 4 through B. Wrap 4 around C. Slide 4 through D. Gently adjust heart rows as needed.

A correctly woven heart will have a grid pattern of alternating papers visible as well as open up to form a basket.

Step 3: Glue handle in place.

Use a small amount of glue to attach the handle ends to the inside of the basket at the center of the hearts, shown below with aqua Xs. Let dry.

Step 4: Embellish with Dresden trims.

Glue single Dresden pieces or layered stacks in place and let dry.

For the smallest heart: add a single Dresden heart in a complimentary color just below the handle.

For the medium heart: a single butterfly is simple and beautiful. Alternatively, layer a heart frame and a dove carrying a smaller heart in its beak.

For the largest heart: cut a piece of crepe, layer it behind a "Valentine Greetings" Dresden heart to make the script more visible against the paper weaving.

Tips and Notes:

-- Choose paper patterns that are small and dense -- only small sections show once woven. The reversible red and white polka dot paper is one of our favorites -- two looks in one sheet :)

-- Precise cutting makes for a well-woven heart. If needed, keep your template in place with clips when cutting to avoid any slippage. Alternatively, trace template onto papers, then cut -- tracing can be done on the paper's reverse side to hide any lines.

-- Cut out a lot of pieces prior to beginning to weave: once you get on a roll weaving, it's nice to create a bunch of hearts at once. Having many pieces also makes it quick and easy to try different paper pairings.

-- These hearts are a much-loved and well-known traditional Scandinavian craft. If you're having a hard time getting the weaving down, search YouTube on "Scandinavian woven heart basket" and you'll find several videos that explain the technique.

-- Not sure what to make? Check out 17 examples below for inspiration!