Handmade May Day Baskets are such a sweet surprise to gift to friends, family, and neighbors. They are enjoyable to make, and even more fun to hang on neighbors doors!
I’ve been making May Day Baskets ever since I was a young kid. First with my Mom, and then with my own kids. My kids are teens/young adults now, but I still enjoy making May Day Baskets for friends. Here are the baskets I made this year. I hope they inspire you!
What You Will Need
- Paper Bags
- Twine
- Hole Punch
- Scissor
- Scrap Fabric Pieces, ripped into 1-inch wide strips x 12-inches long
- White Glue
- Paint Brush
- Small Cup or Container (to hold glue)
- Treats to put in your May Day Baskets (see ideas below)
What You Do
- Fold the top 2-3 inches of a paper bag over and crease the fold. This creates a fold mark where you’ll form the hem. Open the bag, then tuck the top inside the bag to form a hem, folding down to the crease you made.
- Hold the two sides of the bag together, then use a hole punch to punch two holes for a handle. Open the bag up again.
- Cut two pieces of twine to about 10-inches to make two handles.
- Thread one end of a piece of twine through a punched hole from the inside of the bag to the outside. Tie a big knot in the twine to keep it from slipping through the hole. Repeat this for the other end of that piece of twine, and then do the same for the other handle on the other side of the bag so you have two twine handles.
- Flatten the bag again, and use a paint brush to brush glue onto the bag to form a circle that is around 2-inches in diameter. This glue circle is where you’ll lay the fabric to form a flower.
- Hold an end of a fabric strip that is about 1-inch wide by 12-inches long in each hand and twist it to form sort of a fabric ‘rod’.
- Lay one end of the twisted fabric in the center of the glue circle, then wrap the rest of the twisted fabric around the center to form a flower. Add more glue if needed.
- Continue forming fabric flowers until you have as many as you want on the bag.
- Twist a green fabric strip to form the stems, and glue in place.
- Cut small pieces of fabric and roll into a ball with glue to form the center of the flower.
- Allow the glue to dry thoroughly before using the bags.
- When the glue has dried, open your bags and fill with Spring treats!
Gift Ideas for Baskets
- Wildflower Seed Packets – Everyone can use wildflower seeds! Use a piece of cardstock and write a sweet poem and attach it to the wildflower seed packet. For example, “Please plant these seeds and watch them bloom, bees and butterflies will visit soon.”
- Handmade Favor Bags – Use leftover scrap fabric from the glued flowers to quickly sew up a small favor bag to include in your May Day bag. Fill it with pastel-colored candies, like the taffy below.
- Pastel-Colored Salt Water Taffy Candy – Individually wrapped saltwater taffy makes a fun sweet treat for May Day Baskets. Who doesn’t like taffy?!?!
- Pansy in Peat Pot – Plant a bright-colored pansy in a peat pot, then use scrap fabric pieces to embellish the pot. For example, cut a square piece of fabric, set the peat pot in the middle of the square, bring up the points of the fabric and tie around the pot with twine. So pretty. You could also place the planted pansy in a clear cellophane bag to make it look special and to help prevent the plant from leaking on the gift bag.
- Fresh Cut Flowers – Grocery store cut flowers are perfect for May Day Baskets. Put together a small bouquet of flowers, wrap the stems in a wet paper towel, then place the paper towel into a zip-top bag and add a little bit of water to keep the flowers fresh. Dress up the bag by wrapping it in scrap fabric.
Do you make May Day Baskets? Share in a comment below!
