Homemade Bicycle Baskets

Whether you bike for recreation or just to get around, bike baskets can help you get your stuff where you are going. Good quality panniers, racks and baskets can be expensive and may not meet your needs well. With a bit of ingenuity, you can come up with homemade bicycle baskets that can carry anything from your groceries to your dog. You can also tackle making traditional bicycle baskets by hand if you are looking for a new craft.

  1. Classic Bicycle Baskets

    • Traditional bicycle baskets are made from willow. These baskets are woven, using traditional basket making techniques. A willow bicycle basket can mount to the handlebars using leather straps or to a rack on the back of your bicycle. Soak dried willow branches for approximately three days, then weave your basket into the desired shape. Add metal reinforcements as you weave for a sturdier basket. Trim away rough areas with pruning shears and attach leather straps or use zip ties to secure your homemade basket to your bike.

    Mount a Basket on Your Bike Rack

    • Creating a secure and practical back-mounted basket can allow you to carry bags of groceries, books and other necessities on your bike quickly and easily. Choose a relatively shallow but quite sturdy plastic bin for this basket. The bottom half of a cat carrier, a plastic storage bin or other container can work well. Using bolts and wingnuts, mount strips of perforated metal from your local home improvement center onto your bike rack. Drill holes in the bottom of your cat carrier base or storage bin and secure to the metal strips with stainless steel or galvanized nuts and bolts, using a washer to prevent additional friction. This rack-mounted bin or basket can easily hold a substantial amount of weight, and many items can be carried without a tie-down.

    Homemade Panniers

    • Serious bikers need serious cargo space. Panniers, or side mounted bicycle baskets, are the classic solution. Woven wicker and canvas panniers are available, but can be expensive. Create homemade bicycle baskets by repurposing inexpensive 16-quart rectangular wastebaskets. Drill 1/4-inch holes along one side of the top of each basket. Drill a few drainage holes in the bottom of each as well. Use nylon rope to tie each basket to your bicycle rack, being sure to secure well. These baskets provide enough space for library books, a few days of groceries or other needs.