Create a rustic Picnic Basket with Liner

My sweetie surprised me with a tandem bike from Craigslist and we have since explored many beautiful country roads.   

To surprise him back, I made a picnic basket with inexpensive items found in our house and at the  thrift store.  

By keeping a basket stocked with non-perishables and adding a few favorite foods, we can now focus on finding the perfect picnic spot as we pump along.

This instructable will show you how to convert an open basket to a picnic basket, complete with handles, liner and a built-in table top.

Step 1: Gather Materials

This project uses materials that are easily found in your home and/or at the thrift store, and include:

• Basket (large enough to hold picnic items)
• Game board (for lid)
• 1-1.5 yd sturdy canvas/denim fabric (for liner)
• Large Adjustable Wooden Embroidery Hoop (optional for handle support*)
• 2 Leather Belts (for handle, but not shown*)
• 85-100" of Leather Binding/Boot Laces
• 8 Washers
• 5 Large Wooden/Leather Buttons
• Spray Adhesive
• Access to basic Sewing tools (for liner)
• 4 Clamps (or extra set of hands), Wood Glue, Handsaw, Awl and Drill are also helpful, but not necessary

*While a large wooden (embroidery hoop) handle will support a (very!) light picnic, I decided to take a "belt and suspenders" approach by adding leather straps to the basket.  As a result the 2 leather belts are missing from the photo.

The combination wood/leather handles provide greater support and adds to the rustic appeal.  Should one prefer a more casual look, steps referring to the wooden embroidery hoop can be ignored.