4 Quick and Easy Basket Fillers to get started on your prop making journey

So what is a basket stuffer or sometimes referred to as a basket filler? It is essentially anything that can fill a basket or a bowl, I mean totally fill it and mould itself to the shape of the basket. A material that is loose or can be separated, pulled apart or easily shaped, you’ll get more an idea as you see the examples below. Blankets or felted layers are not included as a stuffer or filler because they only make up one layer, they are more 2D if you like and we’re after a 3D shape which can totally fill up the space in your basket. I’d like to say they create a padded or cushioned effect for the newborn or child you are photographing but you will need padding as support underneath these examples, think of them as more decorative, a way of adding texture and colour to your setup.

I’ve titled this blog post quick and easy…. because they really are! For the first 3 examples I can also add in cheap to this description and that the materials are easy to source. This makes them an ideal beginner project and enables you to make lots of them by varying the colour and for some of them the materials used.

Fluffy Wool Yarn

A soft and fluffy wool basket stuffer can be hard to find and expensive, especially finding the right colour you need to match other props you’re going to pair with it! This technique uses ordinary chunky yarn or any yarn you can find really, an everyday comb/brush or pet brush then quick and easy you’ve created your own fluffy stuffer! You can even just pull the yarn apart with your hands. The ability to make this uniquely you is in the colour choice of yarn, mix and match if you want! Brush your yarn as much as you want or leave a little wave to create some texture.

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Fabric Scraps

I really love this idea for a basket or bowl filler, you’re never going to find this for sale by a prop vendor therefore it will be totally unique to you! So easy to create as all you do is rip fabric into strips. It can be very cheap if you search for remnants, scraps or charity shop finds. You could even use old clothes. You can have fun with the colour by blending various shades together in your bundle! Go for light weight floaty fabrics like silk, chiffon and cotton. Strips can be cut, but by ripping the edges you create more texture and a more natural organic look.

Hessian Warp & Weft

Another totally unique filler is this exciting idea of using the warp and weft strands from a sheet of hessian, pull them all off one by one, bundle them together and you have a very textural, funky design! Hessian comes in all sorts of colours so you’ll have no problems finding a suitable match for the other props you want to include with it in a set up. Maybe just stick to the natural hessian brown colour for a neutral setup then add in your own pops of colour.

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Loose Wool Curls

A more popular look for newborn photos is these loose curly wool locks although typically found felted together to make a fixed blanket these are loose strands so you can shape and arrange them how you want. A little more tricky to find the wool locks but there’s no crafting involved, although you may have to get washing and dyeing the wool to keep the cost down and to achieve the perfect colour. If you want amazing looking clean locks then they can be expensive, so do your research, don’t buy cheap and then be disappointed with the quality.

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We hope you have fun making your own basket stuffers, then why not explore our other DIY Projects for more inspiration and techniques.  I would love to see what you create so share your makes with us by tagging #craftyphotographers. You can also follow me on Facebook for weekly LIVE Monday Make Videos!