1. Even baskets that aren't tightly woven can suit your needs, such as for holding coins or small items, if you line them with plastic or fabric to keep items from slipping out. Staple or glue the plastic or cloth, perhaps burlap, to the inside rim to keep it in place. Or if you're just trying to cushion items such as jewelry, lay a soft wash rag in the bottom or a tightly folded pillowcase. Or use felt.

2. Dress up any of your baskets by gluing on your own garnishments. For example, craft stores sell all types of trinkets you can glue on your baskets. Be creative. Try personalizing your baskets with anything from buttons to plastic candy canes to miniature toy figures or mini cloth stockings. You could also buy miniature toys and figurines from typical large discount retailers or smaller dollar stores.

3. Buy a small glue gun to help with gluing some appliqués onto storage baskets. Or you might be able to attach certain items with short wire ties (even the ones from bread bags), florist's wire or sewing thread (e.g. sew buttons onto storage baskets).

4. Purchase templates (or get them free from some Web sites) and cut out your own garnishments from cardboard, craft foam, felt and cloth. Do anything from stars and hearts to angels and leaf patterns.

5. Buy a piece of printed fabric to make fabric basket or fabric bags and cut out the printed emblems, characters or designs. Then experiment with how you'd like to best attach them to the outside of your basket. You could even make them three dimensional by cutting out two of the same figures (sunflowers, clowns, etc.) from the fabric and stitching them back to back after stuffing them first (in pillow fashion).

6. Or use stencils to help you sketch objects, words or phrases onto the sides of solid metal or wood baskets. Use craft paint and an artist's small paint brush to make the letters stand out in bold colors. For this you might want to choose a basket with a flat or smooth weave. And you might even want to practice first on scrap cardboard. Painter's tape or stencil tape may help you hold the stencil in place.

7. Rubber stamping is popular too. Buy rubber stamps and stamp pads at craft stores. Then stamp patterns of apples and oranges on a wood bushel or peck basket for the kitchen. Or stamp words. food basket.

8. Or how about piling pine cones into a rustic basket on the mantel for a crafty nature look? Or spray paint them gold or any colors you'd like to match your decorative room or seasonal theme.

9. You could also fill baskets with sea shells collected from the beach (or bought at a craft or souvenir shop). Or use the shells to decorate the outside of the basket. Drill a tiny hole through each shell and then loop each through the basket sides with a discreet piece of wire.

10. Buy a colorful piece of ribbon. Bind it continuously around the top handle, or even just wrap it loosely leaving gaps that expose parts of the natural basket material on the handle. You can also hook or loop ribbon strands through the weave near the rim and leave the length hanging loosely (like the flags you see blowing in the wind at car dealer lots).

11. Learn to make some bows to hook, glue or tie onto some of your baskets. Many stores sell bow-makers with instruction booklets to make this job a little easier and to show you a number of different types of bows to . Bows can be made fromplastic, fabric, raffia or ribbon.

12. Some stores sell plastic liners to fit standard sized planter (or basket) bottoms. Check out the garden section in your nearest discount retailer, such as Wal-mart, to see what I mean.

13. But you also can cut a piece of plastic or tarp to fit inside the basket and staple or glue it to the rim and sides. This lining keeps your basket dry when you water your plant. You could line the bottom of the plastic with pebbles or gravel to enhance water drainage.

14. Use a temporary cloth lining (don't attach it) to turn any appropriate sized basket into a serving dish for bread or other baked goods; later you can remove and wash the cloth. Also, try plastic wrap to line a platter shaped serving basket for chips and salsas or dips. Looking for some lively fabrics to use as liners. Try dollar stores for doilies. Or buy decorative and colorful handkerchiefs, bandanas or linen napkins.