Miniature Fiddle-leaf Fig in Belly Basket Planter (with Printable Template)

miniature fiddle leaf fig in a belly basket planter
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The belly basket is the ultimate boho planter. Not a very practical one since you can’t plant directly in it, and you probably shouldn’t get it wet. It’s so pretty, though! The texture, the natural color… such a perfect complement to the green of the fiddle-leaf fig. Here is a tutorial to make your own 1:12 (also works in 1:16 scale) dollhouse miniature belly basket, as a planter or you can leave it as a basket. The finished size of the basket is about 1″ to 1.25″ all around.

miniature fiddle leaf fig in belly basket planter

Materials for belly basket planter:


Instructions for belly basket planter:

1. Print and cut the base template on cardstock

Cut both of the curvy template on cardstock. If you are not using a wooden craft circle, cut out the circle templates also. You want to stack 3-4 of the circles and glue them together to get some thickness. The thickness will make it easier to attach the body template. In my pictures, I’m using a 1/16″ basswood cutout from my leftover stash. You can also use a 1″ round mirror if you have one laying around.

cutout templates for the base of miniature belly basket
Cutout cardstock template for the belly basket base.
showing thickness of circle template at about 1/16 inch
Aim for about 1/16″ in thickness of the circle.

2. Make the base for the basket body

Wrap the inner/shorter length of the curvy cutout around the circle. It’s best to do it on a table to make it level. There will be a little overlap to make it easier to tape. (You could glue the overlap, but I find it easier and faster to use small pieces of tape, and the tape will be covered with twine anyway.) You now have an angled bowl shape.

semi-circle cutout is wrapped around the circle base
Tape the semi-circle base at the ends with a small overlap (use the circle as a guide).

Make another, so you have two bowls: one for the bottom half of the basket, one for the upper half.

two angled bowl cardstock shapes
Two angled bowl shapes for the basket body base.

Take the other bowl (the upper half), align and tape it atop the bottom half. Now you have the full cardstock base of the body.

two angled bowl shapes attached to each other
Attach the bowls together at the larger opening

Insert the wooden circle to the base of one of the bowls, and tape it up. You now have a completed basket base with a bottom.

circle template inserted into the bottom of the body base
Insert and attach the circle at the bottom of the body base

3. Prepare two pieces of twine for the handles

Each handle should around 1.5 inches long (you can always cut them shorter, if needed). I attach the handles to the body later, but you can attach them now if you prefer. But it’s best to at least cut them out now, before you wrap the twine on the entire basket body.

two pieces of twine at 1.5" length
Cut two 1.5″ pieces of twine for the handles

4. Wrap jute twine to the cardstock base

Adding a thin layer of glue is best, so excess glue doesn’t ooze out in between the twine. Start by spreading a thin layer of glue in the middle of the bottom of the basket base. Then, starting in the middle point, attach the twine in a circular shape. The initial spiraling is the trickiest, but it gets easier after you have a couple of spiral rounds.

twine glued at the base in a spiral pattern to cover the base
Attach the twine to the basket base in a spiraling pattern, starting at the bottom.

Add more glue to the cardstock base as you wrap upward.

a bit of glue applied on the cardstock base as the twine is wrapped around
Add a bit of glue as you go along.

When you get to the “waist” of the basket, wrap another layer of twine on top of the last one. You’ll have two layers of twine in the middle . This is the “fold” look that is characteristic of a belly basket.

twine double-wrapped at the waist of the basket
At the waist of the basket, wrap the twine twice to achieve the “fold” look.

5. Attach the handles

Before you cover the last 1/4″ of the upper body, attach the basket handles that you had cut out from step 3 (if you haven’t already done so in step 3). Then, keep gluing and wrapping until you cover the cardstock completely.

handles are attached before wrapping the last 1/4" of the basket
If you haven’t already done so, attach the handles before wrapping the last 1/4″

Now you have the finished belly basket!

completed dollhouse miniature belly basket
Finished belly basket!

6. Optional: Add floral foam, dirt and greeneries

The following steps are for making the miniature Fiddle-leaf Fig, so you don’t need to complete it if you intend to make just the basket:

  • Insert floral foam
  • Cover floral foam with “dirt”, which is a mixture of coarse stone granules and a bit of craft glue (do about 2:1 ratio of granules to glue).
    • Craft moss is also an option to cover the foam.
    • Or you can skip this part, if your greeneries are large enough to hide the foam.
  • Stick in some greeneries
miniature belly basket with floral foam inserted
Insert floral foam.
miniature belly basket with floral foam, topped with granule and glue mixture
Cover with granule/glue “dirt” mixture.
dollhouse belly basket planter with faux greeneries
Poke in faux Eucalyptus

Voila! That’s it! That was pretty easy, wasn’t it? You can now have your 1:1 and miniature boho-chic fiddle-leaf fig in a belly basket planter!

miniature fiddle leaf fig in belly basket planter

Made your own? I’d love to know!

What motivates me the most is seeing you use my tutorials to make your own minis! There are many ways you can share your projects:

  • comment below to let me know (or if you have any questions about it–for the benefit of others also!)
  • link back to my site or this tutorial,
  • tag me on Facebook or Instagram,
  • share your version on my Facebook group!

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