Introduction: Upcycled Basketball Bag
The story starts when my beloved Basketball gets punctured and ends up being next to trash due to inability to repair it. At first I was going to make a wall piece out of it but this idea was never able to satisfy me. I still don't remember how I got the idea of making this bag but I just did. So I found an old leather belt which went with the color of the ball and got started with my first Instructable.
Step 1: Materials and Tools
MATERIALS REQUIRED -
-A Basketball (preferably an old one)
-A leather belt (preferably an old one)
-A long Zipper (of your choice of colour)
-Rivets (use 4 )
TOOLS REQUIRED -
-A long mighty needle (for hand sewing )
-A tailors scissors
-A metal finger cap(to push the needle through the ball). *(OPTIONAL)
SKILLS REQUIRED -
-Sewing through leather or rubber
-Or a lots of time and patience(I went with this one)
Step 2: Slice and Flip
-Mark out the two points on the ball along the line of symmetry (if any) or 1 of the 'equator' of the ball which are equal in distance from any 2 sides of the ball.(i.e. points which are exact opposite of each other)
-Take your cutter and start slicing the ball from one point to the other along a straight line
-Note that the slice is in the hemisphere of the ball which faces the upward direction when the ball is kept in the way how you want it to look after becoming a bag.(i.e the graphics shouldn't read upside down )
-You will now be able to see the inside of the ball. Grab the thick air inlet point which should be on the exact centre bottom of your ball and pull it while holding on to the edges of the slice.(your aim is to flip the ball inside out)
-it will take time but don't rush and end up in extending the cut which you made as you will exert pressure on the corners.(specially if your ball's wall is thin)
Step 3: Sew It Up!! 1/2
-Time to work with the zip and give the ball a look of a bag.
-With your ball flipped inside out,place the zip upside down on the slice and decide which side to work on first.
-Keep the zip closed at this time and duct tape it to keep it in place temporarily.
-Starting with an inch before the beginning of the cut,push your needle into the ball while saying lords name and say hello to the upcoming hours of sewing.
-Align the teeth of the zip properly with the cut's edge not forgetting it's still upside down.
-Sew all your way up to the other point with regular checks for alignment and appearance from the other side but don't flip the ball back again. Just take a small peek.
-Sew it an another inch further as done on the other side.
-Hold together the zip and cutoff the extra if any.
Step 4: Sew It Up!!! 2/2
-Time to start with the other side.
-Open the zip fully and start sewing from the side where the lock of the zip is now else you might end up in collecting some zip on one side which will cause problems.
-Do everything similarly and make a few stitches at the end of the zip to fix it properly.
-Time to flip the ball back to normal.
-Stitch up around the zip to limit your Zip's lock as shown in the picture.
(dont necessarily sew on the ball too but only the cloth around the zip end)
Step 5: The Strap!!!
-Take the leather belt and find the rivets
-Take a puncher and punch a hole in the belt on the edges or pierce with something pointy and sharp
-Neatness of the hole may not matter as rivet will probably hide it but the neater the better. Use a scissors to cut off the excess fibres coming out from the hole
-Pierce the ball around a centimetre far from the zip's end. you won't be able to see the hole once you take your object out of it but you will eventually find it and as soon as you do,force the screw from the inside of the ball until you see it from the outside and put belt on it and tighten the rivet.
-Use four rivets unlike me (2 on each side)or else the ball will spin around the rivets.
Step 6: And Then God Said, Let There Be a Cool Looking Bag
-Give it a little finishing touches (cutoff the extra thread ,stitch up the loose parts etc)
-Customise your ball to make it more handy and useable .