Last weekend, I asked my grandkids to fetch our picnic basket from the shed. They explored every nook of our shed, and there they found another old, coiled basket instead of a new one. And as curious as kids are these days, they bombarded me with questions!
‘Why does this basket have an attached cutting board?’ ‘Why is this so heavy?’ and whatnot!
Now, what they saw was an old Longaberger basket, a key attraction of the 1970s. This one had all your travel utilities in one place – cutting board, cutlery, etc! But it’s not just that. There were many more unique features too! If you’re as curious, I’ve compiled them for you all!
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- You can verify old Longaberger baskets by their logos, tags, fabric liners, and criss-cross weaves.
- Vintage Longaberger baskets with Wood lids, Metal nails, Brass tags, and Ceramic moldings fetch the best returns.
- Dual-toned Color-block, Trellis, or Over & Under basket weaves raise its resale cost by $100 – 300.
- You’ll get three Longaberger baskets – Storage, Picnic & Magazine. Of these, the storage baskets are large and cost up to $1500 for their aged, Pewter walls.
- If you love colored baskets, the hand-pigmented Brown, Beige, White & Orange ones are perfect.
Key Features of Old Longaberger Baskets
Now, since a Longaberger basket has an old weave, it feels solid and heavier than the others. Also, you’ll see handwoven maple details and Brass logos, along with the features below:
- Fixed or Swinging Wood or Leather handles with fabric liners
- Solid wood lids with attached knobs and leather straps
- Metal tie-ons with flower, fruit, star, and flag motifs
- Extra trim strips with hand varnishes, plastic protectors, and iron stands
- Two horizontal green bands at the top
A Brief History of Longaberger Baskets
You’ll get most of the top Longaberger baskets from the 1970s, after the war. But even before that, we had some similar models from Dresden. Longaberger had joined Dresden to learn basket weaving and started his own brand in the 1950s.
But yes, the first models were not at all commercial. Most of them were for local farmers and traders with simple wood weaves and ethnic patterns. But they also sported some solid maple stains and finishes that hike their costs up to $5000 today.
Then, by the 2000s, Longaberger worked on a multi-level model. Like, he started using a custom base frame and regular weaves for all! But then, there were other manufacturers too! So, the company faced a lot of competition and had to stop production by 2013.
3 Types of Old Longaberger Baskets With Values
Now, we can all assume that a Longaberger basket’s cost might change with the size & use. So, let’s see how!
1. Storage & Shopping Baskets
These are large, 16 – 20” baskets for cakes, sacks, and bread. Most have washable fabric liners inside, but some also use metal tie-ons and plastic protectors. Besides, you might see old Pewter or Whitewashed finishes, costing $300 – 1500 per piece!
2. Picnic Baskets
You can easily identify these 6-10-inch baskets by their twisted wood handles, cutting boards, and lids. They are more portable and have matching accessories – pottery, cutlery, or fabrics. Also, these might have some ceramic moldings that hike the cost from $100 – 900.
3. Magazine & Bread Baskets
Magazine & Bread baskets are small, 5 – 9” baskets, each with a rectangular shape and plaited finishes. Such baskets have flexible wood or cane handles with extra liners to save from moisture. Generally, these cost about $60 – 500, as per the color and condition.
8 Steps to Identify & Appraise Vintage Longaberger Baskets
Now let’s study some other factors like age and material that will help you identify and appraise an AUTHENTIC Longaberger Basket.
1. Track the Basket’s Manufacturing Dates & Design Features
Longaberger baskets didn’t obviously use the same design for all their products. For example, the earlier 1970s models had simple bare wood finishes and handles. But, as things developed in the 2000s, they added some liners too!
So let’s check the cost of such unique features:
| Making Year | Age | Unique Design Features | Estimated Cost |
| 1970 | 53 years | Hand-weaved 4-5” Ashwood baskets with accent red, green, and blue borders | $100 – 800, due to their small size |
| 1980 | 43 years | Oval, Round, or Square Maple baskets with Black or Pewter finishes. These might have folding lids and cutting boards too. | $60 – 2000 |
| 1990 | 33 years | Decorative Maple wood baskets with Clay, Wrought Iron, or Wood accessories | $100 – 900 |
| 1995 | 28 years | Themed holiday or event baskets with whitewashed finishes and ceramic moldings | $100 – 600 |
| 2000 | 23 years | Portable, sleek, and modern designs with extra tie-ons, protectors, and rotating handles | $30 – 400 |
Look for baskets with signed tags from Dave Longaberger, Bonnie, Tami, or Racheal to verify the make.
2. Check the Basket Materials
It’s true that most of the earliest Longaberger baskets used maple wood. But in the 1980s, makers started using fabric, brass, and plastic for different parts. These made them sturdier than the rest and hiked their costs like crazy! Let’s see how!
| Old Longaberger Basket Materials | Usage | Top Features | Average Value of Baskets with these Parts |
| Wood – Maple & Drift | Walls, Lids & Handles | Warm, brownish finish with narrow strip weaves and split-resistant finish | $300 – 2000 |
| Metal – Copper, Cast Iron & Stainless Steel | Rivets, Nails & Handles | Smooth & Shiny appearance with Gray, Brown, or Powder coated finishes | $40 – 500 |
| Chrome, Bronze, Pewter & Brass | Tacks & Tags | Shiny, Yellowish tags with a smooth, metallic appearance | $150 – 900 |
| Leather, Fabric & Plastic | Liners & Protectors | Matte Cotton, Linen, Wool & Polyester lining with natural, abstract, or floral prints | $60 – 1000 |
| Ceramic, Porcelain & Enamel | Moldings | Painted, coarse-textured murals and figurines on the handles | $30 – 350 |
Old Longaberger baskets had no glues, seals, or staples. Instead, they had horizontal tacks and splints at the trims.
3. Observe the Patterns
You all might have seen a lot of baskets with the common linear and criss-cross weaves. But did you know that Longaberger explored some twinned and abstract patterns too? Like, in the 1970s, they played with spirals; in the 2000s, they used lattices.
And here’s how much you can charge for each:
| Vintage Longaberger Patterns | Top Features | Rough Price |
| Over & Under-Weave, Candy Stripe, Checked, Diamond & Grid | Interwoven warp strips with joints at the corners or in the middle | $40 – 1200 |
| Twining, Trellis & Ruffled | Made by two workers with colorful bands at the sides | $70 – 900 |
| Chase Weave, Roses, Pinstripe & Bordered | Interwoven Spiral or Helix-like weaves | $40 – 350 |
| Accent Weaving, Color Block & Tone-on-Tone | Colorful, Dyed patterns with simple strips or color bands | $80 – 1000 |
| Lattice Weave, Plaid, Ribbed, Dotted & Scroll | Simple, criss-cross stitches with unique abstract turns at the center | $50 – 600 |
| Coiling, Foliage, Swirl & Pumpkin | Large spiral patterns with printed liners or lids | $70 – 1000 |
Pick Longaberger baskets with Button, Drawstring, Toggle, or Snap lock for an old make.
4. Analyze the Basket Shapes
Another quick visual test to identify your Longaberger basket is its shape. It’s so that the earliest Longaberger baskets were round or rectangular, while the 2000s one might be abstract or heart-shaped too! So, let’s learn to appraise them:
| Antique Longaberger Basket Shapes | Average Cost |
| Curved – Circle, Ellipse, Halfmoon, Oval & Semi-circle | $60 – 2000, as per the material |
| Bar & Cross | $20 – 150 |
| Symmetrical – Book, Diamond & Triangle | $70 – 900 |
| Asymmetrical – Bottle, Start & Heart-shape | $20 – 350 |
| Polygon – Square, Pentagon, Hexagon, Heptagon & Octagon | $40 – 600 |
| Silhouette & Cube | $30 – 250 |
5. Antique Longaberger Basket Colors & Finishes
It’s not just the shape but even the basket’s color impacts its cost greatly! That’s because the earliest handmade baskets had brown, beige, or white finishes, while the new, bold-colored ones might be spray-painted! So, the new ones don’t cost that much!
| Vintage Longaberger Basket Colors | Rough Value |
| Dark Colors – Black & Gray | $80 – 400 |
| Earth Colors – Brown, Beige & Orange | $100 – 1000 |
| Bare Wood & White | $300 – 1500 |
| Cool Colors – Blue, Green & Purple | $20 – 500 |
| Warm Colors – Red & Yellow | $20 – 300 |
| Metallic Gold & Silver | $80 – 1000 |
Similarly, you’ll get vintage Longaberger baskets in four finishes – Lacquered, Matte, Metallic & Glossy. Of these, the lacquered ones are old but might be faded or moldy. In contrast, the metallic ones are new but still fetch good returns due to the shine and brass polish.
Let’s check the details and prices:
| Antique Longaberger Basket Finishes | Rough Value |
| Wood-finished, Lacquered, Varnished & Limed | $30 – 800 |
| Brushed Metal (Matte) – Brass, Copper, Nickel, Bronze & Silver | $80 – 1000 |
| Metallic & Glitter | $200 – 1500 |
| Glossy & Glazed | $70 – 400 |
| Semi-gloss & Textured | $50 – 500 |
6. Longaberger Basket Themes
Not all Longaberger baskets were made for picnics. Some of them had festive Halloween, Christmas & Easter designs as well. So let’s see how to price those:
| Longaberger Basket Themes | Average Price |
| Baby Shower & Anniversaries | $30 – 1500 |
| Halloween & Easter | $20 – 600 |
| Christmas & Thanksgiving | $50 – 600 |
| Father’s & Mother’s Day | $50 – 400 |
| Spring & Fall | $30 – 400 |
| Valentine’s Day & Wedding | $10 – 200 |
Check if your Longaberger basket has Colonial, Baroque, English, French, or Mexican relief carvings on the lids, as these cost 5 – 10% more than others.
5 Rarest Old Longaberger Baskets Worth Money!
If your old Longaberger basket has 2/3 colored streaks or any abstract shape, it might cost 20-30% more than others. In fact, some of them, like the JW Original Collection, are so rare or limited-edition that you won’t even get them easily. Let’s list more such models!
| Rare Longaberger Baskets | Last Resale Value |
| 1996 Longaberger Blue | $10,000 |
| Longaberger JW Original Baskets | $4000 |
| Longaberger Parade Basket | $9000 |
| Grandma Bonnie’s Signed Mayflower Basket | $5000 |
| Masters Studio Kevin Hina Signed Basket | $3000 |
Avoid getting any chipped, faded, cracked, or restored Longaberger baskets, as these lose their value.
Did the Longaberger Basket Company Make Pottery Too?
Yes, Longaberger Company started making vitrified pottery collections – cups, mugs, plates, and jugs by 2000, each priced at $20 – 300.
Are Longaberger Baskets Made in China?
Old Longaberger baskets were made in Roseville, Ohio. But then, in 1992, the company shifted production to Hall China Company of East Liverpool.
How to Clean Old Longaberger Baskets at Home?
Prepare a thin dish soap and tepid water solution, and scrub the stains with a soft brush. Now, use a cloth to wipe it off and air dry it for 1-2 days before storage.
Longaberger baskets are among the top picnic collectibles, along with ‘old iceboxes,’ ‘fishing rods,’ and ‘fishing lures.’ Identifying these vintage items is much easier now, with all the shapes, colors, and finishes. All you have to do is observe the piece and check its values from our guide! You can also easily identify other vintage items, such as vintage butter churns and antique stoneware crocks using my other detailed guides!
