Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Basket Tutorial





 
 



My sons are in high school and seem a little old for the traditional pastel Easter baskets, so I went ahead and made them each a new one.  My youngest loves Penn State so that was an easy choice for him.  My oldest seemed to be drawn to the flame/guitar material, so that is what I used for him.


The dark blue Penn State material is 9.5 in by 16 in.  The white is 3 in x 16 in.  Sew the white and blue pieces together with 1/4 in seam allowance and then iron fusible fleece to the back of each piece.

Pin the 2 exterior pieces, right sides together and sew around the left, bottom and right sides with a 1/4 inch seam allowance.

 
 
Next I cut 2  12 in by 16 in pieces for the inside from the blue pawprint material and ironed fusible fleece to the back.  Pin the 2 interior pieces, right sides together and sew around the left, bottom and right sides with a 1/4 inch seam allowance.  Leave a few inches unsewn at the bottom in order to turn the project right side near the end of the project.
 
Box the bottom corners of the interior piece and exterior piece to help the final project stand upright.  My purple line (shown above) is 5 inches.  I sewed across this line 3 times for strength. Cut off the excess point about 1/4 to 1/2 inch from the seam line to eliminate bulk.
 
 
 
Cut 2 pieces of 3.5 in by 9.5 in fabric for the handles and iron fusible fleece to the back of one piece.  Put right sides together and sew a 1/4 seam down one of the 9.5 in sides.  This is where I forgot to take pictures.  Iron the piece open.  Fold the 2 raw edges to the inside all the way to the other side and press like crazy.  This will give you a handle about 1.5 in wide.  Sew down the side and it should end up looking like the picture below.  Repeat this process as you need 2 handles.
 
 
You will now have 2 handles and you are ready to put the basket together!
 

 
 
Next put the 2 pieces inside of each other, right sides together.  Tuck the handles down inside, making sure they are not twisted and pin like crazy!  Hint - put your pins pointing down, not pointing up like mine if you want to avoid stabbing yourself repeatedly while sewing! 
 
Sew around the perimeter with a 1/4 in seam allowance, pulling the pins out as you go.
 
Pull the project right side out through the opening you left in the bottom of the lining.

 
Press the raw edges from the whole you left for turning under and iron well.

Sew the whole closed.  I did a line of straight stitching and a zig zag stitch because I am a little OCD.
 
Tuck the inside into the bag and press well.

I finished up with a row of top stitching a 1/4 in from the edge.  Now you should have an awesome basket!
 
 

 
 
 


22 comments:

  1. Cute baskets! I made something similar for my daughters trick-or-treat bag, but this just reminded me that I could make her a cloth Easter basket!!!!!!!!!!!!! :-)

    Navy Wifey Peters @ Submarine Sunday Link Party
    http://www.usscrafty.blogspot.com/2013/03/submarine-sunday-23.html

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  2. They look great, I'll have to try making one for my nephew! Thanks :)

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  3. These are wonderful. My kids are always looking for something to store things in :) I know our readers will enjoy your perspective, too. We have a Thursday (today) Link Up Party at allthingswithpurpose.com and I'm sure our readers would love these tips, too!! We hope to see you there!!

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  4. What a great idea! Our site has a Pattern Party that begins at the 1st of each month. I’d love for you to check it out and link up. Thanks for sharing!
    http://getyourcraptogether.blogspot.com/search/label/Pattern%20Party

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  5. A great idea, your so talented!!! My son is away in college and this would the great in a care package to send him with some homemade treats. Thanks so much for posting this tutorial!!!
    PS- I am following you now on blogger and bloglovin cause I can't wait to see what else you make. If you want check out my blog http://kirabell.blogspot.com/

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  6. Always happy to see a new tutorial. Great baskets!

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  7. Great idea!Love both, I'll try to make one to offer my daughter:)
    Thanks so much for sharing the great tutorial!
    Have a fabulous weekend!
    Hugs from Portugal,

    Ana Love Craft
    www.lovecraft2012.blogspot.com

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  8. That is a really cool idea!! I bet your boys love them.

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  9. These look great! Thanks for the tutorial! I bet your boys will love them...plus, since they are "non-Eastery" you can use them for storage year round.

    Thanks for sharing at A New Creation!

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  10. Love the baskets! I made some like yours for my sons' toys. I just finished a round fabric basket (one more to go!) that I am going to use for Easter. I love that your baskets can be used all year round. Great job!

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  11. I found your blog over at Simply Miss Luella's link up. I never tire of seeing these fabric baskets, they're so useful and yours is so cute.

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  12. What a fun idea! I love that you can personalize the baskets for each child. Wonderful tutorial!

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  13. What a great idea! And we are a Penn State family, so that one would be a big hit at my house too!

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  14. Great idea for older kids! Thank for the tutorial.

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  15. Pinned this!! My nephews would love this! New follower. Follow back at http://www.sewsweetvintage.com/2013/03/vintage-popcorn-chenille.html

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  16. great idea and to use fan fabric- that makes the boys a little happier!
    www.patchworkposse.com/blog

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  17. Your baskets are featured this week at A New Creation party. Thanks for sharing this tutorial!

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  18. I wanted to let you know I shared you tutorial on my blog here http://kirabell.blogspot.com/2013/04/swoon-y-floor-pillow-and-basket.html

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