I was watching a show from The Quilt Show with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims yesterday and in one of the segments, Alex showed how to make a cute little (or large) cloth basket...
I remember making these a long time ago but had totally forgotten about them. So, I decided to make one and share the simple directions with you.
So first, gather two fabrics...
And cut them into a square...any size square, but it must be a square. Also cut a piece of batting the same size...
Place one piece of fabric on the batting right side up. Place the other piece of fabric right side down on the first piece of fabric. Sew around the edges, leaving an opening to turn inside out and back stitching at the edges of the opening and all corners.
After sewing, trim the edges including the corners...
After trimming, turn and make sure all the corners pushed out. Whip stitch the opening closed. Then quilt the square a lot. I choose to simply stitch around each side until I reached the center using my walking foot as a guide...
Next fold the square in half and mark off the edges (you decide how much, but all sides have to be equal) and draw a diagonal. See below...
Stitch the diagonal, back stitching at both ends. Repeat on the other side. Then open up the square and refold in the opposite direction...
Repeat the corners, measuring, drawing and sewing the diagonal keeping the same measurements. This is what you end up with...
Now, turn it inside out. You can tack down the sides. I used buttons on each point. You can also tack down the inside flaps if you want. Or, you can leave them and place things like small scissors, pencils, etc in the pocket.
It's really a cute little basket and the more you quilt the square, the stiffer the basket...
From selecting the fabric to the finished product took me about four hours. Quick, cute, easy and it would be a great gift. Remember you can make it any size, just be sure to make it a square.
I seem to have my mojo back...wonder if the candied ginger has anything to do with it. I have eaten a couple pieces each day. Who knows, but I will keep it up for a while.
Thanks for stopping by...
Talk to you tomorrow...