Sewing The Seasons: Tutorial - A Tisket, A Tasket, Pretty Easter Baskets

After reading What's Mummy Up To? Bunny Bags post on the weekend I was inspired to write a tutorial for Easter Baskets.

I have used left over jelly roll strips from some recent baby quilts to make the basket, and the offcuts from the quilts to make the handles. The basket size could be varied to suit your fabric or needs & you could always use a single piece of fabric instead.

I gathered my stash of orphan jelly roll strips to audition & searched my scrap basket for the off cuts of pieced strips from recent baby quilts for the handle.

I chose to use 8 strips for my baskets meaning I would have a circle circumference of 16".

For the handle, I used some joined offcuts that had 6 pieces (finished handle length 12") & trimmed them down to 2 1/2" wide.

To calculate the size of circle needed for the base, I chose to google 'calculating diameter from circumference' rather than use my rusty high school maths skills. A 16" circumference gives a diameter (measurement across centre of circle) of 5.092958178940651". Don't panic!!!!!! rounding up gives us 5.1". 5 1/4" is 5.25" so I knew I had to cut a circle a smidge (technical term here) smaller than 5 1/4". You can trace a circle from a dish that is that size, or rather than search for the exact sized dish, I used the circle on my revolving cutting mat & worked with the measurements on the grid to draw mine the right size.

Materials needed

Fabric for outer basket, including base & handle, fabric for lining, iron on pellon & thread.

Basket construction

1. Join jelly roll strips, press & cut to required basket height ( I made one 5" & the other 4" high)

Or - cut a piece of fabric or join scraps & cut to 16 1/2" long, 5 1/2" wide. (for smaller basket - cut 161/2" long, 4 1/2" high)

Cut out lining & pellon to match size of basket.

Cut out 2 circles from lining fabric & 1 pellon circle for base.

Cut out 1 handle (I trimmed pre-joined strips or cut chosen fabric to 12 1/2" long & 2 1/2" wide), 1 handle lining & 1 piece of pellon for handle.

Press pellon to back of basket piece, base circle & handle.

2. Sew handle lining to handle (down long sides only) & turn through, then press.

(**From this step on, you will get the best results if you use your walking foot attachment**)

3. Quilt in desired pattern the basket piece, handle & base circle.

4. Join short sides of basket piece together with 1/4" seam. Mark the quilted basket sides & quilted base into quarters with pins, then pin together using markers as guide.

5. Stitch quilted side & base together with 1/4" seam. Take your time with this step, there is some give in the fabric & you can "smush" (another technical term here) the pieces together to fit, working carefully around the circle quarter by quarter.

6. Place the handle inside the joined basket, with right sides facing.

7. Join short ends of basket lining together. Leave approximately 3" gap in middle of seam to allow turn through (if you are making a shorter basket, you will have to leave the gap when you join the side lining to the base circle)

8. Mark into quarters with pins, pin together then join lining piece to lining base circle.

9. Place lining inside the basket, rides sides facing (I placed the joined side seams on opposite sides of the circle). Pin lining & basket together, ensuring handle is pinned as well.

10. Stitch around top of basket with 1/4" seam.

11. Turn basket through the gap left in the side seam. Top stitch this gap close to the folded edge of seam (you can hand stitch this closed if you prefer & it will be less noticeable if you matching thread - I used white to show this step.)