Many an evening I gather my supplies together and haul them from my hobby room to the big chair in the family room so that I can be “social”. One day I stared sideways at this large and old and heavy basket and thought it looked exactly like a sewing basket. A sewing basket-to-be. Time was when I filled it with magazines but today it sat quietly where I had placed it on a shelf.
The main fabric is a dark eggplant with off-white. When I bought it I didn’t have anything in mind for it. I had a small piece of the border print which was also eggplant in the background. Together they were wonderful.
I didn’t have a pattern. Hummmmm. No worry. Just think.
So, I thought. And thought.
I cut a circle slightly larger than the bottom of the basket. I cut two strips of fabric wide enough to connect to the circle at the bottom and drape well over the sides of the basket. In length I cut them twice as long as the distance between the handles and cut two. One for each side of the handles. (so that I could gather them)
Then I cut the border the same length as the two side pieces but twice as wide as you see it finished. Then I turned the edges under and ironed them and ironed a crease down the middle. Then I sewed each border strip to the wider strip.
I sewed the border to the fabric strips just as you would sew bias tape. Then I gathered the strips and pinned them right sides together to the big circle (bottom of the basket). At the point where the handles part the fabric, I sewed ribbon to tie the liner onto the basket.
I am not an author of tutorials and don’t have the patience to take a photograph of each step. Besides, I usually don’t know which step will be next until I take it and find myself either pleased with the step or sorry for it. I am finding it easier and easier to make things without a pattern. Or, with a pattern I have cut myself from card stock or newspaper.
It seems to be practice. And, more practice.
