Here’s a charming new way to way to celebrate springtime!

Making an egg basket is a great project to do with children—have them decorate the “eggs” while you make the basket. After Easter, the basket becomes a handy holder for decorative soaps, candies, or other small items.

SUPPLIES

• 3 or 4 Ready-to-Go!® Blank Board 1-1/2″ Blocks (available at papercrafts stores or www.ctpub.com).
• Quilter’s Vinyl (available at quilting stores or www.ctpub.com).
• Shredded paper or plastic “grass”
• Color Box chalk ink
• Clear-drying glitter glue
• 1 1/1″-wide wire-edged ribbon (bright colors for spring baskets, black polka dot for pirate basket)
• Sewing machine
• Thread in a color that coordinates with your ribbon and blocks
• Acrylic paint in a coordinating color
• Hole punch, Crop-a-dile or Japanese screw punch
• (Optional) Scissors with decorative edged blades
• (Optional) Clips for pirate basket ribbons
• (Optional) Charms and coordinating black-and-white ribbons for pirate basket
• (Optional) Decorative ribbons and jewels for egg blocks
• (Optional) Aluminum foil
• (Optional) metallic paper

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

Making the Basket

1. Using the pattern on the last page of these instructions, trace cutting and seam lines onto Quilter’s Vinyl. Put a dot at the bottom corner intersection of the seam lines as a guide for your sewing.

2. Cut out the basket along the outer cutting lines.

3. Fold the cut side seam edges together and sew along the seam lines ¼” inside the cutting lines. Make sure to backstitch at beginning and end of each seam. Trim away any loose threads.

4. You can either leave the raw edges on the outside of the basket or turn the basket inside out to have a finished seam on the outside.

To turn the basket more easily, gently soften the Quilter’s Vinyl with a hair dryer first. For a decorative touch, use pinking shears or decorative-edged scissors to cut around the basket’s top edge and seams.

5. Using the hole placement guide on the pattern, punch a 1/4″ hole on 2 sides of the basket. If you’ll be making a Quilter’s Vinyl basket handle, punch 2 holes 1/2″ apart.

Ribbon handle: Cut a piece of ribbon about 18″ long. Thread one end of the ribbon through the hole on one side of the basket, going from the inside to the outside. Tie a knot at the hole. I also tied another knot at the end of the ribbon. Repeat on the other side of the basket.

Vinyl handle: Cut a 1½” wide strip of Quilter’s Vinyl. Trim edges with decorative scissors if desired. Embellish the handle with fancy stitching or ribbons before you attach it to the basket. Tie the handle to the holes you punched earlier with ribbon.

Pirate basket handle: I recycled clips from badge lanyards I wore at trade shows. If you can’t find clips, you can tie the ribbon as described above under “Ribbon handle.”

6. Decorate the basket with bows, rub-ons, paint, flowers, or stitching.

7. Die cut a tag from a scrap of Quilter’s Vinyl. Paint the back of the tag. When the tag is dry, use rub-on letters to spell out “Happy Easter.”

8. Fill the basket with shredded paper or Easter basket “grass.”

Pirate eggs. Wrap each “egg” in a piece of aluminum foil.

Jeweled eggs. Wrap each “egg” block in a piece of shiny origami paper or another decorative paper, then embellish with decorative ribbons and jewels.

EGG BASKET CUTTING DIAGRAM
Cut Quilter’s Vinyl 12 3/4″ x 12 3/4″
Click here to download pdf of template.