Quiltingboard Forums - How to make a coiled fabric basket using clothesline and strips of fabric

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- - How to make a coiled fabric basket using clothesline and strips of fabric (https://www.quiltingboard.com/tutorials-f10/how-make-coiled-fabric-basket-using-clothesline-strips-fabric-t143655.html)

Well, here's my first attempt at a tutorial. Please bear with me...there are over 40 pictures that show the step by step procedure so it's going to take awhile to upload all these pics!

With each picture there will be a caption describing (as best I can) what is occurring in each step. Hopefully the pics and written instructions working together will make things pretty clear.

Please note that this technique is NOT original to me by any means! I purchased the book, "It's a Wrap...Sewing Fabric Purses, Baskets, and Bowls" by Susan Breier and used her method for making this basket.

Overall, I have enjoyed the 2 baskets I have made. I will probably make more but be forewarned...if you choose to make one, it will take time! This is not a "quicky" project. Now if you make something like a placemat or coaster the project won't take long, but if you want a nice basket that you would use for yourself or give to a friend, I do recommend taking your time and enjoy the process (though it's a bit tedious) because in the end, the results will be something that you will be really pleased with!

Best of luck to all who decide to try this! blessings, Karen

Fabrics chosen for basket.

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After washing and pressing the fabric I cut 1/2 inch wide strips

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You can see here that I cut about 5-6 strips of each color. (I cut more for the base color)I wasn't sure how much I would use but I did end up using most of the strips. I have then laid out in the order that I thought they would look good in the basket.

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This is the clothesline that I purchased from WalMart. At my store it was 2.88 per package. This basket and handles...required about a package and a half. The author recommended a cotton clothesline but I could not find it in the stores in my area. This was soft enough for my machine and firm enough to give the basket some strength.

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I trimmed the end of the clothesline and put it about 1/4 inch from the end of the strip of fabric. I'm using a fabric glue to secure it but the author used a glue stick.

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Added a dab of glue and folded the end over

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Added another dot of glue and folded the end over again to secure the end of the clothesline well.

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Now to start the process of wrapping the line with the strip at an angle. Wrap at an angle so that each wrap covers the edge of the previous fabric. Keep wrapping in the same direction throughout the course of your project.

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Wrap the clothesline for about 8 inches then stop momentarily to sew a straight stitch down the center of the clothesline for about 5 inches to secure everything well. This will be what you use to make the coil for the center of the basket.

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This is the clothesline after it has been wrapped with one strip of fabric.

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This the the center of the basket. Starting with the end of the wrapped line, coil it tightly until it's about 2 inches in diameter. You may have to pin or baste it to keep it tight. Then sew (with a straight stitch) an x across the coils to secure it tightly. Keep the tail of the coil to the right of the needle. Once, you've sewn the x then you will change your settings to a zig zag stitch. The ideal zig zag stitch is about 1/4 inch wide. Start in the center and work your way around slowly in a circle. The very start of it is more difficult. Don't worry, as the base grows, it's easier to zig zag around.

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Once I decided the size of the base, then it was time to start building up the side. This is done by angling the base in one of 4 positions. The first position creates a gradual transition from the base coil to the sides. This is done by sewing a row with your fingers just under the base...not lifting the base as yet. Angled position 2 creates a sharper transition. Your will lift the base coil (with the base under the presser foot) up about 2 inches or so from the bed of the machine. Angled position 3 creates a basket with slightly angled sides. This is done by lifting the base more...till it touches or nearly touches the vertical side of the machine.

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See the tape on the base? This marks the spot where I will change fabrics so it's all done on one side of the basket.

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Karen, thank YOU so much for taking the time to do this tutorial! I am definitely going to give this a try. :)

Very interesting technique!

Please bear with this tutorial. It has timed out and I'm waiting for a response from the administrator to see if there is anyway I can continue adding pics without starting a new post...which I think would be confusing to some. Also it was moved from tutorials to general chit chat...don't understand that but at least that's where you can find it.

I can't wait to try this!

You're doing a great job, pics are Very helpful!

It won't let you click "Add New Attachment" any more??? You could add them as a new post on this same thread if it won't let you add immediately after the others.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim's Gem

It won't let you click "Add New Attachment" any more??? You could add them as a new post on this same thread if it won't let you add immediately after the others.

good idea.

Thanks for the tutorial!!

I saw a tutorial on another website about 3 years ago and so far I have made 4. Lots of fun to make.

Dang, I was really into this, I hope they let you continue this as a tut, it's so helpful. I would love to make one someday soon. Thank you.

I like this... But I have a question.
Can you use this to make a rectangle rug?

I've seen the couple of baskets you've made & they are great. I am looking forward to seeing the rest of this! I don't understand why it was moved out of Tutorials either.

Thank you so much for the tutorial :D:D:D

Thanks for the tute. I loved the pic of your basket that I saw yesterday! Might have to try this one myself.

Any special pressure foot?
Walking foot?
MK

How can we save these tutorials so that we can work on them at another time. Is there an archive of tutorials we can access.? I want to try this but am in the middle of a big project right now.

Bookmark it!
Top of the screen, left button
MK

moved to chit chat? ok.......

i'll look for you there, i've had a problem with building up the walls. really need help!

As you can see from my avatar, I like making these too. Be careful, you will become addicted. I use up all of the left - overs from my quilts to cover the rope.

I found cottom clothes line at the Dollar General store.

good tutorial!!! I've got this particular project on my to-do list...someday, lol

Quote:

Originally Posted by karenm36

Well, after being moved to chit-chat this tute has now been returned to the tutorial section. (A thank you to whoever did this, I do appreciate this!) I will continue to add pics and instructions and hopefully if you are following this all the steps will be here as I just have to add them as an additional post and not as a "new attachment".

Once you get to within an inch or two of the uncovered clothesline, stop your machine with the needle in the down position and resume wrapping the line with fabric strips. If you find this too cumbersome, it is possible to remove it from the machine, wrap some line and then return it to your machine. The important thing is to remember at what angle you are tilting your basket so that it continues the shape that you are trying to give it.

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Here you can see that I've got it at the position angle 3 where it's tilted as high as my machine will allow so that I can create the sides.

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Another shot of how the basket is starting to emerge as I continue to wrap the clothesline and adding coils. I continue to keep enough pressure on the bottom of the basket to keep the angle 3 position.

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You can see how the basket is taking a nice shape.

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How to splice and add more line: Put the 2 ends together overlapping about 1-2 inches and sew together. Then you will carefully cut the knobby ends off that probably have hard glue on them from the manufacturing process. They have that glue on there so they don't ravel. At an angle, cut the end off. Then I quickly add a little bit of fabric glue and apply pressure so that it doesn't ravel.

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This is where I wrap the cord to just before the joint and before I cut it at an angle.

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Now I have cut the end of cord at an angle and applied a little bit of glue. I am ready now to wrap over this end. I will do the same on the other side of the joint when I get there. I do wrap a bit more tightly here so that I try to minimize the bump from joining the ends as much as possible.

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This is what it looks like after the ends have been joined and wrapped. Just a slight bulge and still sews in just as easily when the coiling continues.

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I have now resumed sewing since adding the new clothesline to the end of the first one. At this point I wanted the basket to curve more so I've had to apply even more pressure to keep it up and angled as much as possible toward the machine. You'll discover that the shape of your basket may in part be determined by the bulk of your machine that's to the left of your needle. Fortunately, the basket is pretty flexible and can be gently pushed to get as much angle as possible.

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Just a little comic relief here...lol! My DH saw the basket and immediately thought it made a cool hat! HA!

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Now that I've got the basket the size that I want it I decided that I would bind it. (They don't have to have a binding added but since I figured this basket would likely get a lot of wear and tear, I decided to add the binding. BTW, before adding the binding...a word about tapering off the clothesline to finish your basket. You will anticipate doing this a few inches before the tape that is already on your basket marking where you change colors. You will end the clothesline at this spot as well. Starting just before the tape mark, gradually trim the clothesline along the length at an angle to reduce the bulk. Apply glue to the wrong side of the fabric strip and wrap the remaining clothesline very tightly until you are wrapping only fabric. Trim off the excess fabric. Hold the tail tight against the basket and using a stick or something like this, zigzag stitch it in place.

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To make a double binding, Cut a 2 inch strip of fabric and make it the length of the circumference of the basket plus about 6 inches. Make a 45 degree angle cut on one end and fold and press 1/4 inch of the angles end to the wrong side. Fold the binding in half lengthwise and press. (Refer to pic just before this one to see what this looks like). Once you've made this, you will align the raw edge of the binding to the upper outside edge of your basket. I started mine at the place where I changed all my fabric strips so that all that area would be considered the back of the basket. Starting about 3-4 inches from the end, straight stitch 1/4 inch from the edge.

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Sewing the binding on.

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Tuck one end into the end that has the 45 degree angle. Trim a little if need be to reduce bulk then finish sewing.

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The binding is on. Now I will hand sew it on to the inside to finish it. Do this like you would on any binding for any quilt.

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Thanks to you for the tute

Very well done -- thank you! :D

Your instuctions & pics are great.. TY for sharing!!

You did a great job on the tute. Thanks.

Thanks so much for this tutorial. I attempted to make one of these a few months ago...you're so right that it isn't a quick project as it might appear. AFter wrapping my clothesline, I began the machine work, but that's where it all fell apart for me; my machine misbehaved badly, so I finally gave up. The bobbin kept knotting up, causing the machine to "lock up." Reading your instructions makes me want to pull it all out and give it another try. By the way, your bowl looks really nice - thanks for taking the time to take all the photos and put this together for us!

Quote:

Originally Posted by karenm36

Quote:

Originally Posted by karenm36

Finishing up the tute...here's the rest of the pics and instructions for finishing the basket.

This part was something I came up with on my own. I wanted a cover for the basket that could be used when needed and tucked away when not needed. I just took the remainder of my purple print fabric and finished the edges on both sides. Then I sewed the 2 ends together making a continuous piece. Anticipating using a drawstring of some sorts, then I made a narrow strip (finishing the edges as well) and sewed it onto this tube of fabric. (this narrow strip was left open at the seam as it will be the casing for the drawstring and this is where the string will be guided into the casing and come out on the other side)

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Carefully pin the fabric to the inside of the basket making sure the gathers are as even as possible.

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I used a contrasting thread to baste everything before placing it under the machine to sew.

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Sewing the basket cover on making sure the fabric is to the RIGHT of your needle. You don't want it underneath the basket or it will cover your binding. You want it to be INSIDE your binding when it's done.

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This is the basket with the fabric cover attached. Remember this is optional...you do not need to add this step at all.

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The next step is to make a handle if you choose to. I made each handle out of 51 inches of covered clothesline. Once the clothesline was wrapped I then did a zigzag stitch to secure the fabric well.

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I folded the clothesline in thirds and started creating the basic shape of it. Then stitched across it to secure everything before attaching it to the basket.

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Pinned into place and then I sewed it onto the basket by hand. I also went through all three cords from side to side of the handle to form the handle into one piece.

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Using thread you can see that I was able to sculpt the handle a bit, refining it's shape. I then embellished it with a yoyo, beads and another decorative ornament.

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Close up of the handle. Now make another one to match.

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Inside of the basket

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The finished basket is about 8 inches across

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The basket is about 6 inches tall excluding the handles.

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The finished basket with all the extra bling added

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Back of the basket. Originally, I wrapped some clothesline to make the drawstring but I decided it was too stiff and wouldn't wear well. So I just made a drawstring from some left over fabric from the basket...and it works much better.

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Front with the cover in the up position in case someone wants to cover a lot of stuff! I have a light weight sweatshirt jacket in here just to hold it up...so you can see that this can hold a lot of stuff!

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A picture of the finished product, please?

hummm on my to do list, very cute!!!

Karen,
Thanks for the basket making information.
Also, where did you find the little yellow buckets that you have on your peg board? I would love to have some.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim's Gem

It won't let you click "Add New Attachment" any more??? You could add them as a new post on this same thread if it won't let you add immediately after the others.

That's what I discovered...once you start adding you have 60 minutes to "add new attachment" then it times out. But you can add an additional post...then it starts timing again and you have another 60 minutes to "add new attachment" to the new post before it times out yet again. I finally got it done! lol! Took nearly 3 hours but I hope it's worth it for the ones that want to try to do this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dtippens

I like this... But I have a question.
Can you use this to make a rectangle rug?

I know you can make an oval basket or a square or rectangular one by changing the shape of the center of your project. It seems you could do a rug...but depending on the size of it would it be kind of cumbersome under your machine?...unless you had an extension to your table to support it. I don't really know how to answer your question. As it's said...there's one sure way to find out...try it! ;-)

This is fabulous. The most gorgeous fabric basket that I've seen. Looks like a lot of work but the end product is well worth it. Might give this a try some day. Thanks for your diligence in posting the tutorial.

Very pretty colors. Thanks for taking the time to share this.