Sewing Room Swap

This weekend I finished the main item for my ~sewing room swap~ partner.  I'm really quite pleased with how this set of fabric baskets turned out.  Like my prototype a week or so ago, I used the nesting fabric bowls pattern from a cuppa and a catch up (this is the 7" size).

 

I would describe the central panel of each basket as "free piecing" - I didn't have a pattern or much of a plan in mind when I started, and apart from trimming each panel to the right width, there was not a lot of measuring involved.  It was really quite fun and a liberating way to work.  I learned something too.  If you are going to make free pieced little houses, it works a lot better if you make the roof first and then make the main part of the house to fit the roof, rather than the other way around.

I really hope my partner likes these!

Linking up with:

    

and with Finish it up Friday at crazy mom quilts.

Vintage Flowers Fabric Basket

I've been planning my items for both the Sewing Room Swap and Sew Sew Modern Round 3, and I think I'll end up making both my partners fabric baskets.  Since I haven't made a fabric basket before, I  decided to make a prototype to test out the size and pattern I intended to use.

 

I used the Nesting Fabric Bowls pattern from a cuppa and a catch up, and I think it was definitely worth the cost.  The technique used to make the fabric bowls is not that complicated, but the pattern explains all the steps in great detail, and it includes lots of variations if you want to add handles, pockets, and lots of other good stuff.

 

I am borrowing my friend Anne's Janome while my sewing machine is being serviced and I was tempted by the novelty of fancy stitches to add these to the exterior of my basket.  I think they work really well with the vintage flowers fabric (from Melody Miller's Ruby Star Shining collection and bought at Stitchbird but I'm pretty sure I snagged the last FQ).

 

I lined this basket with one of my favourite fabrics - its an oldie but a goodie from Joel Dewberry's Heirloom line.

This was a super speedy make (apart from applying the interfacing which always takes me ages - this is a job I would happily delegate to the sewing elves!) and gives a really satisfying result.  I'll be working on my swap baskets this weekend and I can't wait!

Do you have a favourite fabric basket pattern?

Linking up with:

and finish it up friday at crazy mom quilts.