Creative storage ideas

You can make these hanging fabric baskets in any size, hang on bigger thicker rods for more drama, or single baskets hung one over the other in a narrow space - so many storage possibilities.  It has been fun to see the different variations people have made to use in their homes too. You can use them for storage in a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom or for storage almost anywhere in a home.

 

You can easily sew up these storage baskets in colourful fabrics, burlap or soft vinyl.

YOU WILL NEED:

Sewing machine and accessories

Curtain rod, brackets and finials

Sheet of 3mm white masonite

Fabric - each basket uses 1 metre of fabric and interfacing

 

 

HERE'S HOW:

From your fabric cut six 470mm x 710mm pieces, and three 100mm x 268mm pieces. You will then iron them onto you interfacing and then cut out. 

NOTE: You will use a 6mm seam allowance unless noted, and don’t forget to back stitch!

Take one of your 470 x 710 pieces and fold it in half with right side in, short ends together.  Now sew up the sides, leaving the top open.  Repeat on the five left. Just a tip, you can decide which ones are going to be the lining, and use a slightly larger seam allowance – just a smidgen. This will make them nest inside the outside baskets nicely. You will need two sheets for one basket, and they should look like the ones above.  I alternated them so that I had a different pattern on the inside then I did on the outside.

Leaving them wrong side out, take and fold your corners down like shown.  To make sure that you are aligned correctly, just make a crease on the bottom fold and line that up with the seam on the inside, make sure your seam is flattened all the way out. Take a ruler and mark a line 200mm long as shown and pin.  After you make the line measure from the point to the line and you should get 95mm.  Repeat on the other side, and do this on all of your pieces.

GOOD TO KNOW
It does help if you have a cutting mat with measurements, you can see how I lined up the corners to make sure they were symmetrical.  If you don’t, that’s fine, just eyeball it.

Sew along the lines on each of your corners. Take the pieces you want on the outside and turn them right side out, folding the corners down.  Drop the piece of masonite into the bottom with the white side facing up.

Leaving your other pieces right side in, fold your corners under and place inside of the other shell, on top of the masonite. In other words, pop one shell into the other shell so that you have fabric facing out - on the outside - and fabric facing in - on the inside. Next fold your outer shell over about a 1cm and pin. Repeat on the inner shell using the same pins so that you are pinning them together.  Make sure the two overlap some where you will stitch together.

 

Take your three smaller pieces and fold the ends over a 6mm and sew both ends.

Fold in half and insert on what you would like to be the backside of the basket.  Pin in place, making sure that whatever rod you use will fit through.  I tested mine now to make sure. To make sure that I had it centred, I just pulled the basket straight at the seams and eyeballed it.

 

Now with a little longer stitch length just sew all around the top, making sure to get all the layers included in the stitch. See, one nice and clean seam. And you’re done, now just hang them! Then fill ‘em up!