Little Girl’s Fabric Strawberry Basket

Today I’ll be sharing a fun little strawberry basket sew with you. In my home town, we celebrate a Strawberry Days festival every summer. There’s a Strawberry Days parade this Saturday where they throw out candy to all the littles as the floats, bands, and mascots go by.

I thought this little basket would be perfect for my little girl to collect her candy in. It’s definitely a small child-size basket but you could easily make it larger (or smaller) by printing the pattern at a different scale. Let’s get started. 

Supplies:

• Pattern (Download & Print Here)
• Red cotton fabric (¼ yard)
• Green cotton fabric (½ yard or two fat quarters)
• HeatnBond Fusible fleece (8.5”x26.5”)
• HeatnBond Lightweight interfacing (9”x26.5”), so half-yard if it’s 20″ wide or ¼ yard if it’s wider. 
• Pinking Shears (optional)

Strawberry Basket Instructions

Iron your fabrics. Fuse the HeatnBond Fusible Fleece to the back of the red fabric and the lightweight interfacing to the back of the green fabric. Trace six of your main basket pattern onto the back of your red fabric fused with the fleece and cut out. 

Trace six of the lining basket pattern onto the back of the green fabric that you’ve fused with the HeatnBond Lightweight Interfacing and cut out. 

Fold your green fabric over so that its right sides are together and trace six leaves. Pin in the middle of your drawn leaves so the two layers of fabric stay together and cut out. 

Also from the green fabric cut a 4”x15” strip for the strap. Now that everything is cut out you are ready to start sewing. 

Let’s begin with your main strawberry body. Take two of your six strawberry pieces (we will call them segments) and pin along one outside edge. Repeat with the other four segments pining in sets of two. Take to your sewing machine and sew each along just that one side using a ¼” seam allowance. Make sure to back stitch at the beginning and end. 

Take to your iron and press the seams open (this will help your strawberry keep shape when finished). Next, pin two of the segments you’ve just joined together with another set pinning just along one outside edge with the fabrics right sides together, and sew. 

Now you have four of the strawberry bag segments sewn together, and one set of two. Take them and pin them together on both outer edges and sew. Turn right side out. If you happen to have a small opening at the very bottom (if your seams didn’t connect) turn it wrong side out again and just sew a couple of small stitches at the very bottom to close. 

Repeat with the lining pieces. I like to move my needle in one notch and trim the seams with the pinking shears on the lining to make it fit a little more snuggly. Sew all six segments together. You do not need to leave an opening for turning. 

Now let’s make our handle. Grab your 4”x15” rectangle. Fold the strip in half (hot dog style) and press. Open back up and fold both outside edges in so they line with the pressed line in the middle. Press the outside edges and fold back up so the raw edges are contained inside. If you’d like to make the handle a little more sturdy you can add a ¾”x15” strip of fusible fleece in the center of the handle hidden inside. 

Take to your sewing machine and top stitch going sewing down both edges. Set aside. 

Ok, now you just have your leaves to sew before you can start assembling your bag. Grab your leaves and sew them around the outside edge using your ¼” seam allowance. Leave the straight edge open. Go around the edges with your pinking shears and then turn each leaf right side out and press them.   

Alright, now to assemble. Your main strawberry should be turned right side out and your lining is wrong side out. We will be sewing the leaves and handle onto your lining so you can set the main bag aside. First, take your handle and set it inside your lining. Pin one raw edge centered between one of the segment seams of your lining.

Take the other edge and pin centered between the seam on the opposite side (so there should be two seams between on the side where your handle ends are pinned). Using ⅛” seam allowance, tack them in place. 

Next, we will be adding the leaves. Using a few straight pins pin the edge of each leaf on the seam with raw edges facing up and the leaf inside the lining. The edges of your leaves will be butted up against each other on the segment seams of your lining. 

Ok, now that you have all the leaves pinned butt up against each other on the sides you’ll notice the middle of the leaf doesn’t lay flat. The leaves are bigger than the segments so you can add a pleat or two to give the leaves some dimension. When pinning down the middle of the leaf, you can either add one large pleat in the center or I like to do two smaller pleats.

To create the pleat you just fold the leaves fabric over on itself and then pin it. Once all your leaves are pinned take to your sewing machine and sew all along the top edge of your lining using your ¼” seam allowance. Go slow and make sure the leaf’s edges stay butt up against each other as you go.

When finished, trim any excess threads and then press the seam with the leaves facing out and the seam facing down. Make sure to pull the handle out as well. 

Finally, you will be sliding the lining into the main basket. Pin the lining to the main basket lining up the seams. Your sewn line on the top of the lining should line up with the raw edge of your main basket. At this point keep the leaves facing up so you can make sure the lining and the main basket match up perfectly. 

After getting the seams matched up you will now be folding the leaves down over the top of the main bag and pin being careful to keep the leaves still butted up against each other and the raw edge concealed inside. 

Take to your sewing machine and top stitch ¼” down from the top all along the outside of the bag. Ta-da! You are done! You can add cute buttons or a flower or whatever other cute detail you’d like to adorn the bag or leave as is. Thanks for sewing along with me!