| Fabric-Covered Basket |
From "DIY Crafts"
episode DIC-143 |
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Professional crafter Mary Ann Hoffman makes a sturdy fabric-covered basket, using StyrofoamB. as a base. She constructs the basket first, then shows how to cover it with fabric. Materials:
Sheet of Styrofoam
Serrated kitchen knife
Candle
Toothpicks
Low-temp hot glue and gun
Fabric
Cardboard
Scissors
Metal ruler
Sewing machine
Two ribbon bows
- Determine the size of the basket, and cut out Styrofoam pieces for all sides and the bottom. Cut a curved piece of Styrofoam in the shape of a basket handle.
- Assemble the basket by sticking half a toothpick into the Styrofoam edges of the sides and hot-gluing them together. Attach the short ends of the basket to the bottom first, then the long sides (figure A).
- Cut two small notches in the center of the two side pieces to attach the handle.
- Cover the Styrofoam with fabric, starting with the outside of the basket. Cut a strip of fabric long enough to go all the way around the basket, with a little excess for overlapping, and to extend about 1" around the bottom and top. Start at one short end, and hot-glue the fabric near the corner. Wrap the fabric around the basket, fold the end under to finish the edge, and hot-glue the fabric to the beginning, overlapping to finish the edge (figure B).
- Turn the box bottom side up. Miter the corners of the fabric, and hot-glue the 1" extension of the side fabric pieces to the bottom (figure C).
- Cover a piece of cardboard cut slightly smaller than the outside dimensions of the bottom of the box with fabric. The fabric should be cut approximately 1/2" larger than the cardboard all the way around. Place the fabric wrong side up on the work surface, with the cardboard in the center of the fabric. Run a bead of hot glue around the perimeter of the cardboard, pull the fabric over the edges of the cardboard, and glue the fabric to the cardboard (figure D). Hot-glue the fabric-covered cardboard piece to the bottom of the box.
- Fold the fabric over the top edges of the basket and hot-glue to the inside. Finish the inside of the basket by hot-gluing a strip of fabric around the insides. To finish the edge, fold the top edge of the fabric over 1/4" before gluing. Cover a piece of cardboard cut to fit the inside bottom of the basket with fabric as described above for the outside basket bottom, and hot-glue to the inside of the basket.
- Cut two strips of cardboard to fit the top and underside of the basket handle. Hot-glue them to the top and underside of the Styrofoam handle. Stitch and turn a tube of fabric, and thread it onto the handle. Hot-glue the handle to the notched side pieces. Hot-glue a bow at the base of each handle (figure E).
Tips: - When cutting Styrofoam, use a serrated kitchen knife. Run the blade along a candle to wax it for easier cutting.
- Place a metal ruler along the cutting line, and score the Styrofoam with the knife. Place the Styrofoam along the edge of a counter, and break it at the scored line.
- Smooth the cut edge of the Styrofoam by rubbing it against the edge of another piece of Styrofoam to "sand" it (figure F).
- Be sure to use low-temp hot glue on Styrofoam. High-temp glue will melt it.
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