Are you tired of plastic store-bought Easter baskets that all look the same? Do you want the perfect basket for those egg hunts? Or a one-of-a-kind for Easter morning that will surely bring a smile to your family and friends? Have you thought about making a DIY Easter basket? With Juju’s In the hoop designs, you can create a special gift that will be treasured not just this year but for years. In this tutorial, I will guide you step-by-step on how to make a customized embroidered Easter basket.
Once you make one and see how fun they are and how creative you can be, you might want to make more. I know I did! So, let’s gather our supplies and have fun making a DIY in the hoop embroidered Easter basket. Each design is compatible with a 5x7, 6x10 or 8x12 hoop.
Supplies needed to complete any of the 3 baskets.
I purchase and download the pattern of your choice, Designs by Juju Easter basket, Designs by Juju Easter bunny basket or Designs by Juju Easter chick basket, embroidery frame, tear-away stabilizer, felt, cotton fabric, buttons or snaps, pinking shears, appliqué scissors, rotary cutter or fabric scissors, and thread colors of your choice.
Depending on how soft or firm you want to make your basket will determine which interface to use. I made 3 baskets with 3 different interfaces. The Easter basket was made with HeatnBond lite iron; this is the lightest; the bunny basket was made with Pellon Craft-Fuse, the heaviest of the 3, and the chick basket was made with Pellon fusible Fleece. Each one works well and irons easily onto your felt and fabric.
I will begin with the Easter egg basket. The pattern includes the appliqué eggs for the front. I then customized it with an additional pattern for the back. Bunny Kisses and Easter Wishes Applique - Designs by JuJu. This design will work for both the 8x12 and 6x10 hoops.
To begin our DIY basket, download the pattern. Each pattern comes with instructions that include a cutting guide. Using this guide, find the size to fit your hoop and cut out all needed pieces of outer felt, cotton lining, and interfacing. If you use the craft fuse for your interfacing, you only need to cut one for each piece of felt. If you are using the heat and bond lite or the fusible fleece, cut out for both felt and cotton. Label all your pieces. Once you have everything cut and labeled, iron your interfacing onto the back of your felt and cotton if applicable. Scrap pieces of cotton do not need interfacing.
Load your design onto your machine and select the size of the basket you will make. Be sure you load a design the same size each time you load a design. The first step is a placement line. Run this step directly onto your tear-away stabilizer.
If using heat and bond, remove the paper backing after ironing and lay felt right side up onto your hoop. Only use heat and bond lite. This interfacing is safe to sew through. Place felt on top of your hoop, covering the entire placement line.
Take your hoop back to your machine and stitch steps 2 and 3.
These are your cutting and sewing lines.
The following steps are the appliqué Easter eggs.
Stitch out step 4. This is the placement for your first egg.
Lay your fabric over the outline and stitch step 5 to sew it down. Remove your hoop and trim the fabric as close as possible without cutting the stitches.
Once all your eggs are stitched and trimmed, continue with steps 14-18; these are satin stitches. Choose thread colors to coordinate with your fabric.
Step 19 is your grass. Stitch out the grass.
Do not stitch step 20. We are going to add our lining first. Remove your hoop from the machine. Keep your design in the hoop and lay it back on a flat surface.
Tape your front lining piece (be sure to remove the paper backing) and place it over the design outline on the right side facing up. Make sure your lines are covered. Repeat steps 2 and 3.
The lining is now attached to the front. Move forward to step 20 and stitch out the markings for buttons or snaps.
Remove from the hoop and set aside
Load the back of the basket. Make sure you load the correct size.
If you wish to customize your basket, this is where you will do it. Once you’ve loaded the back, tap the add button. This will take you back to the Home Screen.
Open a design you wish to use. I am using another Juju design, so I will open my folder and select my design. The size of your chosen image will depend upon the size of your basket. You may have to play with this to get the correct size.
For the large basket, the image 5.02x5.02 is an excellent fit. For the medium size basket, the 3.91x3.90 fits nicely. This particular design will not work for the small basket. But don’t let that limit you. You can always add an initial or a smaller design.
Once you decide on your image, tap set, and it will appear on your
screen.
Rotate the image 90 degrees to the left.
Tap ok, then embroidery. The image is now added to your back. Prepare your hoop with a tear-away stabilizer.
Stitch the placement line. Lay your prepared felt over the line and stitch steps 2 and 3. Skip step 4. We will return to it later. Step 5 will begin your additional design. Once you have completed your design, remove the hoop from your machine.
Add the lining right side up to the back of the hoop—tape to hold. Return the hoop to the machine. Repeat steps 2 and 3. Finish with step 4. The front and back are now complete.
For the remaining pieces, stitch the placement line onto the tear-away stabilizer. Tape the cotton lining to the underside of the hoop right side up, place the outer felt piece on top of the hoop, and stitch all the steps for each piece. When finished, you will have 2 sides,1 bottom, and a set of handles.
Before cutting your pieces, tear away the stabilizer from the edges. Using pinking shears, cut between the inner and outer lines. The inner line is the sewing line.
Lay the basket pieces flat on a table.
With lining sides together, pin or clip the front to the bottom, matching the edges.
Stitch along the stitching line, remembering to back stitch at the beginning and end
Repeat with the opposite side bottom piece.
Sew each side to the short ends of the bottom.
To construct the walls, sew the front, back, and sides together
For the handles, sew the short ends of the two pieces together to make one long strap.
If using buttons, open the button holes to accommodate. I suggest using a seam ripper for this. Place them anywhere on the buttonhole at both ends of the handle if using snaps.
Sew a button or attach snaps over the X on the front and back.
Attach the handle, and your embroidered Easter basket is complete!
This bunny basket is made using a craft fuse and buttons.
Supplies are the same. Add craft fuse, omit heat, and bond.
Select Bunny Image
Iron craft, add a fuse to all felt pieces. In stitch step 1, your placement stitch is onto the away stabilizer.
Lay your prepared felt over the top, covering the placement line. Run steps 2 and 3.
Step 4 will outline the bunny.
Choose a piece of scrap fabric for the bunny. I used faux fur for my bunny. Cotton will work fine as well.
Stitch bunny outline and trim.
Because I chose high-pile fabric for my bunny, I will use a water-soluble topper. This will keep my stitches from disappearing and allow the egg to sit on the fur.
Leave the topper on to finish the bunny stitches.
Tear away to remove. You can dab any topper left with a wet Q-tip.
Tape the lining to the back of the hoop and repeat steps 2 and 3. The front of the basket is done. Remove from the hoop and set aside. Load the remaining pieces onto your machine, remembering always to use the correct size.
Run the placement stitch.
Tape the lining to the back side of the hoop
Place the prepared felt on top of the hoop.
Run the remaining stitches.
Remove excess stabilizer and trim all the edges using pinking shears. Cut between the outer and inner stitch lines.
Lay your basket flat. Assemble the same as the previously shown Easter basket,
Pin or clip lining sides together, and sew the front, back, and sides to the bottom to form the basket. Remember to sew on the inner line.
Sew buttons on each side, and open the buttonhole using a seam ripper.
Attach the handle, and your basket is complete!
This cute Chick basket is made the same way as the other two. This one was made with fusible fleece for the interfacing. Now that you have made one basket, I hope you continue to make more.
Each interfacing will give you different results. All are good. Customize your baskets with different designs. With all the designs JuJu has to offer, you will indeed find just the right ones for your DIY embroidered Easter basket.
Fill with candy and treats, and see the smiles and joy on Easter morning.
Customize with a name or Easter design to create a unique Easter basket for someone special, to be treasured year after year.
Add to the spring decor any place in your home.
Create a tabletop delight to brighten your home. With your imagination and creativity, these embroidered Easter baskets will surely please.
