I've been wanting to try my hand at sewing a fabric bucket every since I first saw the striking linen ones in Lotta Jansdotter's line. While I own most of Lotta's books, I never saw a pattern for one, but figured it probably wouldn't be too hard to figure out. If you're interested in making a fabric bucket of your own — good for containing everything from magazines to dog toys — here's how I went about it.
What You Need
Materials
Heavyweight fabric (stiff fabric such as duck cloth/canvas)
Coordinating fabric
Coordinating thread
Tools
Sewing Machine
Scissors
Chalk or fabric marker
Measuring tape
Instructions
1. Pre-wash fabric and press.
2. Cut out your pieces. For the tall bucket my measurements were 13½" x 24" and a 9" diameter circle. For the smaller bucket my measurements were 10½" x 22" and a 8" diameter circle. Regardless of the size you choose to make, you'll need 2 of each (rectangle and circle), for a total of 4 pieces for each bucket you make.
3. After cutting your fabric pieces, press out any wrinkles.
4. Pin your rectangle pieces together, wrong sides facing in (you should be sewing with the right side facing up).
5. Sew together on three sides, allowing ¼" seam allowance. Leave one of the long sides un-sewn, this will be the top edge.
6. Fold the top raw edge down and under, to form a neat top edge. Press, pin, and then sew your seam with a straight stitch on the top edge as well the bottom edge.
7. Fold the fabric in half so the short sides line up, this will form your tube. The wrong side of the fabric should be facing out. Line up the top edges first, pin, then pin the rest. Sew the two edges together with a straight stitch, but be sure to start with the top edge first so you have a nice even tube.
8. Now for the somewhat tricky part. Take the circle pieces and line them up so the wrong sides are facing together, then match the fabric with the same fabric (my brown fabric will be facing pattern-side out under the natural canvas fabric). Pin fabric by working your way around the circle, making sure you have all 4 pieces included. You might have to gather it to pin in some areas, but mine worked out pretty evenly. If you have too much fabric as you are pinning, just trim the excess, but still keep the shape circular. Sew together where you pinned, again making sure you have sewn through all 4 pieces. I sewed 2-3 times around the circle just to be on the safe side.
9. Trim any excess fabric around the seam on the side of the tube, as well as the circular top. Flip inside out and press your side seam.
10. The finished buckets shown unfolded, but as you can see if the first picture, they work just as well with the top edge folded.
Additional Notes: Measurements for the finished, unfolded buckets are as follows:
Large, 8" x 11½". Small, 7" x 9".
Images: Kimberly Watson
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love it! but would the water go through when watering?
its a plant cozy!
I don't think they are using the fabric bucket as the actual plant pot. The pot is just sitting inside the bucket. You would have to be careful not to overwater or the water would definitely seep into the fabric.
These are super-cute, but the ones I've seen in stores are really, really stiff -- i wonder if you could use some interfacing or soemthing between the fabric layers to make it stiffer? And, if so, would it be tougher to sew?
SillyKelster - mywalton is correct. The plant is actually in an ugly plastic pot with a tray beneath. The "cozy" is just hiding it.
lwyrgrl1 - You are also correct. If you want the "bucket" to be durable and stand on its own, you definitley need to use a stiff fabric. I used a canvas/duck cloth fabric for the lining and a medium-weight fabric for the outside, which worked perfectly! It was pretty easy to sew, just switch your needle to a slightly bigger one. However, I would not use two heavyweight fabrics b/c it's unnecessary and it would probably be a lot more difficult. It you are set on having to use other thinner fabrics, definitely use fusible interfacing.
If you have any other questions, ask away and I'll be sure to check in. I really loved doing this project - it was super easy and the buckets are extremely versatile!
Happy sewing... Kimber
These look great. I'm curious to make square bins. any tips?
Fun idea, and cute.
You could use plastic canvas (you know, like needlework canvas but made of plastic) to make the "mold" for your buckets and then sew the fabric to it as a final step. You'd follow roughly the same dimensions as for the fabric, and then sew the plastic together by hand before you attached the fabric.
These are so fun! I might have to do these for storage bins (or to hide my hideous plant pot). The fabric choices are adorable in the article too.
Isn't there something you could spray on it to make it stiffer? Scotch guard or something.
totally making these for the nursery. Yay!
I think if AT is going to start posting sewing tutorials especially modelled after Lotta Jansdotter products, they should be written by someone who knows how to sew. The side seams should not be showing but enclosed in the bucket. This is not how you would go about sewing one of these. This kind of amateur tutorial does not belong on here.
@ Si -- I hate to say it but I agree with you. There are a number of ways to do it and this is definitely not one of them.
Thanks, Balwearie. I certainly didn't intend my comment to be mean-spirited. I just find after years of reading AT, I am getting more and more confused by the content. I used to look to the site for posting the best of the best and so posts like this just seem oddly out of place...
I use Maya*Made 's pattern for burlap buckets but sub cute fabric for burlap. You can purchase her patterns here: http://mayamade.blogspot.com/p/patterns.html
The directions are easy to follow and loaded with helpful photos. I just scaled up the measurements to make a jumbo toy bucket for baby nieces.