Patchwork Fabric-Covered Gift Box
Submitted by Rachael on 2006-01-01 and viewed 11058 times.
Total Word Count: 631 Create a wonderful gift box covered in patchwork fabric! This is a quick and easy project that will have you a very cute storage box in about 2 hours.
Patchwork fabric-covered gift boxes are an easy, affordable way
to dress up any gift package. They're also great for storage.
Total preparation and assembly time for this project is
approximately 2-3 hours, depending on the size of the shoe box.
Materials:
Shoe box, or any other small box with removable lid
Fabric scraps
Wonder Under or other fusible web*
Pinking shears
Iron, ironing board
Optional - buttons, raffia, etc.
*Fusible web is a fusible interfacing that allows you to bind two
fabrics together or fabric to another surface by applying heat.
It can be purchased in packages or by the yard wherever
interfacing is sold.
Directions:
To assemble the fabric-covered gift box, essentially you are
going to be ironing fabric scraps onto a shoe box.
While assembling my box, I found it was easier to iron the
fusible web onto the fabric first, and then cut the fabric into
the desired shapes. The web reinforced the fabric and the
pinking shears cut through the fabric more cleanly.
Choose a piece of fabric and cut a piece of the fusible web to
fit. With a warm iron, iron the web to the wrong side of the
fabric, following the directions that came with the fusible web.
Don't remove paper backing yet. Next cut the fabric into desired
shapes with the pinking shears. Regular sewing shears would work
also, but the pinking shears give the fabric an edge that will
not unravel as easily.
When cutting your shapes, cut some rectangular, some square, and
some triangular. The number and size of each are up to you, but
you will find some fit better than others along the edges and in
the corners. Long rectangular pieces lay along the top edges
better and reduce the number of pieces required to line the top.
Cut pieces out of several coordinating fabrics. After you cut
your pieces out, start ironing them to the box. Peel the paper
off of the fusible web, lay the fabric with fusible web side down
on the box and press with the iron. You may have to go over it a
couple of times to get it to stick really well.
I started with the top of the box and worked my way down. Fold a
piece of fabric over the top edge of the box. Mine is folded
over about an inch. Iron the edge on the inside of the box
first. Fold the piece to the outside of the box and press again.
Continue overlapping pieces until the box is covered. Cover the
lid of the box in the same way, starting with the bottom edge.
When you're done look for small spots you missed, adding fabric
pieces until the entire surface is covered. You can't make any
mistakes...it's supposed to look like a patchwork quilt.
Look over the box for spots where the edges of the fabric are
coming up and gently run the iron over them. Sometimes it will
take a couple of times to get all the edges to lay down. If you
later find a stubborn spot that just doesn't want to stick, just
dab a little glue on it and press down until it takes hold.
You can embellish your box with buttons, raffia bows, etc. I
used a hot glue gun to glue a corrugated cardboard heart to the
top, and then I glued a raffia bow to the heart.
Add some tissue paper to the inside of the box, and it's ready to
add a gift. I placed in mine a small stack of handmade cards
tied together with a piece of raffia tied into a bow. The box
was a gift to a friend who likes to write pen pal letters.
You can also use these boxes for storage...for photos, letters,
or whatever else you'd like to store in a pretty box. These are
great for using up fabric scraps you have laying around.
This fabric-covered box is very easy to make and makes a great
complement to any gift.
Pictures of Finished Project:
http://www.crafty-moms.com/articles/091603a.shtml
Copyright 2003.
Article Source: http://www.simplesewingprojects.com
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