Chicken Egg Basket

Materials Needed

• Outer Fabric & Wings: 1/2 yard of printed cotton (white with blue floral pattern)

• Comb, Wattle & Lining: 1/2 yard of solid dark blue cotton

• Beak: Small scrap of yellow felt or cotton

• Eyes: Two small black buttons

• Structure: Medium-weight fusible batting or fleece

• Basic Sewing Supplies: Matching thread, scissors, pins, mark pen, and a sewing machine

Step 1: Cutting the Pattern Pieces

• Chicken Body: Cut 2 pieces from printed fabric and 2 pieces from fusible batting.

• Inner Lining: Cut 2 pieces from solid blue fabric.

• Wings: Cut 4 pieces from printed fabric (2 for each side) and 2 pieces from batting.

• Comb & Wattle: Cut 2 pieces of comb and 2 pieces of wattle from solid blue fabric, plus 1 piece of batting for each.

• Beak: Cut 2 triangles from yellow fabric.

Step 2: Preparing the Accents (Comb, Wattle & Beak)

1. Layer the two yellow beak triangles right-sides together. Sew along two sides, turn right-side out, and lightly stuff.

2. Place the comb pieces right-sides together with batting underneath. Sew along the curved top edge, clip the curves, turn right-side out, and press. Repeat for the wattle.

Step 3: Assembling the Wings

1. Place two wing pieces right-sides together with batting.

2. Sew around the perimeter, leaving a 2-inch opening on the straight edge.

3. Turn right-side out, press, and topstitch 1/4 inch around the edge for detail. Repeat for the second wing.

Step 4: Constructing the Main Body

1. Fuse the batting to the wrong side of the outer body pieces.

2. Baste the comb, beak, and wattle in position onto the right side of one body piece, facing inward toward the body center.

3. Place the two outer body pieces right-sides together. Sew along the front chest, tail, and bottom edge, leaving the top opening unsewn.

Step 5: Lining and Final Assembly

1. Sew the two blue lining pieces right-sides together along the same edges, leaving a 3-inch gap at the bottom for turning.

2. Slip the outer body inside the lining (right sides together). Align the top raw edges and sew all around the top opening.

3. Turn the entire piece right-side out through the gap in the lining. Hand-sew or machine-stitch the gap closed, then push the lining inside the chicken body.

4. Topstitch around the top rim to secure the edge.

Step 6: Finishing Touches

1. Position the wings on each side of the body and topstitch them down along their top/back edge.

2. Hand-sew the black button eyes onto both sides of the head.

3. Shape the basket body, fill it with fresh eggs, and display!

Here are additional pro tips to make this pattern easier to assemble, more durable, and visually appealing:

Fabric & Interfacing Tips

• Stiff Bottom Support: Cut an oval insert out of heavy plastic canvas, thin cardboard, or foam board and place it at the inside bottom of the basket so it holds its shape when loaded with heavy eggs.

• Quilting Details: Before assembling the wings, add decorative parallel topstitching lines to give them a dimensional, quilted texture.

• Directional Prints: Pay attention to the fabric pattern direction when cutting out the body pieces so flowers or motifs don’t end up upside down.

Construction & Sewing Tricks

• Clip Curved Seams: Always make small notch cuts along the seam allowances of the comb, wattle, and tail before turning them right-side out to keep the curves smooth and flat.

• Basting First: Machine-baste the comb, beak, and wattle to the head at $1/8$ inch from the edge before sewing the main seam. This prevents them from shifting out of place while stitching layers together.

• Safety Eyes Alternative: If making this for a kitchen with young children, substitute the button eyes with hand-embroidered French knots using black embroidery floss.

Sizing & Styling Variations

• Custom Sizing: Scale the pattern up by $120\%$ to create a larger bread basket or scale it down to $70\%$ for small decorative Easter candy dishes.

• Coordinated Kitchen Set: Use leftover fabric scraps to sew matching potholders, trivets, or a toaster cover in the same blue-and-white theme.