Friday, December 21, 2012

baby blanket : custom order


I made this baby blanket for my aunt to give as a Christmas gift.  She came into the quilt shop when I was working and I helped her pick out the fabrics. The red fabric is minky, which is a soft, plush fabric that is actually polyester, but feels amazing.  The black & white fabric is 100% cotton and has small paw prints on it.  She purchased a yard of each, so this blanket measures approximately 34" x 40". 

 

 I always pre-wash my cotton fabrics when making baby blankets.  I wash & dry, then repeat.  The first time I made a blanket, I did not do this and the cotton shrank and distorted the shape of the blanket.  The minky does not shrink (since it is polyester), so I do not pre-wash it.  Also, the minky would "shed" everywhere if it was washed with raw edges. 

After the cotton has been pre-washed, I square up the edges.  I then lay the cotton fabric on top of the minky fabric ("right" sides together) and cut around both fabrics.  From there, I sew the sides together with a 1/2" seam allowance, leaving a 6 inch gap to turn the fabric out.  Before I turn the fabric out, I clip the corners to remove the bulk.  Then I turn the fabric out, push the corners out, and pin the opening shut.  Then I top stitch around the blanket 1/4" from the edge, making sure to catch the opening.  It's just that simple.  The only other thing I do is I set my stitch length quite short when I am sewing the fabrics together on the "inside".  When I am top stitching, I set my stitch length a bit longer - I just think it looks nicer to have a longer top stitch.  These really are the easiest blankets to make and anyone can make one!  I hope you'll try!

-V

2 comments:

  1. I have the blanket all wrapped & ready to go...Mark even thought it was cute :)Thanks so much for doing this.
    -Kim

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  2. No problem, Kim! They are really easy & fun to make! And it is nice to take a break from quilting from time to time. ;)

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