In honour of sewing classes starting back up this month, I thought I'd share a little sewing tutorial with you. A baby blanket is a great gift to an expecting mother. It's soft and cuddly enough for a newborn, but its larger size makes it a great play blanket as the baby grows. This would also make a very special gift for a baby shower...who doesn't love a handmade gift? I wish, it would have thought of that when my nephews were born. Whoever is next in our family and friend circle will get this blanket ...
This project is suitable for anyone with basic sewing skills (if you don't have basic sewing skills, why don't you sign up for one of our classes!) and it only takes an hour, or less to make. If you've never attempted a blanket, this is a great place to start. Supplies:
1m of cotton, I used quilting cotton
1m of "minky dot" fabric
Colour coordinating thread
Pins
Fabric marking pen or pencil
Directions: Let's cuts! Your cotton fabric should be 44-45" wide, from selvage to selvage. Cut the length to 45", so you will have a square of fabric measuring 45 x 45".
Once you've cut out your square, you can round the corners by tracing the edge of a plate or bowl with a fabric marking pen. Just line the edge of the plate up with the straight edges of the fabric to make a nice round corner.
Repeat for all corners.
Cut the same size square from your minky material. It may be wider than the cotton material, so you might have to cut the length and the width. Using the same technique as before, round the corners of your square.
Now that you have two 45 x 45" squares of fabric, lay them out, right sides together (meaning the pretty/good sides of the fabric should be facing each other) and line up all of the edges.
If you don't have enough space on your table, laying the fabrics out on the floor would be possible since it's quite big. If your edges don't line up perfectly, that's ok, you can trim them after everything is pinned together.
if you have, you can use large safety pins to secure the two layers together. This just keeps the fabric secured together and prevents shifting while you're sewing. I don't have any, so I used pins instead.
Remember to leave a hole open about 10" wide for turning the blanket right side out. I mark where I want my hole to be by placing my pins perpendicular to the edge of the fabric since all your other pins are parallel. When I run into the perpendicular pins it reminds me not to sew there. This is my trick for remembering.
Using a 1/2" seam allowance, sew around the edge of the blanket. Once you've sewn all the way around, snip the fabric around the curved corners so that it will lay flat when it's turned. Be careful not the snip the stitches. You can also use your pinking shears.
Turn your blanket right side out and give the edges a press with the iron so they look nice and neat. Careful with the minky fabric, it might melt under the heat of the iron. So either use a press cloth or only press from the cotton fabric side.
Next turn under the edges of the hole you left and pin it. Using a 1/4" seam allowance, top stitch around the entire blanket, making sure the hole gets stitched closed.
With the remaining minky fabric, you can make a matching cushion or even a cuddly soft toy.
And that's it! You're all done! Happy gifting!
