Before i gave birth i was given a cute fleecy (non gender specific) blanket. I had my daughter Harlow in January during the middle of summer so all thick warm blankets were packed away for later.
3-4 months ago i pulled out the blanket and fell in love with it. I started to look closely at the design and realised it was quite simple and i could easily replicate it. So this little project is for a blanket and matching toddler pillowcase (which i'll make with the left over flannelette fabric)
It's pretty simple even for the most novice of sewers. I actually pre-washed all the fabric to prevent it from shirnking after i'd made it - plus i kind of think that by prewashing it i'll stop the fleece from pilling.
So you'll need:
1-2M of Fleece
1-2M of Flannelette fabric
Matching thread
When i went to spotlight they had a lot of flannelette on the clearance rack for $2.99 a metre so i bought 2 meters of each design and ended up with lots of pretty fabric for my stash! With the fleece i simple chose coordinating colours and went with 1M each. Fleece on a roll is doubled up so its quite wide. I made my blanket to fit my daughter cot (which eventually will convert into a toddler bed). You can either make one to fit a cot, toddler bed or something smaller for say a pram or floor/play blanket.
(PS im so going back this weekend to stock up on more flannel!)
Basically all you do is cut the the flannel and fleece out to your desired size then place the front of the flannel face down onto the fleece...sew all the way around leaving a 1-2cm edge (if you're need more space just trim the edges when you're done). Make sure you leave a gap big enough to flip your blanket right side out.
Once it's flipped right side out, fold the opening in and sew it shut, sewing a reinforcing edge around the whole of the blanket. You may end up with a better finish if you iron the blanket before sewing the reinforcing stitch to give it a smooth even look but i just sewed away (as i didn't have time to worry about ironing). It is also better to sew in a second reinforcing stitch to make it more durable but i don't like the look so i kept it simple :)
and dahdahhhh! you have a cute blanket! Great for winter :)
As far as the pillow case is concerned i simply copied one of my own. They're pretty simple to make (i think one of the first things i ever made!). I have a floor pillow for my daughter to lay on when she's having her bottle so this set will be for her play area - play blanket and matching pillow case :)
Stay tuned for more sewing adventures!
xx
