Tutorial Faux Chenille Baby Blanket With Riley Blake's Sasparilla In Teal

I can now check off faux chenille blanket from my to-do list !!!   Aunt Betty sent me directions to this blanket over 3 years ago.  It really was not a difficult project.  More time consuming than anything and hard on the hands with all the cutting.

I chose Riley Blake's Sasparilla in teal for the print and three coordinating flannels in red, teal and blue for the "chenille".  I purchased 1.25 yards of each.

My first step was to wash all the fabrics.  Since flannel shrinks quite a bit, I did not want any excessive bunching of the fabrics when I washed the final product.  I then laid the Sasparilla print face down on the carpet, stretched and smoothed it in place, then laid down the three flannels and did the same with them.  Once I had the four layers stacked and smoothed, I carefully flipped them over and smoothed out any new wrinkles.

The first step to start the sewing process is to draw a diagonal line through the middle of the fabric.  I used a measuring tape, a yard stick, two bottles of laundry soap and a fabric marking pencil.  The soap bottles were to hold the measuring tape in place.  I used the yard stick to get a straight line.....

After I had my line drawn, it was time to start sewing the 168 diagonal lines it would take to make the chenille blanket.  I first sewed over the blue chalk line and then used the edge of my walking foot as my guide to finish the other lines.

I thought this was a lot of work, until I got to the cutting part.  This was actually the easy step.

I bought a pair of chenille cutting scissors from Joann's.  You have to cut through the three layers of flannel but not cut into the fourth layer (my sasparilla print).  I was nervous with every line and had to flip the blanket over and make sure I was not getting into the fourth layer.  The cutting process was very tedious and hard on the hands.  The chenille scissors are very, very sharp.  I'll spare you the picture of where I stabbed myself in the thigh with them.  On accident of course!  I was working on the floor, and the scissors were under my leg.  Somehow when I reached to grab them, I pushed them into my leg and made a good sized gash that will take a while to heal.

After getting all the lines cut and squaring up the blanket, I rounded the corners using a dinner plate as a guide.........

I chose a teal colored satin binding.  I stitched it to the flannel side first and then to the cotton print side.

Two of my rounded corners turned out really well.  And the other two not so good.  The two where the lines ran this way were the prettiest.

This corner.............not so good !

I ran it through a wash/dry cycle twice and here is how the flannels did their "chenille" magic.......

I think it turned out pretty good for my first attempt.....

Lessons learned for next time:

I will use four layers of flannel instead of three.  But i will only cut through three of them.  You can see the white of the back of the printed fabric through the cut lines, so I want to try to avoid that next time.

I will also make my lines a little further apart.  This will make it easier for the cutting process and I'm hoping give a thicker and taller "chenille" look to the blanket.

I won't double the satin binding.  I think it's too thin for this blanket and will look better if it's wider.

I used this blogger's tutorial as a visual reference.  She gives an easy to follow step by step.

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Riley Blake Life In The Jungle

This weekend I completed a order for a baby boy gift using Riley Blake's fabric line called Life In The Jungle. I made a quilted changing pad, four burp cloths, one necktie onesie and one flannel backed blanket. It all turned out super cute and I really like the orange, gray and turquoise together.

The changing pad was made with 42 five inch squares.  I backed it with a plaid and used the same for the binding.  I then free motion quilted and ran it through the washer and dryer to give it the perfect amount puckishness.

Four burp cloths using Gerber 6-ply pre-fold cloth diapers.....

One tiny onesie with a plaid tie and one 36" X 36" blanket backed in a white flannel with a turquoise stripe that matches the colors on the front side of the blanket.........

For the blanket, I pinned right sides together, stitched all around leaving an opening to turn it.......

Then top stitched it using a decorative stitch....

Sewed my labels on, and this gift is ready to go!

Adorable !!!

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Cosmic Zoo Blue Giraffe, Indian Summer and Dots

Another baby shower gift completed this weekend.  Katie's friends all seem to be having babies at the same time.  I made a blanket, eight burp cloths and a quilted baby changing pad this weekend.  The new mom is using mostly neutrals in her nursery so I went with Sarah Watson's, Indian Summer Collection.  The fox print is my favorite and what I chose to go on the back of the changing pad.

I used 42 five inch blocks for the front and a solid piece of the fox print for the backing.  I quilted it using a free motion technique and made my own binding that I machine stitched to the front and back...

 

I made five burp cloths using the Indian Summer prints and three using some dot patterns I had in my stash.

 

I made the baby blanket with 1.25 yards of Cosmic Zoo Blue Giraffe and double sided minky fleece in turquoise for the back.

I made the blanket by sewing the two pieces together, right sides in, then turned it and double top stitched it.

After top stitching it, I used a dinner plate and traced three circles on the front of the blanket with a chalk pencil.  I then stitched the three circles.......

Just something  simple to keep the two pieces of the blanket from shifting....

 

The last thing I did was add my label using a small zig zag stitch.  Then this project was ready for Katie to pick up and take to her friend.  Scroll down to see who I have linked to this week.

Kate Spain Central Park Minky Blanket

The okay has been given by mama Stephanie.  I can now officially talk about my grand baby that will be arriving in February!  Words cannot express the joy!  Aaron and Stephanie will be eagerly awaiting the arrival of their baby boy.  I hope the end of February gets here quickly.  Hopefully with the Holiday season approaching, the time will go by really fast.  But, I have lots of sewing to do.  Lots of quilts, baby blankets, burp cloths and changing pads to make.  Last month I started purchasing some new fabrics and this weekend I got started on a quilt and got this minky blanket completed.  I used a print out of Kate Spain's, Central Park collection and some thick charcoal minky dot.

I love this animal print with all the pretty colors.  I purchased the minky off Etsy from Sew Much Fun Fabric.  She provided lickety split service and an excellent product.  This line of minky is thicker than what is offered at Joann's and the dots are raised higher too.  It's very plush and extra soft.

Prep the cotton print fabric by pre-washing it and then ironing it with starch to make it easier to work with....

Through trial and error and learning new techniques through other bloggers and YouTube I have discovered the wonders of spray adhesive.  It' is now the only way I will work with large pieces of minky.  It does have a major drawback though.  It is messy and cleanup is a challenge, but the advantages out weigh the cleanup.  I love how the minky stays in place and does not bunch up.

Spread out the minky, right side up, on a flat surface and spray liberally with the spray adhesive.   Next, lay the cotton print face down on top of the minky.  The minky will be sticky, so try to get the cotton print as flat as possible before laying it down.  Using the starch spray greatly helps with this step.  Smooth the cotton print by starting in the middle and working your way to the sides.

When you get it completely smooth, straight pin the edges with 1 to 1.5 inch increments all the way around....

Stitch the two pieces together with a 1/4 inch margin.  Use of the spray adhesive makes this step go very quickly with no bunching up under the needle.  Leave an approximate opening of 5 inches for turning.

Trim off the excess fabric.....

I like to leave a wide border where the opening is.  Turn the blanket to the right sides.  You will find the adhesive spray is still holding the two fabrics together so you will need to spread them apart with your fingers and make sure you keep opening up the two pieces of fabric all the way to the sides and corners.

Smooth the blanket and pin again.  I trim off the wide minky end after I get the blanket turned.  I also like to point the straight pins in a different direction where the opening is so when I am stitching the blanket closed, I will know where I am at. 

I top stitched around all sides at approximately 1/4 inch.  The spray adhesive on the minky is going to stick to the plate of the sewing machine.  You will have to pull and push the fabric through some but it's not a big worry.
And here is what you get........a super soft, plush minky blanket with an adorable designer print fabric.....

I'm loving the colors.  It looks very little boy to me !  Remember to take time now to cleanup your work surfaces including the surface of the sewing machine around the needle to get the residue off left by the spray adhesive.

I'm looking forward to wrapping up the new baby in this blanket made by Grandma....me !

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