*another repost of a tutorial I did over the summer. This is one of my absolute favorite baby blankets ever!*
Thank you Erin for having me here today! It's fun to know there are fellow mamas who don't find out the gender of their baby :)
I haven't done near the amount of sewing for this baby that I thought I would. In fact, I haven't done any. Part of it is that we aren't finding out what we're having, and part of it is that with baby number six, there are only a few things I consider essential: diapers, onesies, and blankets. I've gone through my fair share of blankets and I definitely have my favorite: the knit blanket. I love how I can swaddle my babies, stretching the knit blankets tightly those first few months. Many of mine are pink, or other girly colors, so I decided to make a gender neutral blanket...just in case ;)
You will need two pieces of knit. Wash them twice in hot water to make sure any shrinkage that is going to happen happens before you sew. Cut them out together 36" x 33", smoothing out any wrinkles. Round each corner using a small glass. Pin the layers so they don't shift as you sew.
Using either knit, cut a binding strip 4 times the width you want the finished band to be (2" if you want 1/2" binding) and the length 140" (a little less than 4 yards). You might have to piece your binding, just press your seams open.
Pin binding around blanket, leaving 2" on each side at the ends, making sure the binding fits. Sew the ends together so they lay flat when pinned with blanket. Press open seam allowance and sew around perimeter the width you want your binding (1/2" seam allowance if you want your finished binding to be 1/2").
Stitch with a slight zig-zag stitch, so increase your width to about a 1. This will keep the stretch in your fabric.
Trim your corners down slightly, just 1/8" or 1/4". Fold the edge of the binding in 1/2" and then over the edge of the blanket.
Pin in place and stitch using a double needle.
My striped knit turned out to be too thick, so I just folded the edge over instead of folding the band in again, which you can do with fabric that won't fray if you don't mind a more casual finish.
If you are unsure of how to use a double needle, I talk about it more in depth here. Okay. I think I am getting closer to feeling ready for this baby to come :)
Wow! How timely. I just searched for this tutorial yesterday :) I have a baby nephew coming this spring and am on a sewing kick- making lots of blankets, lovies and applique shirts.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tutorial!
C--so glad to help! Good luck with your new bundle :)
ReplyDeleteMy babies are 29 and 25, and we did not know the gender. As my husband said to the ultrasound technicion, "isn't that like peeking at your Christmas presents ahead of time?"
ReplyDeleteLove your blog and your beautiful family!
How did you get the corner to bind so nicely? I did a blanket recently and the rounded corners were just horrible to do. I couldn't get the binding to pin right, etc. I'm making another now for a pregnant family member and I was just going to do mitered corners, because they seem easier. I'd love some help! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteMichelle--If your corners are too tightly rounded it will be hard to get the trim to lay flat around them. Try making the circles a bit larger. Also, my knit has a fair amount of stretch. If you're using a knit that doesn't have very much stretch to it, that might also be a contributing factor.
ReplyDelete