On the 5th day of Christmas my true love gave to me, 5 Gooooolden Riiiiingsssss…. butttt I can’t give you all golden rings, so instead I give you a tutorial for a baby blanket. This definitely requires a sewing machine, but not any extensive knowledge on how use said machine. I’m a novice [at best] when it comes to sewing so this was my first big project and it wasn’t so painful :). My best friend Dawn is an expert sewer and happened to be over when I was starting this project and gave me some great tips and tricks to make this process easier. I made this blanket for my supervisor who just had an adorable baby girl last month. It’s super soft and makes the perfect gift for any new parent or soon-to-be parent.
Materials
- 1-1 1/2 yards Minky fabric (depending how big you want it to be)
- 1-1 1/2 yards Printed flannel
- Straight Pins
- Safety Pins
- Sewing Machine
- Sewing Needle
- Matching Thread
- Lay your fabrics out on a table with the minky on bottom and both right sides facing each other (Note: the minky will most likely be larger than the flannel so you can trim the excess off a bit, but still leave the minky ~1″ larger than the flannel)
- Tip from Dawn: Starting in the middle, place safety pins every 6″-12″ (This keeps your fabrics lined up and avoids you getting really cranky at the end of your project when they don’t line up
)
- Place straight pins around the edge of your blankets
- Begin sewing your first three sides from end to end
- On the fourth side, sew about 8 inches down and then leave a space unsewn ~6 inches long and begin sewing from that point to the end of that side. (This space is what you’ll use to flip the blanket right side out, but starting from the corner and leaving a gap in the middle just makes it easier to finish the blanket…another Dawn tip)
- After you’re done sewing, lay the blanket back out on your table and trim the minky to the size of your flannel
- Cut the corners of the blanket diagonally from the point where the stitches begin. (Dawn informed me that this makes the corners less “bulky”)
- Flip your blanket right side out. (Dawn suggested using a crochet hook to push the corners all the way out if you’re struggling)
- Fold both fabrics of the opening in towards each other (like the rest of the blanket) and pin closed
- Begin hand sewing the opening shut, removing pins as you go.
- Once it is all sealed up, weave your needle and thread back an inch or so on each fabric and cut your thread!
See, not so painful 
