Knotted fleece blankets?

[DogwoodMama]

I was at a playdate this morning and saw a knotted fleece blanket someone had made my friend's ds... dd loved it and I'd like to make one and a matching pillow for her... to me, it looked like there were two layers of fleece sewn together with maybe a 6 inch border, and about 1 inch slits were cut and tied in knots...

Has anyone made something like this before? Do I have the right idea? Also, any suggestions for where to get a good price on decent quality fleece? I'd like something with cute designs (this one had lions & tigers on it). TIA! :)

[JJsMom]

I happen to have instructions for a tie blanket! Here's what it says:
1 2/3 yards fleece
1 2/3 yards another print of fleece (you could use two different colors or one print, one plain, whatever!
Cut a 56" to 60" square of both pieces. Make sure you remove the salvages (the rough edge)
Put the two pieces together, make sure the right side are out, so you can see them. Cut the fringe about 5 inches deep and about 1 inch wide. Cut a 5 inch square from each corner. Tie knots! That's it! For a pillow, cut at least 10 inches larger than the pillow form.
Let me know how it turns out! :grin

[DogwoodMama]

that's so easy! It's no sew then! :tu Thanks!

Now to find some cute fleece... :think

[Mothering by Heart]

My mom has made a ton of these. They are so fun! And cute, too!

[bostonsmama]

we used to make these too. we just used one piece of fleece most of the time! even easier! i was going to suggest the matching pillow, but i see you already are making one. i think the pillows are so super cute! joann's has their fleece on sale quite often. or, i did see some super cute fleece at walmart the other day. they even had some tie dye! ;)

[Soliloquy]

Just FYI--

I received one of these as a gift. Very cute and soft. But, it fell apart when I washed it. All the knots came undone. Now I have two, thin, fringed blankets instead of one thick one. I don't know if the person who made it didn't knot it properly or if they all do this. Just thought I'd pass it along . . .

[DogwoodMama]

Hmmm... the one I saw yesterday like they had had sewn it like a pillow, then flipped it & then knotted it to make it sturdier... has anyone tried this?

I found fleece $5/yard... a very girly pink flowered pattern... I got 4 yards- hope it's enough for a blanket, pillow & maybe "mini" blanket for dd's beloved baby. :)

[cannuke]

Another hint... When (if) you're pinning fleece, use quilting pins (the long ones). I like to use regular length glass headed pins when sewing (so I can iron over them), but I keep losing those in fleece b/c it's so nice and plush! :giggle The quilting pins are easier to find when you're done with them.

Good luck!

[DogwoodMama]

Ummm, stupid question... should I wash the fleece before I make the blanket? If I do, should it be before or after I have cut the squares? :O

[cannuke]

Nah, only if you want to. I personally like the smell of working with freshly laundered fabrics, rather than that fabric store smell. That's the only reason I would wash fleece. Fleece doesn't shrink, so it doesn't need prewashing like a cotton would.

Another bonus is that it also doesn't fray, so you don't actually have to finish the edges! :tu

[DogwoodMama]

Well, I finally got around to making it last night- I've been working on it for weeks, cutting the fabric, etc. but couldn't get it done when dh wasn't around. Dd has started napping on the couch during her nap so I'm hoping that I can get a sleep association going by having her nap on the blanket... It's so comfy! And this is a very forgiving project, though I wish I had a mat and rotary cutter, because that would have made cutting the slits very easy.

So C loves it- I used the "right side" of the fabric on "top" and the "wrong side" on bottom because I think it's softer and it was still pretty. Our camera needs to be charged but I'll try to post a picture soon. Thanks for all the help! :)

[Mother of Sons]

If it fell apart she probably only did half the knot. When I first started making them I found that out pretty quick. You have to do the shoelace thing and then do it again otherwise it will fall apart. I don't know what all the knots are called lol. I like to knot them so that the fringe is a different color from the blanket. Like if one side is pink and the other side is purple. The purple side will have pink fringe and the pink side will have purple fringe.

[Teribear]

Sounds like the PP is describing a square knot. Right over left and through then left over right and through. Very secure.

[2sunshines]

Oh, I love these blankets. I made one of them at a mom's meeting I used to go to and I was amazed at how easy it was. I have considered making more but haven't gotten around to it... That would be so cute to make one for dd and a matching one for her doll. She would :heart that, she is so into her doll right now. :think