Tips For Selecting Baby Blankets

String quilts made by women in Gee's Bend, Alabama, and Mid-western Amish communities, have become an art form. Their stringed blocks are often square in shape or close to it, with one above the other. Sometimes sashing strips divide the blocks. The Amish string quilts can look like stacks of small squares. This pattern is named Coins.

Now you need to sew it together with the batting and the backing. As you probably already know, a blanket isn't just made of one layer. You will have to sew it together and then stitch across the entire quilt to hold it all together. This is where you can get fancy and make pretty stitch designs. If you are looking to get this done fast, just do a basic straight stitch across the whole blanket. You will have to do this sewing by hand, so get a comfy position on your couch and get sewing!

Always use a rotary cutter with a cutting mat specifically designed for it. In addition to protecting your work surface, the mat helps keep the fabric from shifting while you cut. Start with a 17x23" mat marked with a 1" grid, hash marks at 1/8" increments, and 45 and 60 degree angles.

After the foundation piece has been completely filled with fabric strips, trim the block to the desired size. Press the block on both the front and back. Don't leave any loose pieces.

One nice thing about down throw blankets is that they have natural oils in them. These oils keep the material warm. The feathers are also kept soft and fluffed up without clumping. Therefore, washing the blanket should be done carefully. The blanket shouldn't be washed a little too often as it might wear off the natural oils. It's best to use detergents that are chemical free. Of course, don't send the down throw blanket for the dry cleaners because the chemicals used there would surely leave a stain on it.

Blanket Quilt If your fabric hasn't already been cut into squares, use a pair of fabric shears, or a rotary cutter, to do so now. If you use a rotary cutter, you'll also need a cutting mat. Otherwise, you could end up damaging whatever's underneath the fabric.

Another way to preserve memories is to make a memory quilt. A memory quilt can be a blanket or a wall hanging. You collect items of clothing as your child outgrows them. You cut the clothes into squares of the same size and save your collection until you have enough to make a blanket or wall-hanging. You can also use pieces of blankets or sheets. Be sure you cut a sample that is not worn thin. On blankets and sheets the outside edges are usually in the best shape. For clothing you would avoid the area covering the knees or the seat of the pants.