Make It More Personal With Custom Blankets

Be sure and press each piece over the seam allowance as you go and to use rectangular pieces and cut back for more shapes and sizes after each go-around. Also remember solids then patterned pieces.

Blanket Quilt Once you have your design set, the next considerations are the materials you choose to make the quilt out of. Does the material match the nursery for the child; is it themed for their gender? Additionally the cloth needs to me comfortable for the newborn; cotton or fleece fibers are among the best choices. If you are using two different materials they need to be of the same type, with the only difference being the pattern. In addition to the cloth or yarn you will need appropriate thread and batting for the inside of the blanket.

The type of fabric in your baby quilt top will also determine the type of quilting design you should choose. Large or busy prints require a simpler design quilt top. On the solid colors or tone-on-tones, a decorative featured wreath or floral motif is perfect to show off that baby quilt.

The best fabric for simple quilt patterns is 100% cotton because it minimizes seam distortion, presses crisply, and is easy to quilt. Good simple quilt patterns specify quantities for 44/45" wide fabric unless otherwise noted. You'll need to allow for a little extra yardage to accommodate minor cutting errors and slight shrinkage.

That being said, nursery bedding in the form of crib sets usually comes in a package with the following four items: baby quilt or blanket, fitted sheet for the crib, skirt and bumper. Bumper? Yes, bumper. Hold on, we'll come back to that later.

Baby quilt patterns can be purchased as part of a quilting kit, or found in magazines, books, and quilting stores. It is also quite easy to piece together a quilt of your own design using leftover fabric. You might want to consider using a regular sized pattern, and scaling it down to a smaller size, such as 36 x 45 inches. The size of course is up to you.

Baby Blanket Cake Diaper cakes are all the rage, cloth diapers are gaining steam and they make a cute cake when all rolled up. You can do the same thing using baby blankets. This can also be a relatively inexpensive gift. You can find fleece baby blankets at most dollar type stores. You will also need some rattles and other baby toys.