A Look At No Sew Blankets

by: Gloria Martino

I would like to discuss the beauty and fun of the no sew blanket. It's a good project for yourself, or you can make it a family affair.

Our home is on a very big lake. Because of this, our community is made up of a mixture of permanent residents, weekenders, and vacationers.

We have the normal school and church functions like other small towns, however there are also a large number of special events that are sponsored by the resort owners as well as area businesses.

These events help bring more people to the area and also provide entertainment for those staying or living by the lake.

The events run the gamut from world class fishing tournaments, to street dances to semi-annual garage sale weekends, to arts and crafts sales. Our chamber of commerce does a nice job of planning a wide variety of activities.

One of my favorite events is the craft sales that are held in the spring and fall. My sisters and I have gotten together the last several years on the weekend of the craft sales.

Each year we see items at the craft sale that we believe we could make ourselves. A few years ago we saw the no sew blanket for the first time. We all agreed that this would be an excellent project to do together.

A no sew blanket is made of fleece material. The nice thing about fleece is it doesn't ravel when cut. Two pieces of fleece are placed together to create a top and back to the no sew blanket.

Once this is laid out you cut four inch strips that are a half inch apart, all the way around the fabric. These strips are then tied together, top and back, to create a blanket or throw. The top and back fabric can either be the same or they can be a print on one side and a solid color on the other.

The no sew blanket can be what ever size you want to make. The majority of the ones that we saw were meant to be throws. Most fleece I come across is sixty inches wide, so if you want a no sew blanket that is wider you'll need to sew two pieces together to create the desired width.

My sisters and I set aside a weekend to come together and make our no sew blanket. We agreed that each of us would bring our fleece, scissors, ruler and a bottle of wine and we would spend the night in a suite at a hotel that is centrally located.

My oldest sister had three small grandchildren at the time so she brought fleece with a nice children’s print. I found a print with muted leaves for the top and a light, soft green color for the back.

My other two sisters bought the same fabric. They were surprised to see that they had both made the same selection.

The cutting of the strips to tie for the no sew blanket can be a tedious job. I had brought along my wheel cutter and board that I use for quilting. We found that measuring in four inches and then placing masking tape to mark the line was very helpful. Our no sew blankets were fun to make, but we all agreed that next time we each need to bring two bottles of wine.

Gloria Martino is a retired homemaker with three grown children and two grandchildren so far. She enjoys writing about her hobbies, especially crafts.