Faux Chenille Baby Blankets

I have a new go to baby shower gift. I've given 3 now, and so far it seems like a hit!

I remember years ago, probably the late 90's, my mom started making "faux chenille" blankets. Well my mom was ahead of the game, because now they are starting to get more popular. I came across this tutorial from the Aesthetic Nest, and have followed it pretty closely. So, I'm not going to create a whole tutorial, but I will add in my own tips. (PS...I really want to try her chevron version!)

The first change I made, I only bought 1 yard of each fabric. I just buy 1 printed flannel and 4 solids. You will also need 2 spools of thread and 2 packs of seam binding . You DEFINITLY need the chenille cutter! I couldn't find it at Joann, so I had to order it online, but Joann does have replacement blades. The only other change I made, once all 5 pieces were sewn together, I only cut through the top 3. I do this because the printed fabric is usually not printed on the back, so if you leave the 4th solid flat, you won't see the backside of the printed fabric. Other than those few tweeks, I followed her tutorial. A quick tip...I can't keep my sewing straight, so it helped alot to buy fabric with diagonal lines already in the design :)

So here they are!

The first one I gifted, I made for Baby Quandrud, a girl. I could kick myself...I didn't get any close up photos! But I do have this one of Mama Quandrud opening the gift. The printed fabric was a beautiful Shabby Chic floral with mostly mint green, and some yellow and pink.

Next, I made one for Baby Beene, a boy. They chose a very neutral teddy bear bedding. (photo from Amazon - Eddie Bauer)

I kept the base brown and tan to match, but I wanted to add in some pops of green and yellow on the chenille side.

 The order of layering here is: print, tan, yellow, white, green.

I love that you can fold it up so the chenille is hidden, so it's quite a surprise when they open it up!

 Her shower is a "build his library" shower, so we are all bringing our favorite children's story. I knew I had to get "The Velveteen Rabbit" but I couldn't help myself when I saw "Cars and Trucks and Things that Go" and "The Monster at the End of this Book" so I grabbed those too!

The blanket I just finished is for Baby England, another boy. They are doing his nursery in Star Wars, and have this bedding. (photo from Target - Dwell Studio)

I used the green, light blue, and darker blue for his blanket. I layered them: print, light blue, white, darker blue, green.

I have it folded here, so you can see the printed side, binding, and chenille side.

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I'm going to another shower in a few weeks, and another in June. I already bought the fabic (when Joann had them on sale for $2.99 a yard!) so the next few weekends will be spent at my new sewing machine!