I don’t know how many of you know this, but I have started being a regular contributor over at the fantastic site, Mom it Forward. I recently did a couple of tutorials for them using the fabulous, and I do mean FABULOUS fabric from Riley Blake Designs. One of the projects I made was this DIY picnic blanket, which I have dubbed;
“The Perfect Picnic Blanket.”
This would be a perfect project to whip up for the 4th of July coming up to lay out on and enjoy the fireworks as a family.
It has everything I want from a picnic blanket!
- It’s big enough for my whole family
- It is waterproof on the bottom
- It has big pockets to hold my nook, keys, magazines, flip flops, snacks, kids toys, cell phone and anything else I want to tuck away while playing with the kids and keeping out of the direct sunlight
- It’s cute.
DIY Picnic Blanket
Supplies:
- 4 yards of “top” fabric (I used the Fly a Kite in Cream)
- 5 yards of “bottom” laminate fabric (I used the Laminate Fly a Kite Ice Cream in Pink)
- A sewing machine
- An iron
This is a super easy project; it should only take you an afternoon, as long as you don’t have a million interruptions. You need to know how to sew a straight line. That’s about it. Oh and how to iron a seam open. Easy peasy.
Directions:
- Cut your fabric in half to create more of a square blanket shape, as the fabric pieces are long and skinny. First things first, you need to fold the fabric in half, making sure it is smooth. Iron if necessary and cut in half. I ironed the seam to help me cut a straighter line.
- Put the fabric right sides together to make a bigger wide piece. Pin it together
- Do this for both pieces of fabric, top and bottom.
- Sew your first straight line, connecting the two pieces of fabric, and press it open. Repeat this on the other pieces of fabric.
- When you lay it out, you’ll see there is a lot more laminate than the regular fabric. That’s because you will fold it over to make the pockets. Put your fabric right sides together and make sure the top fabric is centered over the bottom fabric, so that both sides of laminate are even. Pin it.
- Sew it up—more straight lines. Sew both sides. I used a zig-zag stitch here for a little more stability. Press the seams open again. When you have both sides sewn, turn inside out so that it is right sides out.
- Now my pictures are a little out of order here, I apologize, but it’s pretty easy to follow. First, you need to sew the holes closed. I didn’t put any batting in this blanket since it’s basically just to keep us dry when we sit on the grass, and I keep it in my car…the thinner the better. Look at step one and you can see that you just need to sew along the dotted line. You don’t want things going in the pockets and then find their way to the middle of the blanket. Now I didn’t do this, but if you want a more finished edge on the laminate, you can put some bias tape on the edge of the flap or fold it over a bit and sew it down. Or you can use pinking shears or a serger.
- After that, you just need to sew the flaps up. Fold the flap up and pay attention to seam where you sewed the blanket together so that it lines up where you fold it. This will keep your pockets nice and straight. Tip: You can tape the bottom of the foot like I did when you sew on the laminate to make it glide a little easier. Or you can rub a little sewing machine oil on the bottom of the foot so that it can slide easily. Just be sure if you use the tape, to clean your foot off afterwards because it can get sticky.
- All that is left to do is sew the pockets. I wanted big pockets, big enough to fit a magazine or a pair of flip flops. I have eight big, roomy pockets on each side. I have yet to fill them, but the summer is still fresh! I just folded the blanket in half and put a pin at the fold, then did that two more times. Then I just sewed a straight line on each pin mark. To keep the line straight, I followed the design and sewed right down the middle of the diamond shapes.
- Take it to a park and enjoy it. Or roll it up with a set of pockets facing out and fill it up, ready for when you’re out and about and see a patch of grass just waiting to be sat on.
This post was originally published at MomItForward.com on June 14, 2012
Tiffany
Latest posts by Tiffany (see all)
- 3 Types of Earth-Friendly Materials Approved by Mother Nature - June 9, 2019
- Free Printable Father’s Day Candy Bar Wrappers - June 7, 2019
- Father’s Day Coupon Book Free Printable - June 7, 2019
- Fishing Gift Tags Free Printable - June 7, 2019
- LDS Temple Art to Print at Home - April 11, 2019
Great idea! The pockets are genius! And love the fabrics too 🙂
Thanks Kara! I know the fabric is so dang cute! I was quite proud of myself for the pocket idea, they have been so handy!
Thanks for the comment!
Tiffany
This is a great blanket and I love the idea of the pockets. I really like your fabric choices!
Rhiannon
Hey Rhiannon!
Thanks for the comment! I’m glad you like the blanket! I love it, its an easy project that will get lots of use this summer!
Way too adorable!!
Thanks Ashton! 🙂