Sunday Swap #4: No-Sew blanket, and the need to read

• Published November 09, 2008

• Comments (0)

Go!

My daughter was looking for gift ideas recently, and wanted to add a homemade touch as well as keep it economical. She came across a pattern for a no-sew blanket. She bought what she needed, which wasn’t much, and proceeded to put together a crib blanket for her 16-month-old son. The measurements for the blanket she made are smaller, but the crib-sized blanket also is a nice size for a recliner throw — unless you have really long legs.

The pattern called for 1-1/2 yards each of two different patterns/colors of fleece, one for the back and one for the front. She chose a patterned fleece for the front and then a complimenting color for the back. The amount of material you need will completely depend on how big you want your blanket to be, but be sure to allow for the loss of about 3 inches on all sides.

We laid the material out on the floor, back to back, and cut off any excess to square the material evenly. Cut a 4-inch-by-4-inch square from each corner to provide more ease when tying.

Cut 4-inch long by approximately 1-inch wide strips all the way around the blanket, and then knot the strips together tying back to front. Using a basic knot will leave a fringe at the end of each tied-together strip.

This from a friend:

“Hey chick! I was reading your blog about your swap meets, and wanted to tell you about a few sites I found that have helped me save money. I read a lot and I have found two swap groups that swap books. All you have to do is pay the postage. With books being $6 and up — mostly up — $2 for postage is very little to pay. I’m sure there are all kinds of groups like this out there. Anyway, thought you could use it in your column if you get hard up! The sites are www.swaptree.com and www.paperbackswap.com. Love ya!! Lisa, Arkansas

I think it’s high time for cookies. I have several cookie recipes that have become favorites over the years for both friends and family. I’d love to swap cookie recipes, because as much as I love the old favs, I also love to try new recipes. Please start sending me your favorite cookie recipes, and we’ll post them here for all to enjoy. Don’t forget to send along those little notes you might keep with tips or suggestions about the recipe. You know the notes I’m referring to — the ones that you jot down when you get two dozen cookies rather than the four dozen the recipe says you’ll get. I have learned that no matter what, I always double cookie recipes.

Stop!