Silas' Baby Blanket

For some odd reason, I feel the urge to sew when I am pregnant and I don't want to just sew something, I want to sew a blanket for our new baby. I first learned how to sew when I wanted to make Seth his baby blanket. It was really my first project and his fleece rag quilt turned out great. It is a little bulky for everyday use, but it is great to lay out on the floor for lots and lots of playtime. I have sewn many things since that first venture in sewing just two years ago.
I always keep my eyes open for new things to try and that was definitely the case when Dana from MADE, a very popular blog, posted about her daughter's faux chenille blanket. A little while later she posted a tutorial on how to make it because apparently I wasn't the only one who was a huge fan. About that same time we found out that we were pregnant with Silas and I knew instantly the blanket I wanted to make for him. Two weeks ago I started on it.
You need about 5 layers of fabric for the project. I actually had the four colors for the back from a different project but I just couldn't find the perfect fabric for the front. One day while shopping at Hobby Lobby, I saw it lying in the basket of fabrics that are to be restocked. I grabbed it up and couldn't have been happier with my choice. The front fabric, which is the only layer that is not cut once sewn, is a robot print. It is full of lots of color and will be perfect to carry around while Silas is just a wee little one.
The four back layers are solid green, red, yellow, and blue. After you sew lines 1/2 an inch apart on a diagonal on the entire blanket you cut into these four layers. Then once you wash it they become the faux chenille. It's like it's magic. Bryan saw me cutting on this blanket for about a week and a half and wasn't too impressed, but when he came home to the finished product yesterday he was amazed at how the cut side transformed into this really cool, rippled, soft effect.
I used a black, satin blanket binding to finish the blanket. I have to say going around the curved corners with the binding was probably the hardest part, but I think it was worth it.

I think Seth likes his baby brother's blanket, too.