Calvie and his blankie

Calvie has not been feeling well lately. He caught a bug that settled in his eye. He's on the mend now - - - eating, running, imitating his older brother - - Over the weekend, Memaw whipped up a quick comfort blankie just for him. I think he likes it!

These are blankies I have been making lately, using a focus fabric for the front and Moda's plush Fireside for the back.

I cut the top the exact size I want it to finish. Usually about 42" x 54".  No need to even trim away the selvage because you are going to wrap the back to the front and it will be covered.

Then I layer the focus fabric with Fireside and batting. I make sure the Fireside (plush back) is at least 3" to 4" bigger than the quilt top on all 4 sides

Then I machine quilt, making sure to stitch up to the edge of the focus fabric but not beyond. Quilting beyond would quilt the batting to the backing, making it difficult to trim away excess batting later.

The final step is to cut away the excess batting and trim the edges of the Fireside to leave 2 1/2" on each of the 4 sides. I fold that 2 1/2" around to the front side, pin really well and stitch it down, stitching through all layers thus creating a wide binding of the plush. Because Fireside is a polyester product, no need to turn under the raw edges before stitching.

When I come to the corners, I fold to make a miter and stitch it down. From start to finish, it takes less than 2 hours and makes a really snugly little gift.