No Sew Flannel Blanket.....Does it Work Like the Tutorial Says it Does?

**I'm a little obsessed with the Craft Interests that I sort through on Stumble Upon and many times I've found myself wondering (as I looked at some tutorial or another) does that really work in real life?  Can anyone truly make that?  In an effort to find out, I've decided to start a weekly series:  Does it Work Like the Tutorial Says it Does?  Each week, I will honestly chronicle my attempts at crafting stuff I find off the web.  I figure if I, butcherer of paper, epic failure at scrap booking and sewing can make something, anyone can.  For my first go at it, we'll try a No Sew Fleece Blanket.**


I'm an obsessive crocheter, and so the first time I saw a fleece no sew blanket, I'll have to admit, I thought it was cheating.  (Cheating on what, I don't know).  But now that the rug rat is just a foot shorter than me and needed a blanket for summer care "quiet time," I thought I'd give it a try.  I found this tutorial on Instructables.com:  No Sew Fleece Blanket and got to work.


SUPPLIES

• 2 pieces of flannel (I guessed and bought a yard and a half of each which equaled a 40 x 48 inch blanket not measuring the fringe)
• sharp scissors
• yard stick
• 5 x 5 inch piece of cardboard
• patience
• ability to stand on your feet for a few hours

I bought a new pair of scissors ($8) and a yard stick ($2), so that added to the cost of this blanket (though I figure I'll use both items again later).  The flannel ran me about $15 at WalMart, though I'm sure I could have possibly cut this price down if I'd waited till one of the craft stores had a sale on fleece.

TOTAL TIME TO COMPLETE
 
Four hours, interrupted by getting aforementioned rugrat in bath tub, then later out of bath tub, then finally reading him a bedtime story.


PHOTOS OF THE MADNESS

Pin that sucker down!

The first part was the most challenging.....getting all of the selveges cut off and then cutting the fabric so both pieces were the same size.  Cutting a straight line fails me so I did as little of it as possible, trying to use the straight edges of the fabric that where already there.  I ended up cutting two sides, plus trimming a third.  You can see from this picture that my cutting leaves something to be desired.  Additionally, I pinned everything down with the help of my husband, who held the first pinned side down while I smoothed out all of the wrinkles.  Patience is not a virtue I possess.

Sad proof of my epic cutting skills

The fabric was mostly straight as you can see from the picture above.  I kept the five by five piece of cardboard to use as a guide in helping me make the rest of the fringe, after my first cut proved I have no eye for straight lines, even at a short distance.

My first attempts a cutting fringe

Use the cardboard square as your guide!

As you can see from that first pathetic cut, having a guide was necessary, at least for me.  It also helped later on when I couldn't put the ruler flat against the fabric because one side or the other was already tied.  The video says no wider than a finger, but I would have been there all night, so I went for approximately every inch.

I do recommend tying as you go, this definately helps keep things lined up properly.  I would stop every foot or so and tie fringe until I reached five inches from my last cut, so I wasn't trying to lay my cardboard guide under or over the bumpy ties.

One End Down!

Finally Done!

OVERALL VERDICT
Doable, but time consuming, at least the first time around, the no sew fleece blanket turned out well.  The fringe is very forgiving and hides any minor unevenness very well.  I would definitely make another (but not while I'm eight months pregnant....being on my feet for four hours was not a good idea).