How To Make Baby Blankets

Baby blankets are easy to make at home. This is a way for you to save money the next time you need to buy a gift for a baby shower, or if you want to welcome a new addition to the family.

How To Sew A Baby Blanket

When using flannel or fleece to make your baby blanket, all you need to do is cut and hem. You can use about a yard of fabric, with the width ranging between 40 and 50 inches.

A good way to put a personal touch on the blanket’s design is to embroider a design or the name of the baby. If you do not have embroidery skills, buy a cute embroidered patch to iron or sew onto the blanket.

For a warmer blanket, use a layer of cotton batting between two layers of flannel or one flannel and one printed cotton fabric.

How To Crochet A Baby Blanket

The usual process for crocheting a baby blanket would be to start by creating a chain that matches the blanket’s width before forming rows of double crochet stitch. This could be all one color or you could change the yarn every few rows to form stripes, or use multi colored yarn. After finishing the full sized blanket, then you can work around the edges, making three chains in each of the four corners for a clean-looking trim.

Alternatively, crochet different colored squares of 3-5 rows each and attach them together. Utilize the concept of contrasting colors by using about two or so pastel colors in the mix.

You can stand out with your design by following a pattern. You have to understand all the stitches that would be required to complete the pattern. You wouldn’t want to waste all your hard work by discovering that the one specific stitch needed for the design’s success is the one stitch you cannot master.

A hand knitted baby blanket can be an alternative to crochet. Use the plain knitting stitch (not knit and purl) or for a more solid blanket, moss stitch (one knit one purl, doing a plain stitch where there was a purl in the previous row and vice versa). Again you can either knit the whole blanket at once in one color or stripes, or you can knit squares and then sew them together later.

Using the method of joining individual squares, you can even make the blanket grow along with the baby by adding more squares as the child gets bigger.

It is important to choose your yarn carefully. Don’t buy anything that would be an irritant to the baby. Be wary of the fabric used – it’s better to go with pure cotton blankets for babies with sensitive skin, and to avoid synthetics at all costs.

Made with love, beautiful baby blankets can be something that parents and baby will treasure all their lives.

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Useful Pregnancy Advice For New Parents

Helpful Pregnancy Advice And Guidance

It is rare to find a pregnancy advice guide that does not earnestly caution would-be parents to start planning before they have even conceived. They are told they are about to make decisions that could have far reaching effects. Understandably, people like to feel prepared.

There is a great deal of information for parents available. It is not surprising that couples feel overwhelmed by it, especially when some of that information appears to be contradictory. Sifting through it all can be difficult.

As parents want the best for their children the fear of ‘getting it wrong’ can be powerful. It is very easy to get drawn into mapping out detailed plans and schedules. This is fine, and can even be fun, but people should be prepared for the unexpected. Perhaps the best plans are flexible. Rigid expectations can lead to disappointment and a sense of failure.

Taking every day as it comes can sometimes be the better strategy. Parents can rely on their own judgment. They can follow their own path. Nevertheless, there is some guidance that should always be heeded.

Women must look after their health. This is important prior to conception, throughout gestation and beyond the birth. Smoking and drinking can harm the developing fetus. A healthful diet will support development and supply the mother with the extra energy she will need. Women are usually advised to take folic acid supplements during the early phases. Male partners should not ignore their health either. The arrival of a new baby demands that everyone is on form.

Pregnancy advice guides are exactly that. They are not instructions to be followed to the letter. If parents are in any doubt they should consult their health care team. It is also important to remember that lots of other people, especially prospective grandparents, will be happy to offer both practical help and emotional support.

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