Mar 20, 2012

Making a blanket from Pendelton scraps


Some folks have a weakness to chocolate, little bunnies, or Johnny Depp.  Mine is Pendleton fabric.  I stopped by the Pendleton fabric store on Friday and couldn't resist buying beautiful scraps of wool from their $3 a pound bins.  The blanket scraps weighed in at a little over 2 pounds, which was a steal.  In addition to the fabric, I picked up some white wool tape to join the fabric pieces together.  



When I got home, I arranged the fabric pieces on the floor and then trimmed the frayed edges. 



I cut the wool tape in half lengthwise and started sewing the tape onto the edges of the remnants.  Once I was done with one seam, I flipped the blanket over and repeated this step.

[One of the friendly Pendleton store employees, who had made a blanket from remnants, recommended using a zigzag stitch to join the fabric edges together before laying down the wool tape.  Of course, the zigzag function quit working on my machine at the start of the project, so I skipped this step.]  




After all the strips were sewn together, I finished the blanket with wool tape folded over the outside edge.



To personalize the blanket, I embroidered the year on one side and our family name on the other.  Since it's a nice heavy wool,  it'll make the perfect blanket to wrap up in around a camp bonfire.  I do love those cool summer nights in Oregon. 



Over the weekend, I also found this fantastic Pendleton weekender bag at an estate sale for $15.  The gods must be happy with me.


16 comments:

  1. Wow, it turned out awesome!! I can really picture it around a cozy fire for years to come!

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  2. Thanks, ladies! The white trim really isn't practical for camping, but, oh well : )

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  3. i love this so much! clever and striking with the long vertical stripes. and pendleton fabric - yes!

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  4. I LOVE this and may need to copy your idea. Let's have another creative weekend together!

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  5. that turned out so cool! i wish i had a sewing maching. i'd be at the pendelton store first thing tomorrow.

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  6. i love your blanket!! such nice colors! thanks!

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  7. This is so nice! How long are the strips--how wide is the blanket?

    Note to Jen V.: Some sewing machine stores and fabric shops let you rent their machines by the hour, or even for free.

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  8. Chris, the strips can vary in length and width. I laid everything out at the store until I was happy with the general size and arrangement. The final size ended up being 43" x 60".

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  9. Very nice! I have always wanted to do something similar with wool sweaters, but wasn't sure how to handle the seams. I like the wool tape!

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  10. I loved how this project turned out! I realize that this is an old post, but in case anyone is still monitoring this post, do you happen to know if this was made with Selvages or the Blanket Header scraps? I would love to try this myself, but would have to order the fabric, and would like to be sure I am ordering from the right bin. Thanks for your help :)

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  11. Hello Grandfather says! I'm so glad you like this blanket. I used blanket headers for this project. The wool is pretty thick. For seam reinforcement, I would highly recommend using a zigzag stitch to join the edges. Good luck with making your own blanket : )

    - Cathy

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  12. Jeanne9/02/2015

    I found your site while searching Pinterest for ideas for my bag of Pendleton scraps. I realize it's has been a few years since you made this blanket but do you happen to remember how much wool binding you used? Thanks!

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  13. Just found your blog! Now, do you purchase your scraps from the mill store in Portland? I'm visiting Pendleton in July but have never been there and have no idea if they have some sort of remnant store or not. I live in Seattle and Portland is an easy trip for me to make. Thank you!

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  14. Hi Jeanne,

    The blanket is 43 x 60 inches, so probably 6.5 - 7 yards of wool binding.

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  15. Hello Mellisa, I purchase fabric remnants at the Pendleton Woolen Mill Store on McLoughlin. Lots of bins and tables of patterned wool goodness. And they sell some of their home items at discounted prices.

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