You know how we’re always telling you to grab your favorite fall blanket and curl up with this or that? Well, it occurred to us that some of you may not have a fall blanket to call a favorite yet, so for this week’s DI-Friday, we’ll be taking care of that!

Remember back in Year One when my mom, being the craft enthusiast she is, gave me a crash course in mesh wreaths and together we whipped up that awesome Vampire Slayer Wreath? Check it out if you don’t – it’s two years later, and I’m still obsessed with how that wreath turned out!
Well, before she was christened as the Wreath Queen, she was also the Doyenne of No-Sew Fleece Blankets (and more! Honestly, I credit her and our arts-and-crafts days when I was a kid for sparking my love of all things crafty!). Seriously – everyone in our family has at least one or two of these fleece blankets, each reflecting individual styles and interests, to call their very own. And as we were brainstorming projects for this year’s DI-Friday series, in our never-ending quest to produce functional DIYs, we jumped at the opportunity to add some Halloween blankets to our collection! (We’re the coolest.)

When you’re picking fleece for these blankets, it’s important to keep in mind not only the design that will be on the front, but also the accent color on the back. Inevitably, regardless of how you finish the fringe on the edges, that backing color will come through, so it’s a great way to highlight some of the colors in the design! I was immediately taken by the jack o’ lantern with the scripty font fleece (it reminds me of some of my favorite Halloween stamps!), and knew that an orange fleece back would do well to pull out the orange in the design’s pumpkins while accenting the cream background. For Devin’s blanket, he was immediately drawn to the tarot card design – especially the black cats and spiders! – and he opted for a black backing to complete the spooky blanket vibe.

Now, I’m sure you’ve seen blankets made like these around the internet plenty of times, and the amount of measuring and cutting can seem daunting, but believe us when we say that they are so simple to make! All you really need is a large space to lay out at least two yards of fleece.
Start by lining up the front and back pieces, then pin them together in a few spots to hold them still if you feel like you need to. (We didn’t, and they still turned out great!) From there, just cut out a 3” by 3” square from each corner and then start cutting strips into each side of the blanket, 3” cuts about 1.5” apart. Or you could also use my mom’s trick, and cut about a finger-length into each side, spacing the cuts about a thumb-width apart. And you think we’ve got tips, tricks, and treats!

To finish it off, flip each flap forward over the main body of the blanket and cut a small opening. Pull the flap in on itself and through the opening in the fleece, securing each fringe piece in place. You can also tie the front and back flaps to each other, but using the pull-through method will bring the color of the blanket’s back liner to the front as a frame of sorts. Really, though, deciding which technique to finish the edges to use all depends on the look you’re going for with your finished blanket.

Of course, Halloween-themed fleece can be a little tricky to come by outside of Halloween season, but luckily, most fabric stores will start to stock a good selection of seasonal fabrics around mid-July. But really, for those of us who keep the spirit alive all year long, there’s a good chance you’ll find something at least sort of related to our beloved Halloween if you look hard enough. For example, when we weren’t sure if Halloween fleece would be an option, we had a backup blanket planned with a celestial fleece that was available year round! So never fear if the urge to make a frightfully fun fleece blanket pops up in the Halloween off-season.
And don’t worry if halfway through making your blanket you start to get anxious about it no longer lining up or worrying that it won’t come together. The process can be tediously repetitive – make sure you take breaks to stretch! – but once it’s all done, the fleece has a tendency to even itself out. You’ll have yourself a big, cozy blanket, perfect for curling up with a warm drink or a spooky story all year long, and best of all? You made the whole thing yourself. Happy Crafting!











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