The Liebers: DIY Mermaid Blanket

I am not a cold weather person. In fact, the only thing I even like about cold weather are all the excuses I have to stay inside under a warm blanket with a hot drink and a book. I like blankets. I like lots of warm, fuzzy blankets. That's my thing. I'd hibernate if humans could do that!

My kids like blankets too. I don't think they are quite as bad as I am (yet), but even at 13, 9, and 6; they still drag blankets around the house and to the movies with them. My kids also love reading, and I love to see them curled up on the couch with a good book. Warms my heart. 😉😉😉

The Blog With Friends Crew is back at it again this month and the theme is "Warm and Cozy." Just my kind of theme! And again the challenge is forcing me off my butt to make something I've been wanting to make for quite some time: mermaid blankets!

After our move, I've lost the pedals to both of my sewing machines. I borrowed one from a friend and she gave me the wrong pedal twice. Then I borrowed from another friend and broke the needle ten minutes into my endeavor. But for your sakes I carried on, and I'm quite pleased with how this turned out!

You'll need a yard and a half of fleece. I'm making multiple blankets, so I bought 6 different colors to mix and match. The body take about a yard and the tail is half a yard, you 'can do that with one color, or as many as you'd like.

I sketched out the shape I wanted in mini form, just to give me an idea of what I was doing. Then I cut the fin shape out of one color and the tail shape from another. You'll need two of each, one for the back and one for the front.

Place your fin on the bottom of the tail, about 6 inches from the bottom, near the taper. Top stitch one fin to each body piece. Flip the fins up and sew around the bottom of the body part to make a pocket. I chose to make a pocket so feet wouldn't end up in the fin. I suppose you can skip this part, but I didn't want any accidents from a kid thinking she could stick her feet in the fins and walk around.

After the bottom pocket is sewn, flip the fins back down and top stitch all the way around the fins. Then you can sew up the sides. I didn't hem the top because it's fleece and it won't fray. You can add decorative stitch along the fin if you'd like. I skipped it because this creation had already given me enough trouble, but I'd like to do it for the others.

Now ~~you~~ your daughter can curl up on the couch like a warm, cozy mermaid. Except mermaids aren't warm and cozy, but you know what I mean!!

Want some more warm and cozy ideas? Check these out!