Make Your Own Pillow Blanket

from Brit+Co

Though sunshine, warm nights and beach days are pretty darn awesome, our favorite part of summer is the return of two timeless pastimes: the road trip and DIY projects. Throwing everything you need in the car and hitting the road is totally empowering, exciting and energizing; especially when one of those things is your own summer project! Growing up, I spent many an hour in the backseat of a Ford Explorer beside my stepsister, sharing headphones and switching back and forth between her cassette tape player and my CD player, inventing games to pass the time and only sometimes listening to our parents ;) Now that we plan our own road trips, we know you need convertible comfort when spending significant time in the backseat and we have you covered (pun def intended). Instead of making a blanket or making a pillow try this DIY project that’s a pillow or a blanket when you need it. Pups love it too ;) And for other easy DIY projects for summer and travel, check out www.brit.co.

Materials: - five yards of fleece (different colors)

Tools: sewing machine; pins; ruler; fabric scissors

Instructions:

1. Determine the size of your blanket and divide the width by 3 and the length by 6. This will be the size of your quilt squares. Ours measured 12 x 15 inches. Cut out 18 rectangles in different colors.
2. Sew three rectangles together to form a panel. Pin four panels together and sew to form a 3 x 4 quilt.
3. Sew two rectangles together, pin and sew to the left row of rectangles on your quilt. Repeat for the right side. You will now have 16 rectangles sewn together with two missing from the middle of the bottom two rows.
4. Cut a piece of fleece to line the back of the blanket. Pin to the squares and sew together. Do not sew the perimeter of the missing rectangles.
5. Turn right side out and pin the last two sewn panels to the blanket. Sew three sides leaving the side touching the edge of the blanket open. This will be the section where you will stuff the blanket to form your travel pillow.
6. Fold it up! Lay the blanket rectangle side facing down and fold over the left panel. Then fold in the right panel. Fold the pocket section up and stuff the remaining tail into the opening to form your pillow.

First step is determining the size of your blanket. The fleece we purchased from the store had a width of 50 inches. We decided to make the blanket 50 x 72 inches (two yards). You will need to purchase a total five yards of fleece. Three yards of your base color and one yard of your two accent colors. Now you need to determine the size of your rectangles for your quilting pattern. Ours were 12 x 15. Cut 18 of these in different colors.

Pin three across and sew. These will be your panels. Change the order of colors to form a quilting pattern.

Pin four panels together and sew. Then sew two rectangles to the bottom left and right rows. This will form a hole in the middle row. Don't worry. This is correct!

Cut your panel for the backside of the blanket, pin, and sew. Turn right side out. Ta-dah! You're almost there.

Sew your last two rectangles together and pin to your blanket. Sew three sides of the panel leaving the edge matching the edge of the blanket open. This will be where your blanket stuffs inside to turn into a pillow.

Voilà! You're very own travel “planket.” Now enough with the DIY projects, it’s time for you to hit the road!