Baby Blanket - article about Baby Blanket

Buying a Baby Blanket

There are several types of baby blankets available, a few common terms are: receiving blankets, baby afghans, baby quilts, plus there are even more. These blankets may be made of all sorts of materials receiving blankets are often made of cotton, afghans are often made of a synthetic blend of materials, baby quilts are often made out of cotton materials as well.

Receiving blankets are basically an every day baby blanket, they are soft and light and appropriate for swaddling a newborn; swaddling is an old term that today is used to describe the way in which the baby is wrapped in the blanket. Many babies find swaddling to be comforting as they feel restricted much like when they were in the womb.

To swaddle a baby, lay the receiving blanket on a flat surface at an angle (it should resemble a rhombus), fold down the top corner (the baby blanket should now be shaped like a triangle), the back of baby’s head should be lined up with the top of the fold, then wrap one side over baby and tuck it under the baby’s body (lay that arm next to the baby’s body), then repeat with the other side; now the baby is swaddled.

Afghans are baby blankets that may be made of synthetic material yarn, cotton yarn, wool yarn, or any combination there of; they may also be crocheted or knitted. These are often hand made blankets but can be purchased at a store also. In old cartoons mothers are often seen passing the time knitting a baby blanket, today knitting and crocheting are becoming more popular with mothers of all ages. There are many free patterns available on the internet and many easy patterns available at department stores and craft stores.

Afghan baby blankets can be a very personal gift from a person to a baby, because they take a lot of time, effort, and thought; some people are quick at it and may be able to make one in a weekend, but think of that amount of time compared with going to a store an picking something up. Homemade gifts are usually not any cheaper either, to buy quality materials alone will often cost more than their cheap machine made counterparts, receiving a handmade baby blanket is one of the nicest gifts a baby can receive.

True baby quilts are also often hand made, these are cotton or other synthetic material fabrics sewn together to make a beautiful and comfortable baby blanket. These types of blankets are often called floor quilts because these are great for lying on the floor for baby to have tummy time or other exercise. Also handmade quilts are very special because of all the hours put into its production and the personal touches that are added to the baby blanket; they may be embroidered with a name and birth date, and they are a bit sturdier than a crocheted or knitted blanket and can handle lots of love.

There are many other varieties of baby blankets available to purchase in micro fleece, standard fleece, and even more with characters on them like Disney or popular children’s characters. The micro fleece is very soft and feels very nice on anyone’s skin; it makes for an appropriate material for a baby blanket. Fleece material can make an easy hand made blanket as well.

Simply buy material in any pattern, trim to desired size, and cut 3 inch slits every inch along every edge of the baby blanket (taking corners completely out), then it will look nice as is or knots can be tied in each piece to create a different effect; additionally this method could be applied to two pieces of material and the two pieces could be tied to together by the strips to make a extra warm baby blanket (for both tying methods increase strip length to 5-6 inches).

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