No Sew Fleece Blanket with a Braided Edge

In today’s post: No Sew Fleece Blankets make gorgeous handmade gifts for the holidays. Today we’re showing you the third of four different easy ways to finish a fleece blanket: How to make a no sew fleece blanket with a braided edge.

Fleece blankets are a super popular DIY Christmas gift because they are easy to make and everyone loves them! Who wouldn’t love a double layered, super snuggly blanket? This week I’ve been sharing four different ways to make no sew fleece blankets, and today we are to Method #3: the Braided Fleece Blanket.

Standard fleece blankets are finished by cutting a fringe along the edge and tying knots. This method is easy and cute, but some people don’t like the feel of knots around the edge of the blanket, which makes a braided edge a great option!

Fleece Blanket Video

This video shows you each of the four methods for making fleece blankets. Specific instructions for the Braided version follow the video.

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No Sew Fleece Blankets

If you’ve never made a fleece blanket before, I recommend you read the original post in this series: How To Make a No Sew Fleece Blanket

That post focuses on how to make a tied fleece blanket, but also covers lots of information that’s useful for any type of no sew fleece blanket, such as:

• what type of fleece to buy and where to find it on sale
• how to trim up your pieces of fleece
• how to make a template to make the cutting easier
• how to find the right side of your fleece

If you have questions about any of these things, please visit the original No Sew Fleece Blanket post

Supplies

For a braided fleece blanket, you will need:

• Two pieces of fleece fabric in coordinating colors (1 yard each for a baby blanket, 1.5 yards for a kid size blanket, 2 yards for a teen/adult size blanket)
• Sharp Scissors or a Rotary Blade and a cutting mat
• Ruler

How to Make a Braided Fleece Blanket

Remember, if you get stuck on any of the steps, you can see how to make this blanket in the video, which you’ll find above under the heading “Fleece Blanket Video” and below in the printable instruction card.

Get started by laying the bottom layer of fleece down on the ground, with the right side down. Smooth it out and place the top layer of fleece over it, right side up. Smooth the top layer out and try to match the edges as well as possible. Trim along the edges to make them straight, cutting through both layers of fabric at once so they end up the same size.

Cut the Strips

At each corner, cut away a 2×2 inch square. Make cuts 2 inches deep and 1 inch apart along all four edges of the blanket.

Cut a Slit in Each Strip

Make a half inch slit in the center of each strip. If you are using scissors, you’ll need to cut the slits in the two layers separately. Do that by folding the top layer of the first strip in half. Use sharp scissors to snip a hole. Fold the top layer of the first strip all the way upwards, then fold the bottom layer in half and make a small snip. Continue all the way around the edges of the blanket, until all the strips have a small slit cut in the middle of them.

If you have a rotary cutter, you could use that to cut the small slit in the middle of each strip, cutting through both layers at once.

Create the Braided Edge

Pick up a strip, treating the two layers as one, and turn it sideways so the underside fabric is facing you. Grab the next strip to the right and thread it through the hole in the strip you are holding. Continue threading the next strip to the right through the hole in the one next to it. Go around corners the same way. (Please note this is not actually braiding; it just gives the edge of the blanket the appearance of being braided.)

Finish the Last Strip

1. When you get all the way around the blanket and are back to the beginning, separate the two layers of the final strip.
2. Push the underside layer of the final strip through the hole in the very first strip.
3. Push the upper layer of the final strip through the hole in the under layer.
4. Then push it back through the hole in the very first strip to secure + hide it. If this is hard to see in the photos, watch the video in the printable instruction card at the end of the post.

Stretch the Braid

The braided edge is going to look puckered once it’s finished and it will pull on the fabric so the blanket doesn’t lie flat. Gently stretch all along each edge of the blanket until the braided edge lies flat.