Help save my baby blanket

August 1, 2020 10:46 AM

My blanket, which I've had literally all my life, has finally started to unravel. Where do I take it, and what terms do I use to describe what needs to be done?
posted by Flying Saucer to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (3 answers total)

Best answer: It doesn’t look like it’s unraveling dangerously but someone who does basic alterations can help keep it from unraveling further, maybe by hemming it or adding a binding around the edge. Whatever you do, do NOT use something called Fray-Check, as it will ruin a precious blanket like this one. It does keep things from fraying but at the cost of making the fabric crunchy and stiff and permanently wet-looking.
posted by corey flood at 11:08 AM on August 1, 2020 [4 favorites]

Best answer: I think you have three options - the least of which would be to stabilize it with a ‘fringe’ - either by hand or machine stitching around the outside edge where the fabric is still sound. Hand stitching would be more visually pleasing but machine zigzags would also be functional. Next, hem it (i.e., cut off the fringe parts, fold it in, sew to secure. Like the bottom of a pants leg. ) Last: bind it. This is using a u or v shaped strip of fabric or ribbon and sewing it to completely enclose the raw edge of the blanket. This adds a new fabric component, which could be contrasty in texture and/or color, but it’s less bulky than a hem would be.

If you are OK with new fabric as the binding, that’s the easiest and it could be done by any friend with basic machine sewing skills. Even if they had to make the bias tape. An alterations place would certainly do it with purchased binding/tape.

The hand-hemstitching/stabilization would be the least visually new and the least impactive to the feel of the blanket, but also wants more skill to not look bad. If your town has an embroidery or quilting guild, or craft-fair-holding church ladies, you could ask there for someone.
posted by janell at 11:29 AM on August 1, 2020 [1 favorite]

Best answer: There is literally a product called Blanket Binding that comes in various colors and widths, for exactly this purpose. It is quite easy to sew on with a machine. You might want to do both ends, even the sides, while you're at it, as paying someone to do the whole thing probably won't cost much more.

How nice to have this keepsake; well worth preserving.
posted by theora55 at 11:44 AM on August 1, 2020 [2 favorites]