Molly's Sketchbook: Liberty and Wool Lap Duvets

Every Christmas I travel to my hometown of Berkeley, California to be with my family. You might imagine it’s a warm and sunny contrast to Brooklyn, but really, the famous Bay Area fog seems to seep into everything, including my bones! I have spent many a Christmas morning snuggling my parents’ 100 year old radiators while I sneakily inch up the thermostat a few degrees. It’s moments like this that call for a Lap Duvet!

Since our first Lap Duvet project last year, these beautiful blankets have become my favorite quick sewing project, especially when I want to showcase a truly lovely fabric. This year, in anticipation of my chilly visit to California, I made an even easier version with my two absolute favorite fabrics in the world: Liberty of London’s Tana Lawn and Mary Flanagan’s Felted Wool. The contrast between the pretty detail of the Tana Lawn and the rustic beauty of the wool is just exquisite!

Since this version uses wool, there is no need for batting, making this the simplest Lap Duvet yet! Best of all, the resulting blanket is warm and elegant, with a drape that is graceful and very special. It only takes a couple of hours to make, so there’s still plenty of time to sew one or two up for the holidays, either as beautiful gifts or as welcome warmth for your shivering guests! -Molly

Materials:

To make 1 approximately 33 X 52-inch lap duvet: 

• One 1-yard piece of Mary Flanagan Felted wool in either undyed white or oatmeal
• 1-yard Liberty of London Tana Lawn. I used Light Blue Betsy, Bright Margaret Annie, and Hot Pink Wiltshire.
• 100% cotton thread in color 1040 as the neutral color
• 100% cotton thread in color 4950 as the contrast color 
• curved safety pins

Cutting

Rip approximately and inch off of each cut edge of the liberty piece (do not rip the selvage edges.) This will result in a perfectly straight rectangle of liberty that is approximately 34-inches by 54-inches. Press this piece flat.

Press the wool flat and lay it on a clean section of floor. Lay the pressed Liberty piece on top of the wool, wrong side facing up. Pin the two pieces together and then cut the wool to match the liberty.

Sewing

Using your machine's walking foot and the neutral thread sew the Liberty and wool together with a 1/2-inch seam allowance around all four sides leaving a 4-inch unsewn gap on one side.

Snip off the corners and turn the piece right side out through the unsewn gap. Press the edges and corners flat.

Press the blanket in half lengthwise and width wise to find the center (represented by the dot in the diagram above.)

Lay it down again on the floor, with the Liberty side facing up. Using the curved safety pins pin the two layers of the blanket together at the center marking and then every 7-inches vertically and horizontally as represented by the "X"s in the diagram above.

Using a tacking stitch or short zig zag sew the two layers together at every pinned point using the contrast thread removing the safety pins as you go.

Hand stitch the gap closed and you're all done!

Comments

[Katherine]

I see that the wool felt only comes in 34" options... I'm tired, so forgive me if this is a silly question, but would it be enough to just order one piece? or would those missing 2" mess things up?

[purl bee]

Hi Katherine-

The pattern only calls for one piece of felt and one piece of Liberty.

Thanks for the question and let me know if anything else is unclear.

Best-

Molly

[Ariana]

It's lovely (if chilly!) in Berkeley right now...wishing I could sew because this sounds perfectly cozy!
Hope you have a peaceful and relaxing holiday with us on the West Side :)

[Jean]

When tacking or zig zag stitching the two layers together at every pinned point, I'm guessing that you're using the sewing machine. Could you also sew it by hand?

[Stephanie]

Do you really need a walking foot for this? i don't have one. should i?

[purl bee]

Hi Stephanie-

A walking foot is a really great thing to have so I would recommend that you get one. However you can probably do this project without one. Just go slowly and make sure the wool and cotton are being pulled through the machine at the same rate.

Thank you for your question!

Molly

[purl bee]

Hi Jean-

I did do it with a machine but you could certainly do it by hand!

Thank you for your question!

Molly

[Elaine]

This is a pretty blanket, but it would be nice to see photos of them laid flat (not folded in a pile) to see details of the tacking stitching.

[MB@YarnUiPhoneApp]

I think KK2000 the temporary spray glue would be useful in a project like this....it would keep the fabrics from shifting around...but only for 24 hours. After that...the glue is poof! gone! Also free motion embroidery might be fun too. this is is small enough for an ordinary machine to handle I think. Then I would sew on a binding to finish it off.

[Juna]

I love it, so easy, fast and warm. This is a great way to do nice gifts from HOME. Just made my first of many this evening. Thanks for sharing

[Carolyn]

Does the Tana Lawn need to be pre-washed prior to making this project? Also, is the duvet machine washable or should it be hand washed? Thanks for this project. This is a great gift idea.

[ellen t]

I love love the look of this blanket!!
I agree with Elaine, would like to see the blanket laid out flat, might be a better visual.
Can this be machine washed after making?
How scratchy is the felted wool? I have knitted & felted numerous items just
wondering.
Thanks

[purl bee]

Hi Ellen-

I would say the felted wool is not very scratchy but if you're someone who is sensitive to wool it might seem more so.

It can be hand washed or dry cleaned but not machine washed.

Thank you so much for your questions!

Molly

[Susie]

Love this tutorial! And the use of felted wool makes this really special. I haven't done any quilting before so this might be a silly question but with the zig zag stitching on the crosses, how long is each length of stitching or side of the cross? Or do you do straight lines? Thanks! I agree a picture of the blanket lying flat and open would be great and a close up of the stitching :)

[Anna]

Hi, where can I get Mary Flanagan's felted wool for these cozy blankets? Do you carry this product and once the blankets stitched up, is there a risk of shrinking when washed? Many thanks!

[purl bee]

Hi Anna-

We do carry this material, and all the materials used for our projects. They are linked under the "Materials" section of any project. Just click on the red text. Or here is the direct link for the felted wool: http://www.purlsoho.com/purl/products/item/8552-Mary-Flanagan-One-Yard-Felt-Pieces

This blanket can be washed in a gentle cycle in a machine but it can't be machine dried.

Thank you for your questions!

Molly

[purl bee]

Hi Susie-

You sew a straight line, about 1/2-inch long at each marked point backstitching at the beginning and end of the line.

Or you could use a tacking stitch if your machine has one. This stitch sews a horizontal bar of stitches in the same place.

However you choose to do it these stitches are securing the three layers (front, batting, and backing) together at the marked points. Our previous lap duvet story has a little more detail, if you'd like to review it as well: http://www.purlbee.com/the-purl-bee/2011/5/25/mollys-sketchbook-lap-duvet.html

Please let us know if you need any more help, and good luck with the project!

Thanks for writing in!

Molly

[Barbara]

No matter how careful I am with both pieces aligned, when I start sewing, the wool seems to buckle, go askew. I'm using a walking foot so not sure what I am doing wrong! I've ripped it out 3 times, a calming task but still annoying :) Thank you.

[purl bee]

Hi Barbara-

How frustrating! Are you using your machine's walking foot? It's a larger foot that sort of "walks" along as you sew. It helps to keep two (or more) layers of disimilar fabrics together as you sew and it's very useful for this project.

If you are already using a walking foot and still having problems (or if you don't own a walking foot) then my suggestion would be to iron on strips of light weight fusible interfacing to the edges of the wool before you pin it to the cotton fabric. It should keep the wool from stretching as you sew.

Please let us know if this helps and if you have any more questions!

Molly

[Fiona]

Do you have to use the fabrics suggested or does it not matter?

[purl bee]

Hi Fiona-

They should work with any woven fabric.

Thanks for your question!

Molly

[Emily Traylor]

I adore these quilts; they are so simple, yet so beautiful! I'd love to make some of my own one day. I do have a question though (I apologize if it's already been answered!) Do you think the felted wool would be a fabric appropriate for a summer quilt? If not, do you have any suggestions for a similar fabric? I am currently working on a quilt that is under the same principle as these lap duvets - two layers. I would love any suggestions!

Thanks,
Emily