Baby playmat

I finished a project from my want-to-do list! This is a simple baby playmat, inspired mostly by my friend Aussie Mum. I sewed a baby quilt for Puggle before he was born in a style similar to his brothers' quilts. I thought it might end up in the cot, but Aussie Mum is forever tossing it on the floor, on the grass, on the carpet...it is a playmat. I am thrilled it is so useful (and durable!), but I often wish I'd planned for that so I could have made it thicker for comfort. Then one day I spied some super-soft beautiful fabric at Materialise and I knew what I'd like to try.

This is very easy to make. I chose two fabrics and had them cut to square with the width (in this case, 110cm). I bought double the length of cotton wadding (220cm) and enough fabric to make a binding (probably around 40cm).

Wash and iron the fabrics first.

Lay one fabric right side down on the floor and smooth completely. Tape it to the floor using masking tape to hold it taut. Smooth both layers of wadding over it and then top the quilt sandwich with the other fabric right side up. Pin with quilting pins, starting from center and working toward edges. When quilt sandwich is secure, untape bottom layer from floor. You are ready to sew!

I wanted maximum loft, so minimum stitching. Simply sew two straight lines in an "x" from corner to corner to keep it from shifting around. (please excuse the fold lines in the photos; they're not along the sewn lines)

Attach binding using your preferred method. I thought I would use binding tape, but it was too thick and so this was hand-sewn.

Voila! Bright, cheerful and very functional! Aussie Mum gave it a sound stamp of approval. I think these would make fantastic baby gifts. I don't see them in shops, and I remember always putting a blanket down for baby, wishing it were bigger or thicker or something more than what it was. This playmat should be perfect for a sweet little one and a practical mum.