ditto to what rosemary just said....
most of the baby quilts i have made have contained losts of different colors - lots of touchy feely stuff - they're meant to be on the floor and the baby on top - obviously when they get older - they do crawl under... but we've found that the babies love the touchy feely stuff - as the learn to do more - the love finding the different textures and discovering different shapes - the "older" kids use them as a base to play on - background for games with other toys - and just to sleep on, cuddle on, build "houses" with and whatever...
the main factor has been that everything sewn on - has to be sewn on to stay on - and has to be good quality so that it cannot be bitten / chewed / banged / whatever to bits and pieces!

I hadn't come across babies not having quilts until 1 year old here in UK, but then I am 10 years away from 'official' baby advice I do know that there is official concern that if the baby is wrapped too warmly then it might be a part of the cause of cot death. The things to consider if you are the mother is what is the ambient temp. of the room and what other layers are on the baby, what are the recommendations from the local anti-natal personnel, your mother/trusted aunt/granny and finally What are you happy doing!

As for making a baby quilt for a friend's new baby - consider the practicalities of it's intended use (washable! and not too heavy in weight), make it large enough that they can grow into it (cot size - whatever those measurements are, is probably good), make and give it with love and then let the mother decide how she wants to use it.

tigsowner wrote:
How interesting!

I am intentionally making it just a bit larger than crib sized anyway so that it lasts longer (ie, baby doesn't outgrow it) and will suggest that it's designed/intended use is as a play mat on the floor. I so hope she uses it!

Tigsowner: Why on earth would people recommend not giving babies quilts until they are 1 year old?

I put flannel on the back of my baby quilts. It is instantly warm! I did pre-shrink the flannel twice and the regular cotton once. (in the washing machine).

And I thought Minky was made for babies...

Learning-As-I-Go wrote:
: : : Nothing fancy? :shock:

To all... she is seriously yanking your chain here. Did you do triangles only for your 2nd pieced quilt?? All by hand and all w/o in real life help. It is fancy. (Ok, there was a small wallhanging in there too.... and other quilts are in process... but she designs her own.) We must keep an eye on this one.......

Here in the UK, we are told that babies shouldn't have QUILTS until they are at least one year old so that rules out wadding (batting). One layer of fleece or minky is fine with a cotton top and makes a very snuggly blanket. Easy to bind or use the envelope method. Much easier to wash and dry too....A traditional 3 layer quilt can be used as a playmat until the baby is old enough to throw the covers off himself when he gets too hot.
My daughter has a quilt I made for her when she was a year old and received yet another fleece blanket for xmas. In fact, it's one of the first patchwork items I ever made. I simply slip stitched it to the border of the blanket then tied it with some pretty fabric roses. As she used it with her buggy, it got washed at least twice a week for 3 years and still has hard use with her toys another 4 years on. When she tires of toys, I'll pack it away with some other precious memories for her future.

loise98 wrote:
LOL, not confused, just shows that sometimes there is more than one answer

I didn't see the video so missed the flags; how fun that would have been!

I'll post pics of the baby quilt as I get it nearer completion; it's sort of my own design and I'm quite proud of it. It's triangles, nothing fancy there, but done in a layout that gives the allusion of argyle across the top third. Large, oversized argyle, that is. I actually drew the design when Alex was having the baby quilt contest, but the recipient didn't know yet if she was having a girl or a boy and I couldn't bring myself to spend the $$$ on fabric for a quilt just for the contest, so only making it now.

Anyway, yes, it's fun to work on! I'll post pics when it's made enough progress that you can see the design....

anne1 wrote:
yes, it's definitely not fleece, the stuff I was thinking of. I don't know the official name of it, and I've not seen minky fabric in person so can't say if this is like that or not. But it's a micro-fleece fabric in a very plush format. Soft, fuzzy, warm, and luxurious feeling next to the skin.

But, you raise some good points --- we don't want too warm (and baby-to-be lives in SE Texas & would get the quilt in August most likely), and perhaps the fuzzy which might get in babies mouth would be a bad idea as well.

I think for this one I will stick with the cotton. Maybe I will try the minky stuff later on....

loise98 wrote:
Lois, you haven't missed anything. The machine is at the machine doctor right now, still not sorted but I'll call today and hopefully they'll have it fixed & ready for pick-up this weekend. We shall see!

Meanwhile, I just keep working by hand. Slower going, but I have plenty of time to get these quilts done (I'm working on 3 different things right now....) so no worries. Luckily I enjoy the hand work. 'Tis far better to quilt/piece by hand than not to quilt/piece at all!!

I have made at least 6 baby quilts with cotton pieced tops and fleece backing. I did not put any batting in them, because, in southeast Texas the fleece is plenty!! The quilts held up well and everybody loved them. I had prewashed my cottons, so there was no shrinking. I did a regular binding just as you would with a 3 layer quilt. I machine quilted them with my DSM and had no problems with the fleece catching or not moving through smoothly. Have fun, I'm sure the baby will love it!

FYI Heather here's a link to a previous discussion on the forum:

[url]forum/your-tips-and-discoveries/4940-long-term-effects-of-adhesive-chemicals-on-quilts[/url]

Actually, I am not sure that was the link I was looking for. Some time back there was an article on different battings and how they fared in the event of a fire but I can't find the link. Anybody...?

Heather, I think we are probably managing to thoroughly confuse you. You'll have to follow the advice that seems right for you. Did you see the Brazilian flags flying during Ricky's video of the parade of quilts in Paducah. Good luck with the baby quilt. Lois

Minky is different from fleece, much softer.
I made a cushion cover for my daughter ( grown up ) and found it quite difficult to sew.
Anything too fluffy would "in my opinion" be wrong for a baby and I would stick to cotton or wool as these are natural fabrics.
Fleece is lovely but I think it might be too hot for a baby as when they are young they aren't able to regulate their temperature.
I would err on the side of natural products.
Hope this helps
Anne

I would do as Rosemary suggested. I guess this means the sewing machine is working fine. How did that get sorted out, or did I miss something? Lois