Pre-loved Jeans patchwork picnic blanket
Early Tip: Don’t go too small with the patches, do yourself a favour
When you have as many pre-loved but uncomfortable jeans as I do, a patchwork picnic blanket is a feasible feat. I also needed one as the Decathlon blanket, while good value, disintegrated without heavy use. I also found it a little on the small side.
I started cutting squares from unused jeans. I made a paper template so they would all be the same. I mixed and matched my squares to vary the pattern and painstakingly cut squares keeping pockets intact and usable. Later I realised I could have made them all bigger and saved a whole load of time and faff….
Slow patchwork beginnings
Honestly, I don’t even know when I started it. It’s pre-blog and I have no pics of the early days. My son was small and I dreamed of lying in the garden on the new picnic blanket. Then there were interuptions and all the work was forgotten for months and even years. I’ve moved house and changed job 3 times since. I’ve had some sprint moments but life, the day job, motherhood and chores get in the way. My son is now 7. But now its getting on the big size and that means more space and lots of stitches!
Present day blanket
So it’s Feb 2022 and I’m years into this denim picnic blanket project. Now I’ve reached a milestone; I’ve finally finished sewing all the square patches together. It was no mean feat and was surprisingly time consuming. I sewed each square together into strips of 12 squares. Then I sewed all the strips together, carefully plotting the arrangement to make sure the colours worked together.
As is usual when I get enthusiastic and optimistic I complicate things with new ideas and details. I think I’m a bit ADHD and a bit hyperactive – more in the mind than the body as I age.
Appliqué teacups and other jeans ideas…
I made a teacup appliqué by cutting out scraps of different fabrics and then zig-zagging around to define the edges (first ever appliqué attempt and really pleased; hope it wil be a durable addition). Now I’m in the process of cutting some bunting from fabric scraps to balance it out and add interest. Can’t wait to see how they will turn out. The pockets distributed among the squares are for cutlery and napkins, so they won’t blow away in the breeze.
I was also thinking of adding a knocked over wine bottle with wine spilling out (I have the ideal burgundy colour silky fabric for the spill!) but I’m going to quit at the bunting and finish this damn thing! Need to set limits or it will be a never-ending picnic blanket. I also ruled out some cool details as I didn’t envisage them being in it for the long haul…While I sew this albatross I can’t help wondering what will become of it when I’m rose food and maybe some one will love it for its vintage look and curiosity.
A project that goes on too long always carries a risk of having more and more ideas added, making it longer again and…oh dear! ….Speaking of ideas I also have one for a carry strap, but not until the blanket is finished of course.
Waterproof picnic backing
I temporarily lifted my fabric ban for this project. It wouldn’t have been necessary had I found an old shower curtain! I would have prefered to recycle but instead I popped to the fabulous Giesse Scampoli fabric store, not too far from me where I’ve often seen waterproof fabrics and I picked up 2 pieces (there was no single piece big enough!) which I’ll sew together with a double felled flat seam. Anyway, it doesn’t really need to be waterproof but at least not get too damp during use.
Stay tuned and check out the next posts!
