Sunshine Baby Blanket: Sewing in Patchwork Technique

Patchwork enthusiasts create true masterpieces from fabric pieces, putting together intricate, elaborate patterns. But even if you've never sewn in the patchwork technique, in just a few days you can put together a beautiful and simple 'Sunshine' baby blanket. It's pieced from playful blocks that look almost hand-drawn by a child, which gives the piece its own special charm.

Another bonus of this piece is that it uses very little colored fabric. Ordinary white cotton works as the base — you could even use an old bedsheet.

For detailed tips on how to sew a patchwork block with sunshine-style rays, see below.

Step 1

First, cut 8 identical squares from a solid white fabric and 1 from a colored one. The side length is up to you — I sew my blocks from 12 by 12 cm squares.

Step 2

Place a piece of colored fabric onto the white base at an angle, stitch along the line, fold it over to the right side, and trim off the excess. Be sure to press the piece.

Step 3

Fill the second corner of the square with a scrap of the same color, following the same steps.

You'll need 4 squares like this. The size and proportions of the colored triangles can be whatever you like, since the block is sewn in the crazy-patchwork technique.

Step 4

Assemble the block in this order, as shown in the photo: a colored piece in the center, squares with rays on the 4 sides, and white pieces filling the corners.

Your 'Sunshine' block is ready! It can be sewn from fabric in other shades, including printed fabric. If you have plenty of small scraps stashed away, the center piece of the block can easily be pieced together from them too, also in the crazy-patchwork technique.

All that's left is to sew the finished blocks together and join them to the base. The blanket can be made with or without batting, and decorated with hand or machine quilting.