DIY: Luxuious Towel/Blanket

I love getting my Joann coupons in the mail.  The best part is they come to both myself and my husband - double of everything and they let me use them both at the same time!  So fun - especially when that 50 percenter rolls around.  So being the type of person to fall prey to this type of marketing I always have to come up with a project to create - or stroll the store for something fun and pretty.  This weekend, with two 40 percenters in hand, I decided to make a luxurious towel/blanket.  I saw one of these down in Florida for $100 and thought - hey I could make that.  One side was terry cloth and the other was a soft, durable fabric of varying textures.
I found this cute, summery fabric which was $2.99 a yard and then found a coordinating terry cloth color  to match.  I don't typically go for the girly, flowers but it was on clearance and since you can't use coupons on sale items it freed up my coupon to buy a sweet ribbon detail.  In the end I went for a soft and sweet look - next time I want to do something more funky!

The grand total for materials after thread and extra sewing needles was $30.  Oh I didn't mention that I bought 2.5 yards of both fabrics and then 8 yards of ribbon (that was where a lot of my cost was).

When I got home I laid the green terry cloth down so the side I wanted showing was facing up.

Then I laid the printed fabric face down on top of the terry cloth.

Once those were lined up and in place I pinned them together with the ribbon detail between like so....

Make sure the back edge of the ribbon is flush against the ends of the fabric.  Also make sure the ribbon (pretty part for better word) is facing in so that when you flip it right side out you see it.  I am terrible at directions and don't really know how to sew so let me know if you need a more thorough description.

Once it is all pinned in place sew along each edge starting with a short edge.  Once you have 1 short edge and 2 long edges sewn together, sew the 2nd short edge just half way and stop.  Unpin everything and flip it right side out so you have pretty seams all around.  Once you are ready you can hand sew that last section in place and you are done!!  

I cannot wait to use it for picnics, reading outside with the dogs, hanging at my in-laws pool or the lake house.  I probably won't actually use it as a towel for actual drying but for sunbathing or staying warm on the boat.  I think it would also be great for little babies at the pool, yard or beach.

I also recently just made these as baby blankets (aka one giant one for myself too).  Just use two soft fabrics.

Let me know if you try making one yourself.  If so, enjoy!

I shared this with Freckled Laundry.  Check out all the other great entries!

I also shared this with Somewhat Simple!

And Tatertots and Jello!