Tutorial: Make a Blanket Cape

In my obsessive reading of fashion blogs lately, it’s been fun to educate myself on some clear trends that in other years have sailed right by me. This year it’s capes and plaid prints. I would never never ever have shelled out cash on a cape if I’d only seen it on a hanger. But seeing it in action on my favorite fashion blogs, with a pair of slim pants and a great boot? Fabulous.

I was specifically inspired by this jacket from Keiko. So bold, so classic, so cozy.

I’ve had this old stadium blanket kicking around for, seriously, decades. I have no idea where it came from, but it’s been like a bad penny my whole life, every time I think I’m rid of it it pops up again. It was too small to use as anything other than maybe a baby blanket, but why would you ever want to wrap a baby in lumberjack themed wool? This project is what it had been waiting for all those years.

I folded the blanket in half with the fringe ends hanging down. I cut through the middle of the top layer and cut a neck hole. I made my neck hole enormous because I was cutting around a couple of moth holes, but it ended up inspiring me in the end.

This step might take a little fine tuning, but don’t be afraid to just give it a couple tries. Try on your cape and decide how wide you want the waist to be and how large the sleeves. Mark your tailoring and sew on those lines. Cut about 1/3″ away from the seam and set the scraps aside for later.

I sewed some black double fold bias binding along the sides of the front opening, just to give it a little bit more of a finished look.

Take all those scraps you cut out from under the arms and sew them all together, leaving one end of fringe in place.

On the end that doesn’t have the fringe, fold the right sides together and sew the end closed.

Turn the strip inside out and iron to crease the fold line.

Pin your collar strip to the right side of the neck hole you cut for the cape. Mine just ended up fitting perfectly, but if yours isn’t the right size, just trim the strip or enlarge the neck hole until it fits.

Add a couple of button holes on the end with the fringe.

And sew on a couple of buttons on the other end.

I only messed with a collar because I ended up cutting the neck hole way too big, and I only did that because of how worn the blanket was. It all ended up working in my favor, though, as I now have this trendy wool cape, that somehow also looks vintage and 60’s inspired. A total happy accident.