Cozy Bedcover and Pillow

Your child can pick the fleece colors, plus the shapes and buttons for the pockets on this surprisingly easy project. As one self-professed "fabricphobic" test mom reported, "The iron-on adhesive was amazing, especially for someone like me who doesn't sew."

Prep steps: Wash the fleece and dry it on the fluff setting. Cut each piece as shown on our bed (you'll have leftovers for the pockets and pillow), then lay them in order on a protected work surface. Read the web packaging for ironing tips; we used the silk setting without steam, plus the pressing cloth, to form bonds without overheating the fleece.

What you'll need

• 9 yards of fleece (3 yards each of 3 colors)
• Scissors or pinking shears
• 10-yard roll of 7/8-inch-wide iron-on fusible web with paper backing (we used Therm O Web HeatnBond UltraHold)
• Pressing cloth (available at fabric stores) or a piece of cotton fabric
• Iron
• Fabric glue
• Measuring tape
• 3 medium-size buttons
• Bolster pillow form

How to make it

1. 
   For the blanket Cut the web into 2- to 3-foot-long strips. Where the colored fleece segments meet, fuse the web strips to the top edge of the first color and the underside of the next.
2. 
   Let the web strips cool, then peel off the paper backing.
3. 
   Iron together the two web-covered edges. Move your iron slowly along each seam until the three segments are fused.
4. 
   For the pockets Cut 3 shapes from the remaining fleece. Run a line of fabric glue around the edges of each, leaving the tops unglued. Affix a pocket on each panel. Sew a button to the blanket inside the top center of each pocket, and cut a small slit in the pocket for a buttonhole.
5. 
   For the pillow Measure and cut a length of fleece in each color, as shown. Fuse them together as you did with the bedcover. Wrap the fused fleece around the bolster so it fits snugly, trim the fleece overlap as needed, then set the bolster aside. Fuse the two long edges to form a tube. Stuff the bolster in and use 2 thin fleece scraps to tie the ends.