New Animal Velour Blankets

We continue to add more and more blankets from My Blankee, and we’ve only just begun.  Today, we added the My Blankee Animal Velour Blanket, just one of our great animal baby blankets. This blanket is in essence a luxurious security blanket, and it is very popular with the celebrities.  Some of the known celebrities who have chose My Blankee are Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Jessica Alba, Jennifer Garner, and Katie Holmes.

What is velour?  Velour is a knit fabric, which allows it to stretch.  It also has the rich feel of velvet.  All of My Blankee blankets are hypoallergenic and made in the USA.  They come in a variety of size, including security, stroller and toddler.  Contact us directly if you are interested in a throw, twin, full, queen or king sizes.

Check out some of the beautiful prints below.  We offer prints for giraffe, zebra, dalmation, cow, tiger, leopard and more in a number of colors - pink, brown, black, tan, caramel, white and others.  All of the blankets have a 3″ satin trim.  These blankets are perfect for a jungle, safari themed nursery.

Zebra Print Blanket

Tiger Baby Blanket

Giraffe Security Blanket

Personalized Baby Blankets Are Here!

If you’ve been holding your breath for BlanketMyBaby to offer personalized baby blankets, then you are in luck!  First of all, exhale.  Then, check out the many new products we are offering on our site.

Ok, while I admit that I was hesitant to add these products (more below), we realize that personalized blankets are an important part of any baby blanket store.  If you are looking to buy a gift for a friend or family member, there is hardly a better way out there to show your caring thoughtfulness than with an embroidered blanket.  It shows that you go the extra distance to put a touch of kindness in your gift.  Plus, it’s something the child can treasure as their own!

Look closely on our product page.  Notice anything different?  Ok, you may have caught us.  This category page is a bit different than the rest.  If you’ve noticed, there are no helpful filters or pop images to help you get a closer look.  I’ve added these products as affiliate only for now.  Yeah, yeah, not my favorite, but we’re more concerned about you having a fuller selection than the checkout being on BMB.  So go ahead, knock yourself out and discover some of the great personalized blankets we have to choose from!

Personalized Bear Blankets

Benefits of Sleep Sacks and Baby Sleeping Bags

Wearable baby blankets, including sleep sacks and baby sleeping bags are convenient for parents and comfortable for babies.  Typically the blankets keep the feet tucked in and zip, button, snap or velcro up the front.  They solve the age-old problem of babies kicking off the blanket and waking up cold or tangled.  They also help reduce the risk of SIDS by keeping blankets away from the face. Sleep sacks offer a great transition phase from swaddling to big-kid blanket.

Sleep sacks can be loose or tight at the bottom.  Some allow wiggle room for the feet and others function more like a swaddling blanket.  As for the arms - sleep sacks can be sleeveless, short-sleeved, long-sleeved or may tuck arms in with a swaddling feature.

When deciding on a sleep sack, it’s important to consider the temperature of the baby’s room and the season of the year.  Sleep sacks are available in many fabrics and may range from thick winter fleece to thin summer-appropriate cotton mesh.

Blanketmybaby.com carries several varieties of baby sleeping bags and sleep sacks in colors including blue, pink, green, yellow, white and more.  BMB offers several unique SwaddleDesigns fuzzy sleep sacks with satin trim and various Aden and Anais cotton muslin baby sleeping bags.  BMB also sells the handmade Sleep Pea Pods, which could be used as a swaddle blanket or sleep sack.

Pictured:  Swaddle Designs Mod Circles Print, Aden and Anais Bee Print

New Handmade Blankets

We’ve added some great new handmade blankets to our site from AllyZabba.  These blankets are truly unique because many of them have a raised, minky plush feeling on one side and the silky smooth texture of satin on the other.  Babies get the best of both worlds with these blankets.

If you’re interested in blankets that are hand crafted with love, you should definitely check them out.  Right now, we have over 10 different products that are available in many different colors and sizes.  Check out the AllyZaba Camo, Pastel Dot, Sloppy Baby, Aloha, Chocolate Dot and many more.

Handmade Baby Blankets by AllyZabba

An Everyday Parent’s Advice for Buying the Perfect Baby Blanket – Choose a blanket that is big enough for swaddling and lets you know when the baby is wet

Heather, 28, Florence, KY
Proud mom of David, Marisa, Joseph and TBD

My favorite swaddle blanket
I think the blanket was purchased at Walmart, but I’m not sure.  It is made of a very heavy, very soft cotton fabric and has a satin edging all around the blanket.  One side is solid baby-blue, the other is patterned. This blanket is my favorite because it combines a lot of my preferences: the satin trim is snuggly, it’s a fairly heavy cotton fabric, it has a very dense weave and it is the perfect size!

Of all the preferences listed above, my FAVORITE feature of this blanket is that it’s slightly wider and longer than all my others!  There seems to be some unspoken rule out there about the dimensions of a baby blanket.  They’re all the same size–too small!

The small blankets are fine for the initial swaddling but there’s no extra fabric.  This means that as soon as the baby starts to move its arms or legs the wrap comes loose, and within a minute they’ve wiggled themselves cold. The blanket I’m talking about is the only one like it that I have.  It’s truly unique in that it’s just a bit larger, and tucks a bit further around the baby than my other blankets.  It truly keeps my kids swaddled.  This blue blanket has been my favorite for all three babies even though Marisa is a girl.

Pee ID
The solid color on the underside of this blanket means you can identify instantly if the baby has peed or spat up.  Blankets that are all patterned hide so much that the baby might be wet and uncomfortable but you can’t see it.  This blanket goes dark, so it’s obvious.  I always wrap the baby so the dark side is outward and I can tell if my baby is wet right away.

I prefer cotton to fleece.  Fleece fabrics feel dry to the touch no matter what, so it’s harder to tell when the baby has soaked the blanket.

Unique Baby Blanket for St. Patrick’s Day - Baby Blankets for Special Occasions Series

We at blanketmybaby.com are always looking for where to find unique baby blankets for special occasions.  Below, there is a picture and product description of a blanket sold by St. Patrick’s Guild.  If you’re looking for a festive way to celebrate St. Patty’s Day ’09 or looking for a great “welcome” gift for a baby with Irish heritage, check out the blanket/pillow combo featured below.

The blanket and pillow look like they are made of fleece or cotton with a satin trim.  They feature embroidered Irish-themed designs and festive green text that says “Wee lads and lassies”.

Lads and Lassies Baby Blanket and Pillow Set from St. Patrick’s Guild

“Wrap your Irish wee one up in love with this adorable Irish throw and pillow set. The light green with a dark green trim set is the perfect way to welcome a new baby into the family. The soft throw and pillow each say ‘Wee Lads and Lassies’ in green writing with delicate designs around the words. The Irish throw and pillow set will be the perfect addition to any baby room, and makes a great gift for a baby shower or a Baptism. The Irish throw and pillow set is also machine washable, so you don’t have to worry about those little messes that your wee lad or lassie may make.” (product description is as it appears on www.stpatricksguild.com)

Baby Blankets for Celebrities

If you are interested in a higher end baby blanket, there are plenty to be found.  Whether it is luxurious cashmere or silk, there are plenty of baby blankets designed to soothe and pamper your baby.  And because some of these blankets are so nice, celebrities are taking notice.  

One of these top stores of luxury baby blankets is Maxdaniel.com.  The boutique Los Angeles-based company known for its luxurious and chic baby blankets and decadent adult animal print throws is a winner of Disney’s prestigious iParenting Media Award. If you are looking for unique baby blankets, these might be the right ones for you.  These popular blankets are a favorite gift of several television networks and loved by celebrities.

Max Daniel Baby baskets have been ordered for Britney Spears, Jennifer Garner, Heidi Klum, Denise Richards, Tori Spelling, to name a few.  These high fame moms will spare no expense for their babies.  Also, Max Daniel Baby’s own signature blankets have been spotted being snuggled by celebrity babies in People, US Weekly, Life & Style, Los Angeles Family Magazine, The New York Sun and on Extra.  

Luxurious Double-Sided Plush 
Trimmed in Softest Charmeuse Satin Ruffle.
Machine Wash Gentle, Cold Water, Dry Flat or No Heat Dryer
36×32 - 100% Polyester
Made in USA

Price $70

An Everyday Parent’s Advice for Buying the Perfect Baby Blanket - Swaddling blankets and multi-purpose blankets - Babies need different blankets as they grow

Lisa, 33, Eastgate, Ohio
Proud mom of Nolan, Rylie and Ashlynn

Below, Lisa, mom of three, explains that babies will require different types of blankets as they grow and as their needs change.  To help other parents and blanket shoppers in their baby blanket searches, she describes her criteria for swaddling blankets and her preferences for blankets for swaddle graduates (older babies).

Swaddlers

For newborns you need a great swaddling blanket!  Look for blankets that are:

1) perfectly square
2) stretchy
3) big (when I’m using them to swaddle, most regular receiving blankets don’t feel big enough)

I own a receiving blanket made of thermal material that I would recommend.  It’s made by Koala Baby and can be purchased at Babies “R” Us.  The blanket is green, made of 100% cotton, very stretchy and perfectly square.  You can easily swaddle a baby with it and it keeps the baby warm during the colder seasons.  A great swaddle would keep my baby comfortable and sleeping.

Koala Baby Thermal Receiving Blanket – Babies “R” Us (pictured)

I would not suggest buying regular, cheap receiving blankets for swaddling infants.  At my house, they just ended up being used as burp cloths.

Swaddle Graduates (older babies)

As babies get older and more active, I recommend blankets that are:

1) breathable
2) soft (babies LOVE soft materials for cuddling and playing, especially silk or satin)
3) durable (during this stage, babies become attached to certain items—namely their blankies—so you want one that will hold up)
4) big (it’s nice to have a blanket big enough to throw on the floor at other people’s houses and let the baby play)

One word of warning:  In my experience, the blankets that have a solid silk or satin side with the opposite side made of a soft material tends to make babies sweat profusely.  The sweating is usually worst if they are touching the silky side of the blanket.  This is one of the reasons I recommend breathable material.

Valentine’s Day Baby Blanket Gift Ideas - Baby blankets for special occasions series

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner.  If you have a special someone, I hope you have the perfect gift in mind.  We at blanketmybaby.com have some ideas for what to buy for your sweetheart…and we mean your baby of course!

Here is a list of Valentine’s Day baby blanket gift ideas:

-  Have a blanket in a Valentine’s Day color or print personalized or monogrammed for your baby.

-  Make your own blanket - For the talented with needles, knit a red and pink blanket or sew a heart-shaped blanket.  For the not-so-talented with needles, buy a red, pink or white baby blanket and sew or iron on a heart-shaped patch.  You could also buy heart-patterned fleece and a plain fleece and make a tie together fleece blanket.

-  Buy a unique Valentine’s Day baby blanket from a store.  You can find a very cute example of a baby blanket for Valentine’s Day from The Land of Nod.  The “Be My Valentine Blankets” feature a red/pink Valentine’s hearts pattern on a white background.  You may choose between a swaddling blanket made of 100% pre-shrunk cotton flannel with swaddling instructions and a cotton flannel security blanket with a silky satin border.  Both blankets are machine washable and made in the USA.

With a blanket this cute and holiday themed, your baby will be winning the hearts of everyone around!

Christmas Baby Blankets - Baby Blankets for Special Occasions Series

Unique Baby Blanket Ideas for Christmas

Make Your Own Christmas Baby Blanket

Visit the Michaels site to learn how to make the Caron Christmas Baby Blanket.  You can purchase Caron’s Simply Soft Yarn at Michaels and download a free pattern for knitting and then embroidering a Christmas baby blanket.

The blanket can double as a baby carriage cover.  This blanket pattern is rated as a 1 out of 5 for level of difficulty with 1 being the easiest.

The design is classic or country Christmas style and makes a great gift, keepsake or family heirloom.

The Royal Nursery First Christmas Blanket

This Christmas baby blanket can be personalized with your baby’s name and features an embroidered rocking horse.  The rocking horse design gives the blanket a very classic Christmas style.

The blanket is made of soft, white micro-fleece.

All you have to do is type the baby’s name into the web page!  As with most personalized items, order in advance because it will likely take a few weeks to embroider and ship.

Baby’s First Christmas Blanket from Blueberry Babies

Blueberry Babies carries a blanket made of white fleece and trimmed in satin.  Babies love to touch soft trims and other textures. A comforting fact (given that this Christmas baby blanket is stark white) is that it is machine washable.

The blanket comes with one of the embroidered designs pictured above: a reindeer, Santa or holiday tree. The chunky, rounded designs of the embroidery give the blanket a cutesy, contemporary Christmas feel.

The blanket can be personalized with your baby’s first name. If you want to use this blanket for multiple children, you can skip the name, or why not embroider your last name only and use it as a family blanket?  It would be a fun item to get out each year a baby in your family celebrates a first Christmas.

Do you own a great Christmas baby blanket or have feedback on one of the blankets showcased above?  Tell us about it by posting a comment so that our readers can have all the information they need before making their Christmas baby blanket purchase.