DIY No Sew Tie Blanket For Animal Shelters

Looking for a community service project perfect for all ages? For all animal lovers? Making a No Sew Tie blanket to benefit homeless dogs and cats in shelters until they find a forever home is a fun and rewarding DIY.

 One does not to need to be “crafty” to participate and this is a perfect volunteer activity for all ages. Tie fleece blankets can be made with a pair of scissors and a piece of fleece!

Community Service – Kids, Adults, Seniors

Dog and Cat No Sew Tie Fleece Blankets are a fruitful way to pay it forward and help our furry friends in need. Gather your friends, gather your church volunteers and gather your family for a Make A Blanket Event to benefit the adoptable animals in your area. Your local pet shelters and adoption groups will be so appreciative.

Young children and seniors can easily participate with a little pre planning if nimble hands are an issue or sharp scissors are a concern. No Sew Tie Fleece Blankets can be made a variety of ways and finished a variety of ways with flip fringes or knotted fringes to allow each volunteer to participate. Not every volunteer has to use scissors or be able to tie a knot or fringe to participate.

How To Make No Sew Tie Blanket?

Very easy and very quick! Making No sew dog and cat blankets are a great way to use your fleece scraps from the craft stash and can easily be taught to kids, adults and seniors. If you are familiar with the No Sew Fleece Blanket then no problem, No Sew Dog And Cat Tie Blankets are simply small – much smaller- versions of the popular No Sew Fleece Blanket.

Materials

A rectangle of no sew fleece. The size can be adjusted to the size requirement of the shelter, but 2′ by 3′ makes a nice size blanket.

Directions

1. Cut off the selvedge. The selvedge is the strip along one side of the fabric with the manufacturer’s brand name. The selvedge will run along the entire length and needs to be removed or the fringes of the blanket will have the writing as a part of the fringe,
2. Cut a 3 inch square out of each corner. This will establish a guideline for the fringe cutting.
3. The top of the 3 inch square cut out of the rectangle is the guide to the height of each piece of fringe.
4. Begin making the fringe by cutting from the bottom of the fleece up 3 inches. The width of the fringe can vary however 3/4″ to 1″ width makes a nice fringe and is easy to work.
5. So each fringe is 3″ long and 1 ” wide.
6. The fleece can then be tied, braided, flipped or woven depending upon the chosen finishing method.
7. The easiest is way to finish the tie blanket is to tie two adjacent fringes together two times so the fringes stay tied together.

How To Make a Flip Tie Blanket

1. Follow  the directions above through step 5. 
2. Flip each fringe up and lay on top of fleece.
3. A fold of fleece will be created where the fleece blanket meets the bottom of the fringe.
4. In the middle of each fold cut make a very small cut into the fold.
5. Flip the fringe down to lay flat on the surface.
6. You will now see the fringe has a small hole toward the top of the fringe.
7. The bottom of the fringe will be fed through the hole and then pulled down. Pick up the bottom of the fringe and lift up to the hole and feed the bottom of the fringe through the hole and then pull down.
8. Repeat for each piece of fringe.

Check out three different ways to make a pet tie blanket courtesy of the Snuggles Project.

1. Polar Express tie fleece blanket
2. Braided Edge 
3. Basketweave fleece blanket

All of the above patterns are no sew tie fleece blankets and are suitable for kids to make.

Animal Shelter Requirements For Tie Fleece Blankets

To ensure the blankets meet the requirements of the shelter or rescue group it is always wise to ask for their specific blanket needs prior to beginning the project.. Sizes vary per organization, crate size, dogs or cats, single layer or double layer fleece blankets.  

The shelter we make blankets for request two specific sizes in solid color fleece to make a fleece tie blanket also known as a no sew fleece blanket. Many shelters have the specs posted on their website; most shelters welcome fleece blanket donations and welcome drop off’s; again check with the organization as hours and space for storage vary.

We also have a Make A Blanket Day party where we craft Tie Fleece Blankets for the children of Project Linus and then use the fleece scraps to make no sew dog and cat fleece blankets for our furry friends in need.

Where To Find Animal Shelters To Donate ?

Pet Finder – search by zip code

Adopt A Pet – search for rescues and shelters by zip code

Local animal shelters & rescue groups – Google animal shelters with your zip code

Local pet store – pet stores and especially independent pet stores can be a wealth of information for your local pet adoption community.  Most stores in my area hold weekend adoption events each sponsored by a local pet rescue group – stop in and ask and check their counter and bulletin board for upcoming adoption fairs.

Snuggles Project For Cats

The Snuggles Project is under the umbrella of the Hugs For Homeless  non profit organization established in 1996 dedicated to advocating for homeless and lost pets. Snuggles are security blankets for kittens and cats in shelters while they await adoption.

Calming Effect – Snuggles provide a calming effect in a new environment until a forever home is found

Color – A colorful blanket warms up the environment and helps battle the myth of  Black Cat Adoptions.

Community Service – Funds for shelters, humane societies and rescue groups are always in need. Help these groups defray their cost by donating animal comfort blankets.

Additional Community Service Projects For Kids

Community Service: How To Recycle Plastic Into Sleep Mats For Homeless

How To Plarn – Reduce Reuse Recycle Plastic Bags

How To Make A Classroom Quilt