Bean Bag Weighted Quilt

I saw a post on Facebook for How To Make A Weighted Blanket (Sensory Friendly) from the web site Mama Smiles. It looked interesting so I thought I'd try it. Just like any recipe, I made a few changes. Instead of drawing a 5" grid on fabric for the sewing lines, I cut 5 1/2" squares and sewed them into 9 rows of 7 squares.

I asked my son if the arrangement looked good. 

(He likes to fancy himself an art critic so I indulge him now and then.)

Then I added a 2" plain border.

The tutorial says to sew the sides and bottom and turn right side out.

I thought that would make the whole thing difficult at the end so that's why I added the 2" border. 

My quilt will require binding. I layered my bean bag quilt: batik backing, 2 layers of muslin, quilt top. Then I sewed the vertical lines and the lowest horizontal line--think COMB with the tines pointing up.

These are the plastic pellets that I used. This 2 lb. bag had 24-- 1/4c scoops in it. So I needed 2 more bags to finish the quilt. These pellets cost $9.99 each at JoAnns! (Good thing I had coupons!) They can be purchased cheaper online (ebay) but check for steep shipping costs because of the weight.

I put 1/4 cup of pellets BETWEEN the muslin layers, then shook it down to the bottom row.

You have to smooth the pellets away from the needle! 

Yes, I broke a needle sewing this project and the tip of the needle is stuck inside the quilt in one of the pellets. Ugh.

I tried pinning the rows above the pellets to contain them but that failed.

You have to smooth them out of the way for each square.

In the last row, I added the pellets as I came to each square so they wouldn't fall out of the lower squares before I got to them.

This is the finished Bean Bag Quilt. It weighs 7 lbs.   40" x 49"

 (Most of these white fabrics are from the Grand Illusion quilt I just finished piecing.)

This is a great lap quilt. It feels neat, sounds neat too.

It's like a hug waiting to happen.