Liberty and Wool Lap Duvets | Purl Soho

Every Christmas I travel to my hometown of Berkeley, California to be with my family. You might imagine it’s a warm and sunny contrast to Brooklyn, but really, the famous Bay Area fog seems to seep into everything, including my bones! I have spent many a Christmas morning snuggling my parents’ 100 year old radiators while I sneakily inch up the thermostat a few degrees. It’s moments like this that call for a Lap Duvet!

Liberty and Wool Lap Duvets | Purl Soho

Since our first Lap Duvet project last year, these beautiful blankets have become my favorite quick sewing project, especially when I want to showcase a truly lovely fabric. This year, in anticipation of my chilly visit to California, I made an even easier version with my two absolute favorite fabrics in the world: Liberty of London’s Tana Lawn and Dorr Mill Wool. The contrast between the pretty detail of the Tana Lawn and the rustic beauty of the wool is just exquisite!

Liberty and Wool Lap Duvets | Purl Soho

Since this version uses wool, there is no need for batting, making this the simplest Lap Duvet yet! Best of all, the resulting blanket is warm and elegant, with a drape that is graceful and very special. It only takes a couple of hours to make, so there’s still plenty of time to sew one or two up for the holidays, either as beautiful gifts or as welcome warmth for your shivering guests! -Molly

Materials

Liberty and Wool Lap Duvets | Purl Soho

Size

Approximately 33 X 52-inches

Notes

Before you start you will need to felt the wool by washing it in hot, rinsing it in cold, drying it for 20 minutes, and then pressing it flat.

The finished lap duvet is hand wash or dry clean only.

Pattern

Cutting

Rip approximately and inch off of each cut edge of the liberty piece (do not rip the selvage edges.) This will result in a perfectly straight rectangle of liberty that is approximately 34-inches by 54-inches. Press this piece flat.

Press the wool flat and lay it on a clean section of floor. Lay the pressed Liberty piece on top of the wool, wrong side facing up. Pin the two pieces together and then cut the wool to match the liberty.

Sewing

Using your machine’s walking foot and the neutral thread sew the Liberty and wool together with a 1/2-inch seam allowance around all four sides leaving a 4-inch unsewn gap on one side.

Snip off the corners and turn the piece right side out through the unsewn gap. Press the edges and corners flat.

Liberty and Wool Lap Duvets | Purl Soho

Press the blanket in half lengthwise and width wise to find the center (represented by the dot in the diagram above.)

Lay it down again on the floor, with the Liberty side facing up. Using the curved safety pins pin the two layers of the blanket together at the center marking and then every 7-inches vertically and horizontally as represented by the “X”s in the diagram above.

Using a tacking stitch or short zig zag sew the two layers together at every pinned point using the contrast thread removing the safety pins as you go.

Hand stitch the gap closed and you’re all done!