Campfire Blankets
a few ideas
One of the great traditions of Scouting is to have a Campfire Blanket.
There is nothing more that most Scouts like than sitting around a campfire at the end of a busy and exciting day, telling stories, singing songs or simply poking the fire with a stick!
A lot of Scouts have a campfire blanket. Onto this blanket are sewn badges and other memorabilia of their Scouting career, from the first camp they went to, awards given, swaps that they did an anything Scouty they can find! It is a blanket full of stories and memories, as well as a useful aid to a warm nights sleep!
Akela's Blanket
A good way of getting ideas about how to design your blanket is to look at others - here's Akela's!
Each time Akela was involved in a different group he added a scarf.
Akela has been to many Jamborees. These are the badges.
These are from lots of different Cub Camps Akela has been on.
These badges are from different campsites that Akela has visited
These badges are from places Akela has visited or special event he went to.
All these badges Akela earnt when he was a Cub.. not many really!!
Here are some other ideas to inspire!
click on the image to enlarge and start slide show
So what type of blanket do I get and what style?
Style - The good news is there is no wrong way of designing your blanket. The two main ways are to cut a hole in the middle and make a poncho style or to attach some cord to tie at the top like a cloak (Akela does this). You could just have it a flat blanket!
I always think they look better if they have something other than just badges on them.
Applique or embroidery adds a personal touch - names or symbols like flames.
What sort of blanket? - the thing to remember is that, hopefully, the blanket will stay with them all their way through their Scouting life. So plan ahead! A huge swamping poncho might look a bit comical on them now but as they grow it will be perfect!
I would not recommend using a synthetic fleece. Although lightweight and snuggly there are considerable fire risks to consider (very flammable and they melt as they burn!) and as this is a camp fire blanket. This consideration should be taken seriously! It is a shame that the Scout Shop sells just such blankets!
Personally I would recommend natural fibre blankets (such as army surplus type ones) They are heavy, and usually quite huge, but are so versatile and are considerably safer around fire (not perfect, but better)
Thankfully the Scout Shop sell these sort too! (click here to see).... other shops are available!
Final tip... those of you that are not to good as sewing... COPYDEX works wonders!