Scout Blankets

[johnboy]

Hi,

I missed out on scouts when I was a youngster, so I have no real idea on scout lore
and protocols etc.
Anyhow my two oldest have started with Brownies and cubs respectively.
We are building up a stash of patches which are supposedly earmarked for a Blanket.

I know there are a good few folks on here that are well into the scouting movement so can someone advise on scout blankets in general.

Last weekend we went along for a Jubliee campfire and there were a lot of scout blankets in evidence. Are scout blankets just blankets or are they more of a poncho
whats the deal with sewing patches and badges on is anything fair game or are there specific rules etc???

thanks in advance

 

[John Fenna]

I still have my Scout Blanket - although I was never a Scout!
I joined the movement as a Leader and did 15 years with a Warrant though
Scout Blankets per se tend to be blankets (!) that may or may not be addapted into some form of garment.This is usually - but not exclusively - a poncho type affair, with a "T" cut neck hole. I have also seen them cut as cloaks or "Watch-coat" styles.
The badges tend to be of all sorts - souveniers of holidays, trades with other Scouts, other hobbies, old uniform badges etc etc
I wore "personal achievement" badges on the front of mine with Swaps/fun/holidays/campbadges etc on the back - but others went for different syles
To make the sewing easier and to impart a bit of water resistance for campfire gags such as "Peanuts the Elephant" and the "Human Aeroplane engines" camp fire sketches I sewed groups of badges (ie a collection of BSA in the Phillipines uniform badges or my Survival club of Great Britain badges) onto separate waterproof fabric backings which were then sewn to the blanket itself. This also makes transfering badges from an outgrown or worn out blanket onto a new one very easy. make sure that any neck opening is reinforced as that is where the weight of the badges makes the fabric fail first!
Blankets end up hugely heavy but warm and windproof - ideal for sitting around the old campfire! they also make great tent floors, balast in canoes and armour plating.
I hope that helps

 

[roger-uk]

Hi,

I missed out on scouts when I was a youngster, so I have no real idea on scout lore
and protocols etc.
Anyhow my two oldest have started with Brownies and cubs respectively.
We are building up a stash of patches which are supposedly earmarked for a Blanket.

I know there are a good few folks on here that are well into the scouting movement so can someone advise on scout blankets in general.

Last weekend we went along for a Jubliee campfire and there were a lot of scout blankets in evidence. Are scout blankets just blankets or are they more of a poncho
whats the deal with sewing patches and badges on is anything fair game or are there specific rules etc???

thanks in advance

Anything goes - the more the merrier - Reinforce the neck opening and very often you buy a spare necker and use that - reinforces the neck opening an dalso stops the rough blanket making the neck sore

http://www.alexanderhost.org.uk/wealdbrook/joomla/camp-blankets.html

or

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2219/2491531219_c273505a4a.jpg

Have fun and make sure your youngster sews on her own badges

 

[MartinK9]

Here's mine from 1974 - 1986:

Just had the lining replaced:

 

[Tengu]

Hurrah!

And heres my Fathers late Wifes scarf!

One word of advice; Make sure it is real wool and not artificial, as I have seen many to be.

 

[georann]

Army wool blankets seem to be a firm favourite but some have a variety of others (usually if theyre not as coarse!). Either way the norm is grey. Make it in to a poncho with a good blanket stitched reinforced edge (often a brighter colour to give it a bit of something).
As for badges anything goes pretty much. Most of my scouts seem to group them together (badges from their old beaver and cub uniforms, group badges, camp badges, special scout badges e.g. jubilee, other achievements, countries visited etc). Its pretty much entirely up to you. I've also seen people fold a spare necker and sew that on a poncho style blanket so it looks like theyre wearing it.
They're infinitely useful though. Keep you warm round the fire and protect uniforms from sparks, make great pillows or tent floor padding, cushions for when theres not enough logs to go round etc etc.

Oh and make sure they sew their own badges on!

 

[Wildgoose]

Mine is still at my parents house. I cheated slightly and stole it from my brother, so it was already half way there. Mine was an old army blanket and was un modified. Just bear in mind the weight if it's for a youngster, mine weighed a ton and was so rough it could also be used as sandpaper on camp crafts. If I made another, and hopefully the kids will take to scouting, I'd probably try for a cloak type design.
Go with wool though, fleece just melts.

 

[Lister]

Have had to start a scout blanket over again as i lost mine in the move up north, i was gutted, ended up getting a second hand one with badges on from ebay and slowly regaining the badges from my cub/scout days and any other badges i can acquire ebay is great for getting badges providing you don't get too carried away, i tend to look for joblots or bunchs of badges and then limit myself to about £3 per set.

 

[johnboy]

Thanks for all of the replies.

Cheers

John