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This week on the podcast, we are talking about Pendleton and our mad love for the iconic brand.  Sometimes we do a podcast that translates nicely into an article for HelloGiggles and other times, like this week, well… it’s a harder sell.

We live in the Pacific Northwest and we pretend live in the English Countryside at The Heatley Cliff.  Both climates are damp and chilly.  That is why our homes (both real and fictional) are filled blankets of all shapes and sizes, colors and weights.  We buy them, we sew them, we knit them… We have a blanket in every room. Except the bathroom, which has towels (and aren’t they thicker, more absorbent blankets?).

It occurs to me that a blanket is one of those things that you really need but don’t ever think about, like water or a DVR.  But when you do stop and think, it’s almost frightening how vital something as simple as a bit of fabric can be to everyday life.

The moment you are born, you are washed and wrapped up in a blanket like a baby burrito. I know more than one kid who full on Linus-ed their baby blanket until they were old enough to know not to mention it to their friends.  And when you’re a kid, there is nothing safer than the fortress of your bed, head fully submerged under the comforter, from all the baddies and scary monsters that live in the closet.

On that topic,  let’s be real here: sleep just isn’t the same without covers.  Whether it’s your cozy couch throw or your scrunchy lovely duvet, pulling up the covers not only keeps you warm but gets you back to that baby burrito place I mentioned earlier.  Ever try to sleep without a blanket? Even when it’s a 100 degrees out, it just doesn’t feel right. When you are sick, you wrap a blanket around you.  When you go to the beach or the park and don’t want to sit on the ground or pick sand out of your food, you lay down a blanket.   Sure, it’s fun to go out and tear it up (as I vaguely recall), but is there anything better or cozier than couch potato-ing while watching your favorite show, wrapped up in a super soft throw? And when you are finished and you fold your blanket up and put it artfully back on the cushion, does it not complete the look of your room? Functional and beautiful, how about that?

If for some terrible reason you find yourself in a disaster – be it earthquake, flood, fire or hurricane – more than likely, the first thing you will be given is a blanket.  And if you are doing the rescuing, you will know that hope might feel a long way off, but wrapping a beleaguered and terrified stranger up in something warm might just be the only thing that you can offer when words will never do.  Think about the last time you saw someone on a stretcher being wheeled into an ambulance.  They are belted in over a blanket.  It’s not just comfort a first responder is providing, but a real defense against shock. In this case, a blanket is literally a life saver. And finally, traditionally Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and First Nation peoples shrouded their dead loved ones before burying or cremating them. So it seems a blanket is both the first and last thing your body clings to in this life.

So the next time you are thinking about indulging yourself with a treat, how about a lovely throw? Or even better, why not donate to an organization that helps children in need, appropriately named Project Linus?

Photo via The New Zealand Gazette