I've always done them in my washer at home without any problems. You can also do them with fleece. You don't get the fraying but it curls at the ends; still a cute look. You can make the blocks the size you want; I think mine were a little smaller but the filler is about an inch smaller. You sew an X thru them before sewing them together. I keep a tote of different ones sewen together for when I need a quick gift. I've also had print on one side and solids on the other and then appliqued designs on the solid side. Do a search here and you'll get tons of tips on this. Good luck on it.