Fancy Burp Cloths Tutorial

Every new Mom needs a stash of burp cloths.  Burp cloths have come a long way.  You can now purchase ones that are different colors and have little sayings on them.  I am old school though and find the cloth diapers are the best burp cloths known to man.  That being said, it is time to update those plain white cloth diapers. Wouldn't some nice fabric added to it make cleaning up the baby spit up and slobber a prettier process?

If you can sew even the tiniest bit, you can make these and impress a new Mom or soon to be Mom.

Supplies Needed:

• package of cloth diapers (found in baby section of major super stores)
• leftover fabric of different colors-approximately half a yard for 2-3 burp cloths
• optional embellishments: ribbon, decorative lace, ric rack for edges, etc
• matching thread for fabric and white thread
• sewing machine
• iron

1.  This is the most important step of all!  Wash the cloth diapers and the fabric you will use prior to doing this project.  Notice the picture below.  The left is the pre-washed cloth diaper and the right is the washed.  These will shrink.  If you don't wash the cloth diapers and the fabric first, they will shrink and bunch and not look so pretty.  All your work will be a waste and you don't want that.

2.  Take your cloth diaper and measure the inside portion that is thicker.  Measure both the width and length.  I am not providing these measurements as yours will differ depending on the level that the cloth diapers shrink.  

3.  Now cut at least 1/4 of an inch larger for both the width and length (on all sides) of your fabric. Notice below how much the diaper shrunk from the first time I prepared my fabric prior to washing.  Don't make that mistake!

4.  With your fabric right side down, fold in a 1/4 of an inch or 1/2 inch (in my case) on all sides of your fabric.  Press with your iron to get a straight firm edge.

5.  Check that your measurements are accurate on each cloth diaper and make any adjustments by folding in or out and re-ironing.  See picture below.

6.  Flip your fabric so that it is right side facing up. Place any embellishments under the fabric, such as ric rack or ribbon under the edges.  I didn't have these on hand so I didn't add them. Pin the embellishments and fabric to your cloth diaper or be lazy like I am and tweak it as it goes.

7.I start at one corner and go to the next corner.  Keep your needle down at the corner stop sewing, release the footer tension and turn your fabric and cloth diaper.  Then drop the footer and sew to the next corner.  Do this all the way around and you will only need to cut thread at your starting/finishing point.  This also gives a more polished look to the burp cloth.

When you are finished you have a beautiful burp cloth to give as a gift or add to your diaper bag.  A package of cloth diapers has twelve in it, therefore you can make a couple for a gift or a ton for yourself.

I made two of each for each of my friends who were pregnant.  Here is the stack of them.

I hope this tutorial helps you whip up some easy baby shower gifts.  Let me know what embellishments you added, if any, to make these gifts even more special.