How to Make a Prefold Flannel Diaper

Besides being environmentally friendly, cloth diapers can be cheaper than disposables.

Prefold diapers are one of the most flexible designs of cloth diapers. This is because they can be folded and tucked to fit a baby's rapidly-growing shape and also, once the baby outgrows smaller diapers, flannel prefolds can be folded for use as doublers inside a larger diaper.

Things You'll Need

• 1/4 yard flannel fabric
• 1/8 yard terrycloth
• Yardstick
• Pencil or chalk
• Scissors
• Thread
• Sewing machine

Instructions

1. Lay out your flannel and use the yardstick and pencil to mark out a rectangle 23 inches wide by 15 inches tall. Lay out the terrycloth and mark a rectangle 14 inches wide by 5 inches tall. Cut out both rectangles.

2. Fold the flannel in half with the shorter edges touching and the right sides together. Set the terrycloth strip on top of the folded flannel with one 14-inch edge centered on top of the cut edges of the flannel.

3. Stitch the three layers of fabric together. Use a fairly short straight stitch and 1/2-inch seams for this project and stitch slowly until you're sure that your sewing machine won't struggle going through the terrycloth.

4. Open the stitched tube of fabric and flatten again so that the terrycloth strip is centered on the top of the doubled layer of flannel. Measure this if necessary, but "eyeballing" the center works.

5. Stitch across the open top of the tube, using a 1/2-inch seam. Stitch across the bottom of the tube, leaving a 3-inch gap for turning.

6. Turn the diaper right side out. Tuck down the seam allowance in the gap along the bottom seam and topstitch it in place.

7. Flatten the diaper and topstitch down each side of the terrycloth strip. This gives added stability to the diaper and makes sure that it folds easily into thirds.

Tips & Warnings

• Using secondhand or bargain store towels for the terrycloth strips can be noticeably less expensive than buying terrycloth by the yard.

• For added strength and durability, overcast the edges of the terrycloth strip before you start assembling the diaper.

• The measurements given in this project create an 11-inch by 14-inch newborn-sized prefold. Adjust the measurements up or down as necessary to fit your baby.

• Using strong thread will help diapers stand up to repeated washings. Thin or flimsy thread will snap and ravel in the dryer.

References

• Confessions of a Cloth Diaper Fanatic: Diaper Patterns
• Fern and Faerie: Sewing Prefolds
• DiaperSewing.com: Prefolds