How to Make a Duvet Cover

A duvet cover is easy to make and will protect your duvet from dust and dirt. Make two or three and change the look of your bedroom whenever you change your cover.

Things You'll Need

• Buttons
• Dressmaker's Measuring Tapes
• Snap Tapes
• Bedsheets
• Dressmaker Pins
• Dressmaker Shears
• Fabric-marking Pens
• Fabrics
• Ironing Boards
• Irons
• Sewing Machine
• Sewing Machine Needles
• Threads
• Yardsticks

Instructions

Selecting Cover Fabric

1. Measure the length and width of your duvet with a tape measure. Write down the measurements.

2. Choose a washable home decorator fabric. Opt for a lightweight fabric that feels comfortable against your skin - especially for the underside of the duvet - if you will use your duvet in lieu of a top sheet.

3. Choose two equal lengths of 54-inch-wide fabric (or wider) for the front of the duvet cover. Each panel should be equal to the length measurement you made in step 1, plus 5 inches.

4. Choose two equal lengths of fabric for the back of the cover as well. Each piece should be equal to the length measurement from step 1, plus 3 inches.

5. Look for home decorator fabrics that are at least 54 inches wide to cover a duvet that is up to 104 inches wide. If your duvet is wider, purchase one additional panel of fabric for each side of the cover.

6. Take care with patterns and prints. You may need to make your panels longer so that patterns or prints match up. This won't be necessary with small overall prints like calicos.

7. Prewash the fabric. Iron if necessary.

Sewing the Cover

1. Fold one front panel in half lengthwise, with the wrong sides together. Use an iron to make a sharp crease at the fold. Unfold the fabric. Repeat this step with one of the back panels.

2. Use a fabric marking pen and a yardstick to make a line down the length of the crease on each panel. Cut along each line with dressmaker shears. You will now have six panels: three for the front of the cover and three for the back.

3. Pin one narrow front panel to one side of the uncut front panel. Pin it so that the right sides of the fabric are together and all fabric edges line up evenly.

4. Sew a half-inch seam along the pinned edges and press the seam open. Pin the remaining narrow front panel to the other side of the uncut front panel and sew a half-inch seam there as well. Press the seam open.

5. Repeat steps 10 and 11 for the panels that will form the back of your duvet cover. If your duvet is wider than 104 inches and you purchased additional fabric panels, cut these panels in half as you did in steps 8 and 9. Add these extra panels according to steps 10 and 11.

6. Measure the assembled front and back portions of the cover. Make sure that the width of each piece is 2 inches larger than that of the duvet. Trim each side of the front and back covers if necessary.

7. Place the front and back portions of the cover one on top of the other with the right sides together. Make sure that the side and top edges of the cover line up evenly and pin them together. The edges at the bottom of the cover will be uneven and should be left unpinned.

8. Sew a half-inch seam around all the pinned edges and press the seams open.

9. Turn the raw edges at the cover's bottom under one-half inch and sew them into place. Pin and/or press the edges into place before sewing them if necessary.

10. Turn the cover right side out and attach snap closures to the cover's opening. The snaps should be placed approximately 1 inch from the opening, 4 to 5 inches apart. See "How to Apply No-Sew Snaps to Clothing" for instructions.

11. Affix the ball portions of the snaps to the wrong side of the longer flap and the socket portions to the right side of the shorter flap. This will give you a tidy closure for the duvet.

Tips & Warnings

• Look at duvet covers in bedding and department stores for inspiration about fabric types, weights and color combinations.

• Use bed sheets - cotton or flannel - to make your duvet cover. Make sure that the sheets are large enough to cover the duvet.

• Use a heavier print fabric for the top portion of the duvet cover and a lighter weight solid color for the underside.

• Check the fiber content of your fabric. Expect some shrinkage with 100 percent cotton fabrics.

• Finish the raw fabric edges with one of the methods described in "How to Keep Raw Fabric Edges from Fraying" in the Related eHows.

• Use buttons and buttonholes or Velcro tape instead of snaps.