How to Make Cot Sheets

Making your own fitted sheets is an easy and money-saving project. You can purchase fabric in hundreds of designs and colors to give your cot a great look or match your current decor. This is a project for beginners to do because small flaws will not be noticeable. The most difficult part is deciding which fabric to use for your new sheets. You'll need one or two hours to make one sheet.

Things You'll Need

• Fabric
• Sewing machine
• Tracing paper
• Tracing wheel
• Thin elastic
• Needle
• Thread
• Scissors
• Measuring tape
• Straight pins
• Iron
• Safety pins

Instructions

Make a Fitted Cot Sheet

1. Measure your mattress from the bottom edge of one side, up and across the width and down to the bottom edge of the other side. Add 3 inches to this measurement. Then measure the length in the same manner and add 3 inches to it.

2. Purchase bedding fabric wide enough so you won't have any seams in the sheet. Cut the fabric to your measurements.

3. Lay the fabric with the wrong side up on your mattress and center it so that all sides are hanging down from the mattress equally. Fit the corners by bringing the sides together to create a dart. Pin the darts together to form the corners of the sheet.

4. Lay each corner on a table or hard surface and, using tracing paper and a tracing wheel, mark the lines that you have pinned. Remove the pins as you go along. Then place the pins perpendicular to the traced lines that are holding them together for sewing. Sew each corner dart on the wrong side of the material and remove the pins.

5. Fold the raw edge over 1/4 inch with the wrong sides of the material facing each other, and iron it down. Then fold it over again 1/2 inch for the hem. Sew all the way around, leaving a small opening at the end to insert your elastic.

6. Measure the distance around the mattress and subtract 4 inches. Cut your elastic to this measurement. Attach a safety pin to one end of the elastic to your opening. Place a safety pin on the other end of the elastic and feed it through the hem. When you get back to the opening, pull out the elastic and hand sew it to the other end.

7. Place the sheet on your mattress to make sure it pulls tightly enough. If not, pull the elastic through and sew it together an inch shorter for a tighter fit. Cut off the extra elastic and sew the opening closed with a needle and thread.

Make a Flat Cot Sheet

1. Use the same measurements as for your fitted sheet. Cut the fabric.

2. Turn all the raw edges over 1/4 inch with wrong sides together and iron the fold down. Turn another 1/4 inch and sew all the way around.

3. Turn the top width over 2 inches with the wrong sides together and iron flat. Sew down from the fold and turn. Go all the way across and turn, finishing back up to the fold.