by: sewwhatalicia
How to Make Burp Cloths – Free Pattern
I am so excited to have a new little baby model. My neighbor just had the most adorable little boy and he and I are already fast friends! He, like most babies, is oh so slobbery so I knew it was time for some super absorbent burp cloths. If you want to make burp cloths from cloth diapers you can find that tutorial HERE. But to make diy burp cloths from scratch keep reading! This pattern can be printed and cut by hand or you can use the SVG file to cut these with your Cricut Maker.
How to Make Burp Cloths – Free Pattern
Looking for more baby patterns, check THESE out. You might also love these adorable knit hats!
Are you BRAND NEW to sewing and not sure where to start? Check out my new free Sew Simple Series where I will walk you through everything you need to know starting at the very beginning!
Supplies:
Terry Cloth – I like terry cloth (or towel material) for these burp cloths because it is so absorbent and great for cleaning up after baby. Use it to wipe bubbles from baby’s mouth or for cleaning up a spill at the dinner table when baby gets grabby! Plus it is super washable and durable. Lastly it is soft and won’t scratch your little one.
Fabric- You can make your burp cloths from all terry fabric if you want or use a fun fabric, perhaps from your favorite team, as I have done in this tutorial. JOANN has a great selection of local teams!
**If you are going to shop at JOANN make sure you use ALL the coupons and order online so you can skip the cutting counter and head straight to the checkout! Save yourself the headache of waiting in that long line am I right?!?!?!
Pins and Clips
Walking Foot – I can’t stress this one enough. The walking foot will make it so that your fabric feeds evenly on top and bottom. This is especially necessary when you are using two different types of fabric such as cotton and terry as one feeds differently than the other. I started with my normal foot and quickly ran into issues, so seriously use the walking foot to save yourself a headache!!
PDF Template
SVG Cut File
Large Pink Fabric Mat (you need this if you are using the Cricut to cut your pieces.)
Using the Cricut:
If you are using your Cricut you will want to have the 12 x 24 fabric grip mat. Place your terry cloth fabric down onto the mat. If you are wanting to avoid the extra fuzz on your mat you can press a piece of freezer paper to the back of the fabric before you place it onto the mat (if your mat is new make sure and press it to your shirt a few times to make sure the freezer paper doesn’t stick to the mat.)
Upload the SVG (linked above) into design space. It will be ~8″ x 16″, you can make it slightly larger for a larger burp cloth but I don’t recommend making it any smaller.
Cut the fabric using the rotary cutter. If it doesn’t automatically select the rotary cutter you can change the tool before you cut.
You can cut the cotton piece as well or see below for my quick tip!
Cutting by Hand:
Print the template. Do not scale the pattern down but you can scale it up if you want it to be larger.
The short straight edge is meant to be placed on the fold. Fold your fabric in half and then pin the paper template so that the bottom edge (marked with the fold line) meets the fold of the fabric.
Cut the template using your rotary cutter or fabric scissors.
**QUICK TIP
Cut just the terry cloth using the template. Then cut a rectangle that covers the entire pattern piece. Then after you sew you can trim around the stitching and have two clean tight pieces.
Sewing the burp cloth:
Pin or clip the two pieces of the pattern together. Place the right sides of the fabric so they face each other. I have found that there is a side of the terry that is much softer so I call that the right side.
Be sure that you are using your walking foot, if a walking foot is not an option you will want to sew with the terry cloth side down. (You won’t be able to cut just one side as mentioned in the tip above if you don’t have a walking foot since you won’t be able to see the shape of the pattern.)
Sew around 3/4 of the burp cloth. Leave about 4-5″ open to turn the piece out. I recommend leaving the top edge open because it is harder to close the opening on a curved section. When sewing around curves take your time and don’t hesitate to lift your presser foot and turn the piece frequently.
Before you turn the piece out trim around the seam leaving 1/4″ of fabric around the seam.
Finishing the burp cloth:
Turn the piece out. Use a pen with a cap or a turning tool to press the seams out from the inside. Press the edges to get a nice clean finished product. Press the open edges under 1/4″ and clip closed.
Top-stitch the opening closed. I recommend top-stitching around the entire edge of the burp cloth. This keeps the fabric in place and gives it a more finished look.
You can add felt or iron on appliqués to make it more personalized. Or add embroidery for a fun finishing touch. These come together really quickly and are great for making in bulk for all your baby shower gift needs! Plus they are great for all your baby slobber needs, as you can see below.
