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Sewing Cloth Diapers
So you want to sew your own diapers? I'm on a great
e-mail list called diapersewing. You may want to
subscribe.Pattern Sites:
The following sites offer commercial patterns:
Poopockets. She also has a cover pattern, and a preemie supplement for the pattern is available.
Cuddlebuns
Honeyboy-intended as AIOs, but can be modified slightly to use as covers or fitted diapers.
(I've heard really good things about all of the above patterns.)
Back to Basics-from Born to Love.
(I ordered the Back to Basics pattern and was disappointed. I thought it was unprofessionally done, and the product description was a little bit of a stretch. I have also heard others comment that it wasn't well-made. But it's available, and you might think otherwise.)
Better Baby Diaper and Snap Happy Diaper Cover
Kwiksew's #2062 and #2026
Goodness Gracious-thanks to Katherine Finkler for letting me know about this one.
Diaper Kit-This is not a pattern, per se, but a kit with preshrunk, precut pieces and full instructions.
Chloe Toes "Fantastic Fit" Diaper Pattern-This is for fitted, AIO, or pocket-style diapers, in sizes preemie-XXL.
These sites offer free patterns:
Cheryl's One-Size Diaper This is a pretty clever diaper. It will fit a newborn up to a toddler, depending on how you fold it.
Diaper 101 This is my favorite non-one-size diaper. Okay, so I haven't actually USED any of them yet, but this looks to be well-made and so forth. Check out this and the one-size pattern listed above before you look at the next few.
Fuzzi Bunz - type diaper pattern
Miscellaneous free patterns - prefolds, nursing pads, etc.
Cyndiegran's diaper sewing page
- Fabrics:
- fleece
- Fleece refers to polyester fleece. It is non-absorbant, and can be used for "stay-dry" liners as well as breathable covers. If used for covers, don't put snug pants over them, as they'll wick. Malden Mills is generally considered the best quality and most often used, but I think the cheaper stuff will usually work - it's just more likely to pill.
- flannel
- Yep; just like a flannel shirt. This is an absorbent material usually used for soaker panels, although it is used for inner and outer layers sometimes as well.
- birdseye
- I think that this is a gauzy material. Also an absorbent material used for soaker panels.
- velour
- A soft, napped fabric that will probably remind you of velvet. Usually used as a soft inner layer.
- sherpa
- I haven't figured out what this is myself. If you know, let me know. I am told, though, that it's used for it's softness and it is very absorbent. For these reasons, it's usually used as the inside layer.
- jersey
- This is the stretchy material used for t-shirts and such. It is usually absorbant (if there's a high enough cotton content), and can be used for any part of the diaper.
- prints
- Cute printed fabrics. These are usually woven fabrics used on the outside of diapers to make them look nice. I personally think this is a moot point if your diaper is not an AIO, as the print will be covered up when you use the diaper.
- PUL
- PUL stands for Polyester Urethane Laminate. This is fabric with a waterproofing laminate applied to it. It's available in breathable and non-breathable, and which is better seems to be a matter of personal preference. I prefer non-breathable. This is used for covers and for waterproof layers in AIOs. You can get this from Janelle's PUL.
- Ultrex
- This is another waterproof fabric used for covers and waterproof layers in AIOs. I really don't know much about it, though.
- Nylon
- I think this is a water-resistant fabric. It is also used for covers.
Fasteners:
Snaps: Snapsource snaps are pretty much the best. These can be applied with a Dritz plier-type press. I don't like mine too well, though. It doesn't apply even pressure all the way around. It's advantage is it only costs about $16. Snap presses are available. They are very nice, but in the neighborhood of $500-600. One source is Sundrop Textiles. Snapsource also has snapsetters available, which are reasonably priced. I haven't tried them yet so I don't know how well they work. Some Work-at-Home-Moms will apply snaps for you for a small fee. I'm not sure which ones, though. There is a list here of ladies who will utilize their snap presses for you, as well.
Velcro/Aplix/Touchtape: Most of you are probably familiar with Velcro. Aplix and Touchtape are basically the same thing. Aplix is reputed to be much softer and longer-lasting than Velcro. I don't know anything about Touchtape except that it exists and works like Velcro. The Touchtape Site can give you more information, I'm sure. You can buy Aplix and TT at One-Stop Diaper Shop.