How To Sew Your Own Cloth Wipes

The decision to use cloth wipes was a no brainer for me.  Seems only logical that if you're going to use cloth diapers that you use cloth wipes as well.  All I need to do is throw the wipe in the laundry with my diapers vs having a separate trash can just for my wipes.  Easy as that!  Using cloth wipes will also save us a lot of money and work a lot better than disposables.  How many times have you used 5 disposable wipes to clean off a messy poo explosion?  With a nicely textured cloth wipe you can easily get the job done with 1-2 wipes.  Like I said, using cloth wipes was a no brainer decision for me.

What I did need to decide on was whether to buy cloth wipes or make my own.  I do have a sewing machine but I'm by no means an expert sewer.  I've never used anything but a straight stitch.  Being the do it yourself girl that I am though I decided quite quickly that I was going to make my own wipes.  How fun to be able to pick whatever colors or patterns that I want.  Yay!  I love new projects.

First thing's first ... I needed to research sewing my own cloth wipes.  What fabrics should I use?  What size should I make my wipes?  How do I sew my wipes?  Here are some answers I found to those questions.

What Fabrics Should I Use???

You can use just about any fabric combination to make your wipes.  Some fabrics you might find right around your house.  For example, if you have some old towels or flannel sheets try cutting those up for your wipes.  Some great fabrics to try are flannel, terrycloth, velour, sherpa, or hemp fleece.  Thinner fabrics are great for double layer wipes, while thick fabrics are great for single layer wipes.  Just don't use regular fleece.  It will just smear the poop around.  I've decided to use a combination of flannel and terrycloth on my wipes.  Both are easily obtained at any fabric store.  Flannel will give the wipe a cute pattern and some lively color, while the terrycloth will be the workhorse side and help to clean up those messy poos.  For more information on fabric options check out Zany Zebra Designs list of Diaper Fabrics.

What Size Should I Make My Wipes???
There really is no rule as to the size of the wipes you want to make but there are two common sizes that might work for you.  There is the 8" x 8" wipe which fits nicely into a wipes container when folded in half or there is the 8" x 4" wipe which fits nicely into a wipes container without folding it in half.  I've decided to make mine 8" x 8" because they will give more surface area to clean with while still fitting nicely into my wipes warmer.

How Do I Sew My Own Wipes???
I've found three different ways you can sew your own wipes.  I knew from the beginning that I wanted a combination of flannel and terrycloth so I've tried out both the double layer wipes options.  Of the two I like the turned and topstitched method the best.  If I had a serger then I might like the serged option better, but since I only own a regular sewing machine I had to use the zig zag stitch and it did not seem to contain the edges of the terrycloth very well.  Maybe with a double sided flannel wipe it would work better.  Here are the directions to the three different methods.

Single Layer Wipe w/ Zig Zag or Serged Edges
     - Cut your fabric into squares or rectangles in the size you've decided on.  You can round the corners if you like.
     - Zig Zag or Serge all the way around the edge.  If you are using the Zig Zag stitch make sure that the Zag of the stitch goes a little over the edge of the fabric so that it seals in the edges minimizing fraying.  (*You can have fun with this stitching by using a contrasting thread color)
     - *Helpful Tip* ... When you come to a corner stop the machine with the needle in the down position so it's still in the fabric.  Lift the sewing foot and rotate your fabric (the fabric will freely rotate without losing your sewing place).  Lower the foot and then continue sewing down the other side.
     - Be sure to back-stitch at the beginning and end of stitching or finish the serge stitch so that the stitching won't pull out.
     - Trim the threads close the the fabric and you're done!

Double Layer Wipe w/ Zig Zag or Serged Edges

     - Cut both fabrics into squares or rectangles in the size you've decided on.  You can round the corners if you like.
     - Lay one fabric with the "right side" (the side you want to see) face down on the table.  Lay the other fabric on top with the "right side" (the side you want to see) facing up so you can see it.

     - Line up the edges of the two fabrics and pin all the way around (be sure that you can see the "right" side of the fabric on both sides).
     - Zig Zag or Serge all the way around the fabric removing the pins as you go.  If you are using the Zig Zag stitch make sure that the Zag of the stitch goes a little over the edge of the fabric so that it seals in the edges minimizing fraying.  (*You can have fun with this stitching by using a contrasting thread color)
     - *Helpful Tip* ... When you come to a corner stop the machine with the needle in the down position so it's still in the fabric.  Lift the sewing foot and rotate your fabric (the fabric will freely rotate without losing your sewing place).  Lower the foot and then continue sewing down the other side.
     - Be sure to back-stitch at the beginning and end of stitching or finish the serge stitch so that the stitching won't pull out.
     - Trim the threads close the the fabric and you're done!

Double Layer Wipe - Turned and Topstitched

     - Cut both fabrics into squares or rectangles a half inch bigger each way than the size you've decided you want your wipes to be (Ex: If you want 8" x 8" wipes, then cut your fabric into 8-1/2" x 8-1/2" squares).  You can round the corners if you like.

     - Lay one fabric with the "right side" (the side you want to see) face up on the table.  Lay the other fabric on top with the "right side" (the side you want to see) facing down so you can't see it.
     - Line up the edges of the two fabrics and pin all the way around (be sure that you can see the "wrong" side of the fabric on both sides).

     - With a straight stitch, stitch almost all the way around the wipe, about a 1/4 of an inch away from the edge removing the pins as you go.  Stop sewing about 2-3 inches from where you started to leave an opening.
     - *Helpful Tip* ... When you come to a corner stop the machine with the needle in the down position so it's still in the fabric.  Lift the sewing foot and rotate your fabric (the fabric will freely rotate without losing your sewing place).  Lower the foot and then continue sewing down the other side.
     - Be sure to back-stitch at the beginning and end of stitching so that the stitching won't pull out.
     - Carefully trim each corner near the stitching (being sure not to cut the stitching) so that it's not bulky when you turn it right side out.
     - Turn your wipe right side out by carefully pushing each corner through the opening and then turning it fully right side out.
     -  Smooth the wipe out making sure that all edges and corners have been completely pushed out and turn the edges of the opening in so that it looks the same as the rest of the wipe.
     - Iron the wipe flat.

     - Straight stitch all the way around the wipe LESS THAN a 1/4 inch away from the edge making sure to seal the opening of the wipe.  (*You can have fun with this stitching by using a contrasting thread color or using a decorative stitch instead of the straight stitch)
     - Be sure to back-stitch at the beginning and end of stitching so that the stitching won't pull out.
     - Trim the threads close the the fabric and you're done!

**Update -You can also use this tutorial to create washcloths (I'd do them the same size as the cloth wipes) or burp cloths.  I like to cut my burp cloths out at 9" x 16". **

I hope this tutorial was helpful for you and you have lots of fun sewing your own wipes.  I'd love to see some of the color and fabric combinations that you come up with so feel free to post some of your photos on my Facebook page.  I'll be posting pictures of mine on there as well to document just another one of my Adventures In Fluff.