When our youngest was born, I was blessed to receive a perfect changing pad from a dear friend.
She is so talented and I have absolutely LOVED this gift. I loved it so much, I have given one as a new baby gift to many friends and family members. It is completely simple to make and quick to put together. Everyone has really enjoyed and USED the changing pads throughout the course of diapering. It is great for a quick trip into the store or doctors office, and has pockets for wipes, diapers, and a bottle.
Here is how you can make one, too.
Materials
1/2 yard of chenille
1 yard coordinating cotton fabric
1 yard ribbon
Fray Check
Cut chenille to 22″x18″.
Cut coordinating top fabric to the same size.
To make the pocket: cut out a 9″ x 17″ piece of the coordinating fabric.
You will be placing the pocket on the lower left hand side, so hem the top and right sides of the pocket.
Attach to the top and secure with pins.
Stitch along the right hand edge, right over the exposed hem.
Now here is the tricky part. Make a light mark with a fabric pencil 4 1/2 inches from the right side in. You need to do this at the top and bottom of the pocket. This is going to be a smaller pocket for a sippy cup or bottle. Sew a straight line, using your marks as a guide. Backstitch at the top for extra strength.
Place ribbon on the left hand side, half way down the pocket. This is about 4 1/2 ” up from the left bottom corner. Stitch in place. Seal the ends with a little Fray Check. This makes it so the ribbon won’t unravel in the wash.
Pin right sides together, making sure that the loose ends of the ribbon are not going to be attached where they shouldn’t.
Carefully sew around the edges. This can be a little tricky because the chenille tends to stretch. I like to pick a spot in the middle of a side, and sew one direction. Go back to the center and sew the opposite direction on the same side.
This seems to create and even amount of tension.
Leave a three inch gap somewhere to turn it inside out.
Turn right side out. You will still have a little gap. I will show you what to do with this next. Make sure to use a small blunt object to poke the corners out flat.
Iron out. PLEASE NOTE…my ribbon is in the WRONG spot! Can you believe that? I had to go back and attach it 4 1/2″ up from the bottom left corner. Pretend that is what you see:).
Pin the gap closed, matching edges. Sew a 1/4 ” top stitch around the entire edge of the changing pad. Easy as pie!
You are finished!
One side is soft and warm to lay baby down.
The other side ready to fill with necessities.
To secure, fold half way down, roll up, and tie with a bow. The pad fits nicely into a purse. Best of all, if it gets dirty just throw it into the wash and dry it on low heat.
~Julia
