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I find the ww pockets fit ok, but again I had to shorten the rise a bit, but stuffing them kind of make us for that IYKWIM...
I have a very baby cover pattern, and it is great, I am going to splash out on the nappy pattern when I know I have some time for sewing...
Julie I've had so many stuff ups with elastic rofl. Even though I've been sewing for a while I'll still stuff it up ;)
Oh and shall we discuss FOE stuff ups??? :redface:
PMSL I have some FOE but haven't attempted that yet :lol: I reccon I'll be having lots of fun unpicking when I do!
Plonk- spotlight did help! they showed me that i needed the same thread top and bottom (at least the same brand and weight) and that the position of the needle is adjusted by the length of zigzag dial on top. who knew? i even saw the needle threader in action.
i've been making pockets for a few months now and have gotten really good at it, and pretty fast(3hrs). word of mouth sales and friends getting an entire stash have kept me sewing till i can do it in my sleep. there's hardly any money in it: i earn $4 an hour (or less for friends), but i search for funky material for the outside and co-ordinating inners just to keep it interesting. But it's all worthwhile when i make a one of a kind, super cool nappy and see it on: my friend's bubs are stylin!
there are loads of online patterns and tutorials, all free, and i'm happy to help with any questions you've got.
way to go xtml! 3 hours is awesome :) you speedster you!!! impresive when u have 2 kids to get all that sewing done!
Hello
I'm just about to embark on making some covers but going to use some old material and elastic and make covers for DD's baby born doll. I was thinking even though they are a bit smaller than a normal cover, they'll give me great practice with the elastic and layers...
Any hints that you have found invaluable before I begin my nappy making journey? (well I have made some boosters and wipes, but that was just really cutting to size and overlocking!)
Thanks for any help!
ryatha...WTG hon...i have to make some covers for Vy's 'baby' for her birthday. you might find it a bit fiddly...smaller the item the fiddlier it is but if you can accomplish one eaisly wait until you make the real thing ;)
ive decided to finally make some boosters for the eco pocket we bought last week.....dont know if I should make a trifold or just a normal booster......:think: its hurting to think :ROFL:
Thanks maz - I like fiddly things so this should be interesting... Good luck with the boosters!
mmm boosters are easy! I've made a bunch of plain square bamboo boosters that can be tri-fold or put on NB but when my next lot of bamboo/cotton fabric arrives, I'm going to try a prefold design, 2-3-2, and also a shaped booster... could be interesting!
Ummm hints...make your first out of cheap fabric jic you botch it up ;) I am the queen of botching stuff!
Make sure you share some pics with us!
:leap: WOHO :leap:
I just made my first pocket nappy!
Ok - it was doll size, with dodgy fabric, velcro and elastic but it works! I think my elastic work around the legs needs to be worked on and the foldover at the pocket nappy is dodg as but other than that I am pretty happy!
I'll try to put up some photos of it when I get my camera working!
High five, ryatha!
I *finally* got round to making a few fitteds. first one was a total botch, I'm using a self-drafted pattern, so needs a lot of tweaking anyway. Made it out of old flannie pillowcases that work was chucking out. Second made of hald pillowcase, half Triple J shirt, it's too thick but I love the shape. Third made out of a mega mish mash of old fabrics - part pillowcase, part t-shirt, part pyjama. It's pink with giraffes on it, and I've got the timing down to 90 mins, although the last 20 was trying to convince the machine that black thread really wasn't so bad, but it wouldn't listen and kept jamming. It clearly wanted pink (same weight, same brand, bought on the same friggin day!) and then that worked much better.
since they're just practice goes I've been using elastic scraps I had in my drawer (so net cost thus far is nil) and I'm even getting pretty good at that. Got no fasteners for them yet.
If just making for self, do you think it's worth getting a snap press? Because they're fitted, I was thinking maybe I could just slot them inside a good cover, or all else failing, could probably pin.
But I'm pretty chuffed with myself...
Well done guys :clap:
snugglybean you could do velcro or sew on micro towelling to make them snappiable :think: s/l sell a microtowelling but it is exxy so you'd only use it on the wings and a bit on the crotch.
A snap press is a good investment. Depending on if you'll keep making nappies for bub and any more you might have. It's definatley a cheaper option than steel snaps once you make about 20 or more. ie the outlay for a snap press versus buying metal snaps by the nappy if it costs about $5 avge per nappy to do metal snaps. I did work out the maths a few years ago so it's a bit fuzzy ;)
Cool, thanks Raven. I probably will keep making them - they are easier and quicker than I thought!
A friend has offered the services of his cutting machine, he manufactures bags. I have canvassed the possibility with him of *him* getting a snap press, as a business expense, and I will buy a nappy bag at an inflated price if I can use his cutting machine and snap press as required... :thinking:
Someone else has offered me trial use of a snap press, but she makes the acest nappies, and I'm too shy to show her my botches :redface:
So, when the time comes for doing it with real fabric, where should I get it?
Oh, also, I've heard round the traps that prefolds are easy to make (and I assume they are) but I don't own any, have never handled a real live one, soe don't know the dimensions, thickness etc. Can anyone help with this?
Thanks raven and snugglybean. Now I just need to try my hand at a full size one. Can fleece be used as an outer fabric? Just wondering cause I have both left over thick polar fleece and microfibre so if the pattern works I was just wondering if I could then use it on bubs...
Snugglybean, there are a couple of sites that sell pul and all the other fabrics and bits and pieces you need, for good prices as well. I can PM them to you if you like. I even found a site that sends you a pack including all the fabric, elastic, loop and hook to make your own with the correct measurements. I was thinking of getting one of those to try out my pattern before I get a lot of fabric etc.
I'm also about to try a prefold. I have 3m of bamboo/cotton arriving soon so I was going to make a mix of prefolds and boosters. The prefolds I am going to make will be 30x40 but they can be made bigger or smaller. From what I've seen there are two ways of making them. You can have two pieces of fabric the same size (30x40) with a strip in the middle of them (10x40) to thicken the middle, this makes a 2x3x2 thickness. Or you use two pieces of (20x40) and overlap them by half which would give you a 1x2x1 thickness. Boosters I think I'll be making a 3 layer (10x30) but I'll see how it goes.
Hope this helps!
Ryatha- I can't use a sewing machine (but have one down the back shed!) so think I will be getting my mother to do this sewing, but can you please explain how you do the prefolds ie do you sew the two pieces of bamboo together around the four edges (overlock??) and then lastly sew in the skinny strip down the middle? I am really clueless!
Also when you made your boosters did you just sew two squares of bamboo back to back around the edges?
My only concern with the 30x40 size prefold is that the 40cm may be too long down the track to use them as booster in pocket nappies?? What do you think?
oh no 40cm insnt to long hon...fold it the other way and you get 4 layers instead ;) so on big booster that is 30cm long and still 10cm wide but more compact boosting.
prefolds are easy...love making them but I tend to get a strip of bamboo in the middle and 2 layhers of toweling either side.
Ive just made a nappy for a fellow BB girl as a pressy for her daughter....cant wait for her to get it :)
oopps wrong forum - time for me to go to bed
Hhhmm- just thought also that the third bamboo strip (for the centre) can be sandwiched between the other two layers!! Me is clever!
Maz- do you do the towelling thing to save on the bamboo? (not being cheeky but can't work out how else to word it!) I would have thought the bamboo would be more absorbent?
yes. if you make the whole prefold out of bamboo how are you goign to use a snappy on it? It has nothing to grip too. It would take forever to dry also AND would be extremely chuncky and heavy on bub.
the towelling is light in weight, folds nice and compact and dry's nice and quickly. PLUS with a NB you dont need to wrory aobut them keeping it on for hours and hours....a NB will shiat in it normally before its due to be changed ;)
I have so many questions... Do you use a single layer of bamboo in your prefolds? And do you have towelling pieces either side, or one big towelling backing with a strip? Arghh! Prefolds confuse me SO much! I have made 3 fitteds, but can't do a prefold!
OK, I haven't tried yet, and TBH I could make one, I just don't know what works best. What towelling do you use, maz? And what measurements do you make it to?
There is a great tutorial on the verybaby website. They have a lot of great tutorials there too! I can pm you the link if you have trouble finding it but it's pretty easy to negotiate.
I made prefolds for Susie. I used two pieces of double sided bamboo towelling 30x30, and two strips of hemp jersey for the middle layer (10x30). put down one big piece, put on top the two thin pieces of hemp, then topped with the other piece of bamboo. sewed down the side of the hemp bits so it looked like three columns, then overlocked all the way around the outside :) I've been so so happy with them! I only wish Id made more...I bought 12 of the booroi ones, and to be honest, I'm disappointed with them. they shrunk quite a bit and they're much buliker than what I made but no more absorbant! so they're my emergency ones if the others arent dry!
Well done hon :clap: they sound perfect. I mademine vertially the same but used bamboo fleece and yep was over the moon with them...i still have some around here somewere lol.
So when you talk about towelling Maz, you don't mean bamboo towelling or that would take ages to dry too?? Just normal Spotlight towelling?
I have one Booroi prefold that someone gave me and I thought it was all bamboo but must be wrong. Never actually used it as I only got it recently and bub still cooking!! Just checked the Booroi site and they have 100% bamboo fleece down the centre and outers of bamboo terry. Now even more confused!
ETA: uuummmm just had a thought, is terry and towelling the same fabric??
Raven
Can you please PM me the link as I have had a look but can't see any tutorials under service other than a snap press one!
Many thanks!
Cheers MrsC - that sounds brilliant.
And I love that your bubba is called Susie. It's so pretty.
thanks for the encouragement!
Snuggly - yeah i love it, fits her perfectly! she really was Curly Sue yesterdy after her bath - hair everywhere! Congrats on lil one in ur belly!!
No one interested in cloth nappies anymore lol.
Me I am!!!! Lol. I have MCNs as well but looking for the "pattern" for prefolds? I want to go old-school lol. Does anyone have a pattern they could send me?
I am!!! I am considering giving it a go.
Any tips for beginners? I can usually only sew in a straigt line, but curves can't be that much harder can they?? OK slight exaggeration there, but YKWIM...
you don't need a pattern for prefolds. do you have one you can measure? if not i can measure mine to get dimensions.
basically just a square/rectangle with extra layers in the middle third.
Awww.... what I saw must not be a "prefold" then :-( I saw a mummy who had terry nappies that were the triangle kind of shape but curvy edges ITMS? Does anyone have a pattern for those? They looked lovely:
They're fitteds, but no I don't have a pattern. Google it.
Caz, i think i know what you might be talking about as i had a few of those for bilby.
They were called contours i think (this was a few years ago).
Halfway between a prefold and a fitted nappy really.
Not a fitted, cos no elastic in the legs and tummy.
Not a prefold cos curved on the leg side.
With a cover over them.
Even back then, rarely saw them for sale.
When you google btw, try googling "modern cloth diapers DIY" "modern cloth diapers sewing" etc, cos many online links i found were US in origin, same thing, just "diaper" instead of the word "nappy". I remember seeing youtube videos too. HEAPS to trawl through. THese were for making your own fitteds, pocket and all in one nappies - maybe prefolds too. Can't remember seeing a pattern for contours, but still worth looking -
in my early research, i had to get my head around
- the different FABRICS used in making MCNs
- the names and functions of the different nappy styles
BEFORE i could go looking at lots of these websites. You need to understand some of the MCN jargon, before these sites will make sense to you (IMO).
hth
Yep, those are Kissaluv contours.
if you google Kissaluv contour pattern you should get what you're after.
i love my kissaluvs for newborns.
Yay! Thanks for that ladies!!! Will definately be looking into kussaluvs. Hopefully I will get hold of some or make my own :-D