Drool. Spit up. Food smears. There's a lot of stuff that comes out of babies' mouths. It's a darn good thing a sweet little coo or heart-melting smile comes out once in awhile too. That makes it all worthwhile. But... a burp cloth is still a must! Ours are so quick and easy to make, you can whip out of slew of them in an afternoon. Absorbent terry cloth on the back makes them functional. Adorable Pretty Bird fabric on the front makes them fabulous.

Our thanks to our pals at Michael Miller Fabrics for providing us with this absolutely wonderful fabric for our series of seven Baby Gift projects. It's called Pretty Bird from Pillow & Maxfield. There are three vibrant colorways from which to choose. We selected the fabrics for our Baby collection from the Aqua colorway with its incredible hot pinks, limes and bright blues. Pretty Bird comes out this month, so check your favorite local or online fabric retailer soon for availability.

Sewing Tools You Need

• Any Sewing Machine (we recommend the Janome Jem Gold 3)

Fabric and Other Supplies

Supplies listed below are for ONE cloth, but you know how much babies drool... you should really make more than one. We made three.

• ⅓ yard of 44-45" wide fabric for front of cloth: we used Pillow & Maxfield Pretty Bird from Michael Miller Fabrics in Pink Twirling Tendrils, Lime Meandering Vines and Pink Bloomies
• ⅓ yard of 44-45" wide terry cloth for back of cloth: we used Michael Miller's new organic terry cloth in natural
• ½ yard of ½" coordinating grosgrain ribbon: we used bright pink and bright green
• All-purpose sewing thread in colors to match fabric and ribbon
• Scissors or rotary cutter and mat
• See-through ruler
• Straight pins
• Fabric pen or pencil
• Iron and ironing board

Getting Started

1. From the front fabric, cut ONE piece 11" wide x 19" high.
   NOTE: If using a directional pattern, remember to make sure your pattern is running lengthwise, centered nicely, and straight.
2. From the back fabric, cut ONE piece 11" x 19".
3. Cut the ribbon to 11".

At Your Sewing Machine & Ironing Board

1. Pin the top edge of the ribbon 4½" from the unfinished bottom edge of the front fabric.
   
2. Thread your sewing machine with a color to match the ribbon in the top and a color to match the back fabric in the bobbin.
3. Topstitch very close to the edge along both sides of the ribbon.
   
4. Pin the back fabric piece and the front fabric piece right sides together, matching all raw edges.
   NOTE: Terry cloth is quite stretchy so use plenty of pins to hold it in place. And, whenever you have dissimilar fabrics being sewn together, it is best to stitch with the more difficult one (in this case the terry) down in order to let the feed dogs (those little grippy teeth in the plate below your presser foot) move it through the machine for you. Keep an even tension on the layers as they go through the machine.
5. Re-thread your machine with thread to match your fabric in the top and bobbin.
6. Using a ½" seam allowance, sew the two pieces together on all four sides, leaving an approximate 3" opening along one long side for turning.
7. Trim the corners.
   
   NOTE: There's no need to trim the seam allowances as they will give the finished cloth more body after they are topstitched in place.
8. Turn the cloth right side out and carefully press all the seams nice and flat. You want your seam to be exactly on the edge - not rolled to the front or back.
   
9. Pin the opening closed.
   
10. If necessary, re-thread your machine with contrasting thread in the top and bobbin for topstitching. We left our thread the same as above, opting to use matching thread to the front fabric, which would then be highlighted on the back.
11. Topstitch approximately ¼" from finished edge around all four sides, pivoting at each corner. This will close the opening left for turning.
    NOTE: We used a simple straight stitch, but you could also use a decorative stitch.
    
12. We added one of our Sew4Home labels as a finishing touch.

Contributors

Project Design: Alicia Thommas 
Sample Creation and Instructional Outline: Julia Chapman

Other machines suitable for this project include the Elna Sew Fun and the Baby Lock Grace .

Comments (10)

Ooty said:

	... Those fabrics are hot!!!! thanks for tutorial, this is great =)
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July 01, 2010
Votes: +1

annedias said:

	... woow these fabrics are great and colorful.i love thos and thanks alot for the great tutorial.im going to make thse for a friend's new born baby boy.love ur site.
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July 01, 2010
Votes: +1

Liz Johnson, Editor, Sew4Home said:

	... So glad the burp cloths are a hit. This Pretty Bird fabric is absolutely the best -- all the colorways are awesome. Our friends at Fat Quarter Shop have it in stock now - yay! Check it out: http://www.fatquartershop.com/Pretty-Bird-Pillow-and-Maxfield-Michael-Miller-Fabrics.asp?Shopper_id=79562902011795&Store_id=499
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July 01, 2010
Votes: +1

SandiH said:

	... A walking foot also helps keep the fabric from shifting when sewing this type of combination. I know not everyone has one, but if you do, I recommend using it!
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July 01, 2010
Votes: +1

yycien said:

	... I’m looking for baby gifts all over the net until I found this blog. Thanks for sharing and also for the inspiration. I totally love this idea. Great job!
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July 05, 2010
Votes: +1

DanaS said:

	... I bought thinner towels on sale to use instead of the terrycloth because it's not available around here and I want to see and feel before I order it online. Do you think the towels will work? Blessings-- Dana
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July 06, 2010
Votes: +0

Liz Johnson, Editor, Sew4Home said:

	... Hi Dana -- I'm sure the terry towels you found will work great. There was also a posting on our Facebook page from a gal who used cloth diapers as the backing... another good, and inexpensive, idea. She'd already made EIGHT of them .
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July 06, 2010
Votes: +0

MAC said:

	... you can also used old t-shirts...with terry/towel backing....works great....rou
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July 08, 2010
Votes: +0

Kendra said:

	... The terry I found was very thin, so I used two layers with my (new!!) walking foot. The burp cloths turned out very cute and super absorbent without being too bulky. Thanks again!
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July 10, 2010
Votes: +0

Liz Johnson, Editor, Sew4Home said:

	... Hi Kendra ... good solution. And, good for you for getting a walking foot. They are helpful in ALL kinds of situations.
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July 12, 2010
Votes: +0

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