How to make felted-sweater diaper covers

I had a request for more information about how to make diaper covers from felted wool sweaters. There are several good tutorials out there, so I'll point you in that direction rather than re-write what's already been said. But I've picked up a few tips along the way and combined two patterns last time, so I'll share some of what I've figured out here.



This is the first tutorial I came across for making wool "longies" (long pants that serve as a diaper cover). I've followed this basic design for most of the longies I've made. They are really cute and useful. (Lucy's modeling a pair, above.) As she gets bigger, I'm finding that these are sometimes too short in the back. I'm going to experiment with some different waistbands. I loved these--how smart to use the cuff of a pair of pants as the waistband! Other tutorials I've seen use some of the waistband of the sweater to make a waistband for the longies--a great idea I want to try. And I've never tried this pattern, but it looks very promising; I like the fitted bottom.

*edited to add: How embarrassing! I was looking at Lucy's diaper peek above her too-short-waisted longies tonight and realized what was wrong with them. My own stupidity; I forgot to allow for the casing when I was cutting down the side of the sleeve! I just cut it to match the pants I was using for a "pattern," so when I added the elastic casing, I lost nearly an inch. I'd still like to try those other ideas, but now I'll also be able to make these and have them fit! Can you say sewing while exhausted?

I also love this pattern for a "bum sweater". Here's the first one of these I made. Super cute shorties (short pull-on diaper cover), and nice and trim. It fits well under clothing and also looks cute under summer dresses. I don't put in the recommended drawstring, and so far, haven't needed it.

When I made the pink pair, I followed the suggestion to use the cuffs of the original sweater as the leg bands. But that meant that when I later made longies from those sleeves, they didn't have a nice finished edge. For less waste, and a more finished product, for the brown pair I made next, I cut the neck of the original sweater in half and used those strips to make the leg bands. Much better.

The bum sweater is also the pattern I started from to make her latest cashmere longies. Rather than sewing on legbands, I sewed on long legs made from the sleeves of the sweater. The sleeves were long enough that I was able to cut them in half and make two pairs. However, I'd cut the top of the sleeves off the sweater following the angle of the shoulder--so they came to a point--and I decided to try to incorporate that into the design, to see if it would give her more space around the diaper. You can see how the legs come to a point at the top in the pair on the right, below:



I like how they fit, but they come down a bit too low in the front; I think this pair would benefit from an added drawstring.

To make any of these diaper covers, you'll want to start with a largish, not-too-scratchy, 100% wool sweater. I use no special techniques for felting--I just throw the sweater in the washer and the drier and let them do their thing, and then decide what to make out of it based on how big it ends up! Once you've made your cover, you'll want to lanolize it to help it absorb water. I dissolve a few drops of liquid lanolin (from the health-food store) in a bit of hot water, then fill my bucket with room-temperature water, let the covers soak for a while, rinse, squeeze out the extra water by rolling them in a towel, and then hang to dry. It takes forever for them to dry that first time, but don't worry--you only have to lanolize them every month or so.

Well, now, that was wordy! Hope it's helpful! Let me know if there's anything I should clarify or add.

Another bum sweater

I made Lucy another "baby bum sweater" from this pattern. Again, where the three points came together, I ended up with a weird little peak, despite efforts to avoid it, so I hid it all behind a vintage button. This one is made from the softest cashmere. Our good friend Tim once had a lovely cashmere sweater, but it met with laundry disaster, so he donated it to the cloth-diapering cause (lucky Lucy!)

This style of diaper cover is my new favorite for summer--cute enough to show off under a dress, slim enough to fit under pants or a onesie, easy to put on and take off.

Bum sweater

Lucy's been desperately in need of some new diaper covers. She outgrows them so fast (and it doesn't help that we're prone to shrinking them. Particularly the totally-adorable custom-made one I just got from Etsy, darnit!!) I had made her several pairs of wool "longies" this winter, but hadn't yet made any "shorties." Yesterday, I gave it a try, using this pattern for a "baby bum sweater."

I had a little trouble with the waistband--where all the points come together, I ended up with a peaked-up piece. I'll have to figure that one out for next time. But otherwise, I love the pattern. They came out so cute! (Well, yeah...they would have been a lot cuter if I'd had the right color thread. But we were going for immediate results, here, people.) I can see a lot more of these in her future.

One adjustment I'll make next time that I learned from this pattern for a "butt sweater": rather than use the sleeve cuffs to make the legs, I'll use the neckband, cut in half. I was sad that in cutting the cuffs off the sleeves of this beautiful pink sweater, I ruined them for the longies I'd planned to make from them. Hmmm...maybe I could cuff them instead with trim or fabric? Will have to think about that. But first, some more shorties!