Congratulations to all the new moms (and dads) in my life who have asked for this sewing tutorial.
If you've had a baby, you've noticed that they come with some necessary but expensive gear. It's always a good idea to look for ways to save. Nursing pads are one of my least favorite baby items to buy. I feel like it's such a waste sometimes, especially when I get the inexpensive brand and then they don't do what I need them to do.
So, after a little Internet searching (hurray for the Internet), and a little personal experimentation, here is an easy to make and very effective 6" contoured nursing pad. (You can also make a 4" flat pad* by using a CD for your circle pattern. I have both sizes and love them both for different reasons.)
You will need a 6 3/4" disk (I use a plastic lid; sizes can vary) or CD (for smaller pads*), quilt batting (the higher loft the better), blanket felt, polar fleece (the two sided heavy stuff), scissors, and a sewing machine.
Step 1: Trace and cut your circles. 1 fleece, 1 quilt batting, and 2 felt.
Step 2: Stack your circles like a sandwich with the 2 felt pieces as the bread and the fleece and batting as the filler.
Step 3: Choose your favorite sewn edging stitch. I prefer to sew two straight stitches around the edge . . . the first one with my needle at the far right position . . .
the second with my needle in the middle position, but a zig-zag stitch would also work well.
and sew, sew, sew all the way around your circle.
Step 4: Make a 3" cut through all the layers from the edge of your pad to the middle of your pad.
Step 5: Overlap the two sides of pad by 2 inches.
Step 6: Sew up the sides of your overlap to secure the fold in place.
Step 7: Trim the excess fabric off the outside of your circle. (I trim right up to my stitches.) This will keep your pads looking nice and not ragged when you wash them.
There you have it. Now go be thrifty and eco-friendly at the same time. (That's what I call multi-tasking.)
*For 4" flat pads, follow the same beginning steps, then skip steps 4-6.
4 comments:
Sarah-thank you, thank you, thank you!! Can't wait to make some.
You are so welcome. Let me know if you make any improvements on the pattern and I'll try it out.
Hey Sarah! Thanks for sharing! I will start making my own very soon :) Hope all is going well!
I wish these would work for me but I leak so bad! Thanks for sharing though. Maybe I'll try some anyway.
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