Diaper Changing Mat from repurposed hand towel

by Sara Bobby
(South Dakota)

Materials

1 old hand towel or large towel cut down to the size you want (darker colors work well here considering the staining that will inevitably occur!)

1 piece of cotton fabric the same size as towel (old bed-sheets and pillowcases work well here)
30-35″ double-fold bias tape or ribbon (if you want to be able to roll up the mat and tie it)
What to do

1. Cut the cotton fabric to the same dimensions as your towel.

2. If you are using bias tape for the ties, fold the short edges over twice and stitch to secure them. Then sew along the entire length of the tape to secure it.

3. Lay the cotton fabric right side up. Fold your ribbon or bias tape in half. Place the folded end on the center edge of one of the short sides of the fabric (or 1/4 of the way, if you want to fold the mat in half before rolling it). About 1/2″ of the folded edge of the bias tape should hang off the fabric.

4. Place the towel right-side down on the cotton fabric, so the two are now right-sides together. (If your towel has a tag on it, you’ll want that to be your wrong-side, i.e. facing up. Otherwise it doesn’t matter.) The bias tape should now be sandwiched between the two layers. Pin the bias tape in place, taking care to pin through all the layers. Then pin the fabrics together along all four sides.

5. Sew around the four sides with a 1/2″ seam allowance, leaving a 5″ opening on one side.

6. Trim the corners, being careful not to cut the stitching.

7. Carefully turn the changing mat right-side out through the opening. Poke out the corners as best you can.

8. Topstitch around all four sides with an 1/8″ seam allowance, being careful to close the 5″ opening.

9. Ta-da! You’re done. Roll it up and stuff it in the diaper bag.

(Here is a link to the tutorial with pictures on my blog)