Upcycle Baby Cloths into Napkins

Toddler moms, I don’t know about you, but I have a ton of baby cloths that I’m not using anymore. I donated a bunch to someone from a buy-nothing group online. But I also realized that I’m going through my cloth napkins more quickly now that B.G. wants to have her own napkin at the table. So, I decided to turn two cloths into some more napkins.

I used one of my existing napkins as a pattern and laid it and the cloth out on a self-healing cutting board. With a rotary cutter lined up against a straightedge, I could easily slice through the fabric. If you sew, even casually, I highly recommend this combination! It was the first time I used them to cut fabric, and it was so easy! I could never get a straight cut with scissors.

Make it stand out

Tip for upcycling fabric: Keep existing seams in place whenever possible! I cut all of my napkins out from the corners of the cloth so that I would always have two existing seams.

Next, it was time to sew. I decided I was okay if my seam wasn’t exact, so I didn’t measure, pin it down, or press it. I was making these for personal use and I rarely have royalty come to visit, so for my purposes, eye-balling it worked great. (If you are making these to sell, for a gift, or to entertain a monarch, you might want to consider being more exact. Disclaimer over.)

Tips for sewing: I changed my stitch setting to a zigzag to help prevent fraying. Check your machine’s manual (or Youtube!) to find the best stitch for your specific machine. You can also fold the seam under so no frayed edge is showing or sew on bias tape. I chose this method because it was the least time-consuming option for me. Honestly, I’m not 100% certain if it was the “best” option. I’ll report back! 

There you have it! Upcycled cloth napkins.

Thanks for reading!

💜

Laura