Saturday, January 11, 2014

Quilted Hooded Baby Bath Wrap Tutorial




Tutorial for making the quilted, hooded 
featured in my


Any small quilt may easily become a cuddly bath wrap!

Here is how I made this one for the my grandbaby-to-be:


I started with my bright "Spindrift" Quilt Top 

This top is 40" square without the outer border 
that I will add to round the corners.


Wrapping it up!

I decided to add a 3" Kona white border to the top as I wanted to cut curved corners
and did not want to cut into the pieced top.

I selected Minkee for backing, no batting, for softness and good drape.
Soft terry cloth would also work well.

No batting.
This makes the bath wrap easy to use and easy to dry


I used left over strips to make a pieced binding.

I got ready to add the white border to the top ...

STOP!
I realized that the white Kona in my stash is WASHED!
I did NOT WASH the precut charm squares and jelly roll strips 
that I used to piece the top!
Minkee does not shrink.
Uneven shrinkage alert! 
I had to WASH the top!

No problem!


I added a line of stay stitching 1/8th of an inch around the top.


I washed it gently in the sink and hung it to dry overnight.

A note about prewashing Minkee:
I have never pre-washed minkee as I was told years ago by someone who did
that the cut edges will shed and make a mess in the washer.
So I took her word for it.

This is what I made while the top dried. 

I like to make a small "test" project of these ideas before quilting,
so I put a white border on an extra pinwheel block and added the minkee backing,
wrong sides together.


I stitched in the ditch outlining the blocks with white Aurifil quilting weight thread.


Since I intended this to be a washcloth, I decided to make a self-binding by folding over the minkee and stitching it to the front.
This binding method could also be done on the hooded wrap.


back of washcloth


front of washcloth


washed, dried and pressed top


pinned
If you have never quilted a quilt with this type of cuddle fabric for the backing, give it a try!  It is very easy.  Pinning about 6-8 inches apart is enough
 to keeping the back smooth.  
I personally never use basting spray so I cannot say if this is an option.


Time quilt the quilt!

For this project, I stitched in the ditch with my walking foot as I wanted to keep the color block look of the bright color triangles and squares. 


detail of SITD quilting

This method also means that every intersection has two lines of stitching over it so that is will last through many baby baths and spins in the washing machine.
It can be hung and it will dry quickly or it may be machine dried on low heat.

Making and adding the hood

To make the hood I ​cut a square of minkee. and folded it in half diagonally. 
I tried two sizes, one 14 inches and one 18 inches square. 
I opted for the larger square for my quilt as it was better proportionally.  
This makes my hood measure about 22 inches diagonally across the top corner of the quilt and it measures about 9 inches deep to the rounded corner.


To make the hood I decided to bind the folded edge to give it a little more stability
and make it easier to handle and keep the minkee from flopping over the baby's face.
I added this strip of binding before I attached it to the quilt
and folded it over the edge and sewed it down.  

cutting the curved corners

The hood was on the back for cutting but I decided to switch it to the front.
I easily folds either way.


Cutting the sides

For this wrap I cut the front and back even at the sides 
because I wanted a very narrow binding.


Attaching the pieced binding to the front 
easing the curves without pins.

The binding is 2.5" strips folded evenly in half and stitched through all layers.
This makes a very secure binding.


Machine sewing the folded binding to the back.


I used a few pins on the curved corners in the binding.


The hood folded to the back.


Hooded Baby Bath Set, 
washed again and ready for gifting!

May a little loved one in your life soon be enjoying 
one of these cuddly bath wraps, too!

For a quick and easy hooded bath wrap, you could use a favorite piece of yardage on the front and quilt it to the backing fabric. My daughter and SIL have chosen a Baby Safari Animal theme for their nursery and I am thinking to make a few smaller baby wraps using this method with a baby animal print on the front and a bright minkee on the back.This wrap is fairly large.  I had big babies and it is looking like my daughter may be, too. My babies grew out of newborn size so fast that I never used them and gave them away.
A new mom can never have too many blankies and cuddly wraps for a new baby. 

I am working on writing the easy pieced pattern for this "Spindrift"  
quilt design into a whole quilt pattern,
with fabric requirements for multiple sizes,
which will be for purchase.

It is my first attempt at pattern writing and a new endeavor for me.

Wish me luck!

I have three friends who have graciously offered to test this pattern for me.

If you are interested in this pattern please let me know and come back again soon.

More info coming! 

:)

12 comments:

Ellen said...

Thank you for the great tute!

Beth said...

This is so cute! Thanks for sharing.

Kerstin said...

Thank you so much for a great tutorial.
Good luck with the pattern.
Its a great one.

Mary said...

I love it.. it's so bright and beautiful. And i really love the little duckie. Cute touch!

Sally said...

Hi Pat! Love this, sew cute. Have t go scrounge in my solids to see if I can duplicate it!
Sally

Renea said...

Thank you for the tutorial. I have never sewn with the minkee fabric so this will be a good project to see if I like minkee fabric.

Anonymous said...

How big did you cut the hood and am I right in thinking that you bind the edge of the hood before you attach it? Thanks!

Scrapatches said...

Fran ... good questions! I sent you an email and I will also update my tutorial to include this information. Thanks for asking ... :) Pat

JessicaK said...

Great gift and thanks for the tutorial. I'd love to have one of these in grown up size :)

Deonn said...

Darling project - never thought to make a washcloth with minky and a pieced block, great idea. The pattern on your quilt is terrific, too. Good luck with your endeavor to make a pattern, it's great.

Rosemary B❤️ said...

Rosemary B here:
I love this pattern. I really want to make this. I have never made a really big quilt yet, but this would be so great.
At present I am taking care of my parents they are 90.... so I am busy most of the time. I have been doing this for months, and slowly trying to get my life back in order and do things I like (my old life, lol)
I will try to print out these instructions and get started. My daughters and my hubbs gave me a lot of fabric for Christmas :-) and I think they want me to get back to the machine.
Thank you so much for sharing this marvelous pattern and creation. It is really delightful!

Rosemary B❤️ said...

Rosemary B again:
please email me when you have the pattern ready, I will love to make it.