How To Make A Wool Diaper Wrap

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The wool diaper wrap: meant to cover a cloth diaper in place of plastic pants. As opposed to the pull-on style, this opens up just like a diaper.

Take a diaper that currently fits your baby to use as a guide. Although I've drawn a horrible freehand example here, what you want to do is stretch out that diaper and trace around it adding about an inch all the way around (seam allowance). I know you'll do a more accurate job than me. This will be your template. **It is important to make the template tall enough, so be sure to stretch those inner-thigh elastics to get a decent length for your wrap.

Using a felted wool sweater (mine is the red one), cut out your wrap as per the template. For this tutorial, I am lining the wrap with a white fabric.YOU CAN SKIP THE LINING AND EITHER ZIGZAG, SERGE OR PUT BINDING TAPE ON THE EDGES OF YOUR ENTIRE WRAP IF YOU PREFER. There is a plus and a minus to using a lining. The plus is the softness - you can also use this wrap as training pants later. The minus is that my inner fabric, a bamboo terry, isn't naturally anti-bacterial like wool is, so this wrap will need more frequent laundering than a plain wool wrap.


"Pass me a crap wrapper," my Man said one day while diapering the baby. Hmmm, an idea was born.

Bits of other felted wool sweaters make excellent appliques. Now, while your wrap is entirely flat, is the time to applique something on the seat. I cut out my letters then zigzag stitched them into place. I do this for all my wool appliques and it works wonderfully.



With right sides of both fabrics facing in, pin your two wraps together. Stitch all around the wrap, leaving the top open to turn inside out after.



Don't turn it yet. My wrap is still inside out. Those two white lines on either side of the crotch seam are elastic just sitting loose. We're going to elasticize the inner leg seams for a better fit. I didn't measure here (surprise, surprise). Just eyeballed it. Do you Type-A personalities hate me? I just eyeball most things (and half the time I am wrong. What a sewing dork).



Set your machine to zigzag stitch. Stretching the elastic as you go, stitch it into place as close to the outer seam as possible.



Turn your wrap right side out now. Lookin' good huh? I had left the top (back waist) seam open for turning. I've now finished the seam by folding it in, and again stretching a piece of elastic along that seam for a better fit. This elastic is exposed on the inside of the wrap whereas that inner leg elastic is now hidden.

Top stitch all around your wrap to keep the layers of fabric in place. When you are top stitching areas that are elasticized, gently stretch the elastic so the fabric is flat.

Last come the fasteners, either snaps or velcro. I prefer velcro because my child won't stay still long enough for snaps. A tip with velcro: velcro has a gentle side and a rough side. Always place the rough side on the outside of the garment (in this case it's on the red wool). Those tabs that are going to face inward should be the soft stuff. It's inevitable that sometimes the tabs will rub against baby's skin, so you don't want the scratchy stuff facing the skin.

I'm going to need two rows of velcro, or some fatter velcro here.

DONE!