I’m not much of a diaper bag gal.  All those pockets stress me out, and I’ve come to terms with the fact that I am just not that organized.   I need one pocket for keys and cell phone, and everything else gets tossed in the sack.  With Wes being my third baby, I just don’t have the room for a ton of baby gear.  My friend Anne made this awesome gift for me last fall and it still serves my basic baby needs when we are on the go.

This thing holds diaps and wipes, and that’s it!  Perf.  It is also an easy grab when I blindly reach into my bottomless pit of a purse.  I’ve even changed Wes’ diaper right on it.  I have loved this wrap!   I decided I needed to draft a pattern to keep in my arsenal of go-to baby gifts (because after all,  you people just keep on having babies).

Join me in a little tutorial, because you, or someone you know, needs one of these:

Cuuuuute!

You will need: 1/4 yard “inside” fabric, 1/4  yard “outside” fabric, 1 yard + a few inches coordinating ribbon, velcro, and thread.

Cut fabric as described below:

Using 1/4″ seam allowance, sew the large pieces together, right sides facing, leaving a 2 inch gap at the top for turning out.  This hole will be where your ribbon “hook” goes later.  Sew two rectangles (each with Fabric A and Fabric B facing) leaving 2 inches on the shorter side of the rectangle to turn out. These will become your inside pockets.  Sew 1 smaller rectangle in the same way.  This will become your decorative outside pocket.

Turn out your shapes using a knitting needle or chopstick to get at those corners.

Iron flat your pieces.  We will close all those holes in one swoop later.

Lay out your pockets and cut ribbon details just a bit longer than each of the pockets.  Sew ribbon onto the top edge of each pocket.

Attach small, decorative pocket to the outside of your large panel.  It’s a good idea to play around with pocket placement here.  Practice folding the wrap into thirds.  Get a feel for where those inside pockets go, relative to where you want to place your outside pocket.  I wasn’t happy with my first placement, so I ripped the seam and re-sewed it.

Tuck the ribbon over-hang and sew 3 sides down.

Flip over. Now we will semi-attach the higher one of our inside pockets.  Again, play with the placement. This pocket should cover up the bottom stitches you just made when sewing on the opposite side.   *Note* this next row of stitching will be visible on the outside of your wrap.  You may want to switch to a stronger needle, especially if your fabric is heavy weight like mine.

Just do your best, and don’t worry if your lines are not perfectly straight.  Its a handmade gift, and it will be loved, wavy lines and all!

Okay, we are almost done, here comes the big move, the Pamchenko, if you will.   But first, get your ribbon hook (cut 6 inches or so) and any other taggies situated!

Pin your lower pocket into place. Tuck those ribbon ends under.  Add a personal tag if desired.  Take a deep breath, aaaannddd TOEPICK, i mean TOPSTITCH!  About a 1/4 inch around ought to work.

Now, place a couple of strips of sticky back velcro as seen below.  Although this stuff is not ideal for fabrics, it has held up great on the wrap that Anne gave me.  Still, I hand sewed a few stitches to better secure it.

FYI-  It is certainly possible to use sew-on velcro, or snaps, or buttons to secure this wrap.  You will have to think-it-through, and probably do some of that in the beginning of this process.  This is just a template for your own creativity and skill!

Once you toss in your wipes and diaps, your finished product should look like this:

Don’t leave home without it!

~Caroline