Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Hand Towel Baby Bibs
(featuring applique Animals on the Edge)
Terrycloth baby bibs are a
parents best friend. They're
absorbent and easy to launder
- no fuss, no muss.
This tutorial demonstrates
how to make a baby bib out of
an ordinary hand towel. An
applique Animals on the Edge
design peeks from the bottom
of the bib. These instructions
will show you how to position
an "edgy" design right at the
bottom of the bib.
Free pattern pieces help you
trace the shape of the bib.
Read on for more details!
Supplies Needed:
**Terry cloth hand towel (or
about 3/8 yard terry cloth)
**3/8 yard PUL fabric polyester/polyurethane
laminated fabric (for back)
**Small piece of fabric (for
applique piece - I used flannel)
**Medium weight cutaway
stabilizer
**Water soluble stabilizer (for
topping - I prefer Sulky Solvy or
Sulky Super Solvy)
**Temporary spray adhesive
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
**Air-erase pen
**Snaps and snap tool
Special Project Notes:
I used PUL fabric (polyester/polyurethane fabric; found it at www.Fabric.com) for the
back of the bib. PUL fabric has a rubbery finish on one side which makes it water
resistant. This prevents liquids from seeping through to the back of the bib. Using PUL is
optional - you could use soft cotton fabric like flannel for the back, or even another layer
of terrycloth.
Designs Used:
For this tutorial I used the small size of the Peeking Owl (Applique) design.
Finished Size:
8" wide by 9 1/4" high
I've made a pattern to help you
trace the shape of the bib.
Click here for a PDF of the
pattern.
The pattern is in two parts
which will print on two pieces of
8 1/2" by 11" paper.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Next, cut out the pieces and tape
them together.
Lay the towel (or piece of terry
cloth) flat and place the pattern
piece on top. Pin the pattern in
place and using an air-erase pen
or other marking tool, trace the
shape.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Remove the pattern piece and
measure and make marks 1/2"
up from the bottom edge of the
shape. Draw lines connecting
the marks. This line will be used
to position the design.
Create a paper template of the
design by printing it at full size
using embroidery software. If
you would like to learn more
about working with templates,
see these handy instructions.
Trim the template by cutting right
along the bottom edge of the
design. Cut around the side and
top edges leaving about 1" of
excess around the design.
Align the bottom edge of the template with the line you just drew (leaving the 1/2"
space in between the template and the bottom edge of the shape). Also, center the
template side to side by measuring equal distances between the center point on the
template and the side edges of the shape. Poke a hole in the center of the template
and mark the fabric. Mark the horizontal and vertical axis points.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Remove the template and draw
lines connecting the marks.
Spray a piece of medium weight
cutaway stabilizer with
temporary adhesive and smooth
the fabric on top. Lay a piece of
water soluble stabilizer on top of
the fabric. This topping helps to
prevent the stitches from sinking
into the fabric. Hoop all three
layers together by aligning the
marks on the hoop with the lines
on the fabric.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Next, prepare the applique fabric
piece for the design. To do this,
print the dieline (DL file) that is
included in the download.
Print a copy of the dieline file at
full size with your embroidery
software. (If you do not have
embroidery software or you are
unable to print from it, you can
embroider the dieline file onto a
sheet of paper. Load the dieline
file ("_DL") into your machine,
hoop a piece of paper, and
embroider the dieline directly
onto the paper.)
After the dieline is printed or
stitched, use the "template" to
cut the fabric to the right size
and shape.
Begin by making a "sandwich" of
stabilizer, applique fabric, and
the paper template. Spray a
piece of cutaway stabilizer with a
little temporary adhesive (I use
KK100). Smooth the applique
fabric on top of the stabilizer.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Next, spray the backside of the
paper template with a quick shot
of adhesive and smooth it over
the fabric.
Cut out the shape.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Attach the hoop to the machine
and load the embroidery design
(that's the file that begins with
"Y" followed by four numbers).
Move the hoop so that the
needle is directly over the
center point on the towel.
Embroider the design. The first
thing that will sew is another
dieline. After the dieline is
finished, stop the machine and
remove the hoop, but do not
unhoop the fabric.
Spray the backside of the fabric
piece with adhesive.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Place the fabric right inside the
dieline.
Attach the hoop back onto the
machine and continue with the
design. A zigzag tack down
stitch will sew next. This binds
the applique piece to the fabric
for the remainder of the design.
Then, all the inside elements
will sew.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Continue with the design. Next,
a satin stitch border will sew.
When the design has finished,
trim away the excess stabilizer
on the backside of the
embroidery. Also, gently tear
away the topping. If any small
bits remain you can use a
tweezers to remove them. Or,
wet your finger tips with water
and brush the bits away.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Now it's time to cut out the
shape of the bib from the terry
cloth.
To prepare the back fabric, lay
the fabric flat with right side
facing up (if using PUL fabric,
lay the fabric soft side facing
up). Then, flip the pattern piece
over, wrong side up, and lay it
on top of the fabric. Pin in
place, trace the shape, remove
the pattern, and cut out the
shape. Next, align the front and
back pieces together, right
sides together, and pin in place.
Lay the bib with the front fabric
side (embroidered side) facing
up.
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Sew a 1/4" seam along the outer edges of the fabric leaving at least 4" open along the
right side. When you reach the design, along the bottom edge, sew a 1/8" seam
directly under the bottom edge of the design. Turn the bib right side out. Press the
seams with an iron using a pressing cloth. Also, turn the fabric of the opening in 1/2"
and press. Next, top stitch a 1/8" seam along the outer edges of the bib starting and
stopping at the outer edges of the design (I did not top stitch under the design).
Add top portion of the snap to
the front side of the bib at the
end of the top strap (about 1/2"
from the end of the strap).
Then, add the bottom portion of
the snap to the front side of the
bib at the right top tab about
1/2" from the top edge of the
tab. And the bib is complete!
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Baby Bib from Hand Towel (Applique Design)
Animals on the Edge (Applique)
designs make a fun peeking
effect on this bib, and a unique
baby item everyone will love.
Click here for a printable
version of these project
instructions.
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