Get Started Sewing Your Own Cloth Diapers & Absorbent Briefs

Sewing your own cloth incontinence items is the most affordable way to manage incontinence, and getting started is easy. Making these items is possible for even a beginner sewer with just a basic knowledge of the sewing machine. You only need a few basic things to begin your journey.

Reasons to Sew Your Own

Sewing your own adult cloth diapers, leakproof underwear or absorbent briefs is a win for your budget and your body. It’s a great way to go cloth on the cheap and get a perfect fit. Making your own doesn’t require extensive skill on the sewing machine either. Here are 7 reasons to make your own:

  1. It’s Easy: It may look daunting, but you need only patience and the correct tools.
  2. It’s Affordable: Enjoy a new product at a fraction of the retail cost.
  3. You Decide Materials: Bamboo, hemp and zorb can be game changers.
  4. Eliminate/Minimize Chemicals: You can insist on organic fabric.
  5. Adjustable Fit: A good fit often determines an item’s performance.
  6. Customize Absorbency: Your product will support your needs.
  7. Get Exactly What You Want: Make a custom item not available in stores.

What You Need To Get Started

These 4 things will help you create a product that fits as you want it to and provides the protection you need.

Fabric

To make cloth items, you need fabric. Absorbent and waterproof fabric in particular. There’s a huge variety of fabrics to choose from and while not all are readily available depending on the country you live in, some like cotton flannel are easy and affordable to come by. 

While flannel may not be the most absorbent or softest of the options out there, it has long been a staple in cloth incontinence products.

Seriously, sometimes I’d like to bash on flannel for its tendency to get stiff and pill over time, but I’ve read so many stellar reviews of products made from flannel that I can’t justify giving it the boot. Plus, if you’re going for affordable, it doesn’t really get any more affordable than flannel!

See my post on 16 Types of Fabrics Used in Cloth Diapering.

Pattern

Of course, to sew an adult cloth incontinence item, you’ll need a pattern. You can either purchase a pattern or make your own for free by tracing an existing item. Once you have a pattern, you can easily learn how to make the waist size larger.

 You could also “size up” a baby diaper pattern, but keep in mind that adult and children’s body shapes are different. This is critical because the construction and proportions of a pattern need to change to accommodate these differences.

If you are looking to purchase a tried-and-true pattern, you can check out my Absorbent Collection, Moderate Collection or Diaper Cover Collection of sewing patterns available as PDF downloads.

Notions

I don’t know about you, but when I’m sewing a project, I have a tendency to overlook the “notions needed” part. However, notions are an essential part of many sewing patterns. For example, there are 7 Types of Elastic for Sewing Cloth Diapers and Absorbent Underwear. Things like using the right type of needle or thread, elastics, and fasteners will help sewing your cloth incontinence item go smoothly.

So make sure you have everything you need before beginning a project. Check out Sewing Notions Needed for Adult Cloth Diapers for more specific notions needed to sew your own cloth incontinence products.

Find Your Size

One of the perks of creating your own products is definitely getting the sizing perfect. Though sometimes, it also takes more than one try to get something right.

I find that I like to make something 3 times to get the process, fit, and measurements perfect. Obviously, some things you make you don’t want 3 of or want to make 3 of. Honestly, some patterns are complicated or require lots of fabric and aren’t something you want to put yourself through multiple times, haha! 

But I’ll guess that if you’re making items to manage incontinence, you’ll be making multiples…still it helps to get your size right the first time around. For an in-depth look at finding your size, check out my post on How to Find Your Size and Check Fit for Incontinence Products.

Sewing Machine Basics

Sewing your own cloth incontinence items is easy and affordable. With the right tools, you can create your own stash of products to fit your needs and lifestyle and say goodbye to disposables and expensive cloth products. Even if you don’t know how to sew, you can still learn to make your own incontinence product. Just start with the fundamentals — a basic element of sewing your new custom product is the zigzag stitch.

The zigzag stitch is easy to use when sewing cloth diapers and reusable underwear. Sewing machines typically come with the option for both the zigzag and 3-step zigzag stitch, which is also easy to use for beginner sewers.

Also remember that sewing machines allow you to adjust the stitch width and length, which may be necessary to create your perfect item.

Use the Right Sewing Pattern to Make Cloth Diaper Products

In my Etsy shop, I make the fitted pattern with bamboo fleece or bamboo baby loop, but you could also use flannel, hemp, or even birdseye. Besides saving money, sewing your own allows you to make a product with your favorite materials. And making an item using a professional sewing pattern makes the process a whole lot easier.

My most popular sewing pattern tutorial is for the adult fitted cloth diaper, which is part of the Absorbent Collection of sewing patterns, released in the spring of 2022. The Absorbent Collection includes the:

I published the Moderate Collection of sewing patterns in the fall of 2022, which includes the:

The pull up is also available in a heavy absorbency version, as well as two big kid versions: regular pull up and heavy absorbency.

In April 2024, I released my Diaper Cover Collection for adults and youth:

 

Sew an Adult Overnight Cloth or Swim Diaper

More absorption and greater coverage can be helpful for overnight needs. Join me in this tutorial as I sew an adult overnight cloth diaper. And if you are interested in making an adult swim diaper, then you can learn about what a cloth swim diaper is, how to use it, and everything you need to know about how to sew one.

Make a Prefold in ANY Size

Making your own adult prefold diapers allows you to customize the diaper to your needs; you just need to make a few math calculations to get it done. 

Prefolds are one of the most versatile styles of diapers as they can be folded and used a multitude of ways. Wrap them around your body in one of a million ways or pad fold them to use in pocket diapers.

When you sew your own prefold diapers, you also get the added benefit of choosing your ideal fabric and number of layers. You could even sew a faux prefold using a heavier fabric like fleece or French terry for a super absorbent option.

Make Adult Cloth Liners: Sew and No-Sew

Cloth liners create a barrier between the skin and the wet surface of the incontinence item, allowing the skin to remain dry. Liners are super easy to make and don’t require sewing since stay dry fabrics like microfleece don’t fray. If you struggle with rash and skin irritation, using a liner can make all the difference.

Add Hook & Loop Tape or Snaps to Adult Cloth Diapers

Sewing on hook and loop tape or adding snaps to an adult cloth diaper can make the use of your incontinence item much easier, especially for anyone with finger dexterity issues. While snaps do require special tools to apply, hook and loop tape can be quickly sewn on using a standard sewing machine. I recommend using hook and loop tape that’s at least 2″ wide. Fasteners can be added to just about any style of cloth incontinence product.

Sew Adult Cloth Diaper Inserts

There are basically 3 different methods to sew inserts: turn and topstitch, zig zag and serging. Check out this blog post if you’re interested in learning more about how inserts work. While inserts are typically used in pocket style diapers, you can add absorbency to just about any type of cloth incontinence product.

Also Read>>How To Use Adult Cloth Incontinence Products<<