A few weeks ago, I blogged about the cozy corner I made for Norah and Ava.
The idea is based on these matresses from the Spanish brand Nobodinoz. The only difference is that I didn’t include piping between side and bottom (only between side and top).
When I was making the covers for the mattresses, I took pictures of each step so that I could write a tutorial about it. Making a mattress cover is really easy, and quicker than you think (really!).
Materials
Mattress
I used cheap baby mattresses from Ikea (Vyssa Slappna, 60×120 cm). You can also go for bigger ones of course.
Zipper
I used a hidden zipper of 60 cm (24″), which is exactly the length of the short side of my mattress.
Piping
A piece of piping of at least the circumference of the mattress plus a good inch extra (2.5 cm).
I bought piping at De Stoffenkamer, as they have almost 100 different colors. You can also make the piping yourself, but keep in mind that you’ll need a lot of it (360 cm or almost 4 yards for one small baby mattress!).
Fabrics
Use mid-weight or heavy-weight woven fabrics. Knits are not impossible, but they are more difficult to combine with the piping.
1. Top and bottom panel: a rectangle each, the size of the mattress plus seam allowance all the way around.
Tip: use the same seam allowance your piping has.
Example: I used a 60×120 cm mattress, and piping with a 1 cm seam allowance. My panels were:
– Height: 60 cm + (2 x 1 cm) = 62 cm
– Width: 120 cm + (2 x 1 cm) = 122 cm
2. Zippered side panel:
Two strips of fabric with the following dimensions:
Height: (height of mattress/ 2) + (seam allowance x 2)
Width: width of mattress + (2 x seam allowance)
Example: I used a 60 cm (24″) zipper. My mattress is 5 cm (2″) thick. I cut two strips with the following dimensions:
– Height: (5 cm/2) + (2 x 1 cm) = 4,5 cm
-Width: (60 + 2) = 62 cm
3. Three other sides (without zipper):
Three strips of fabric with the following dimensions:
Height: height of mattress+ (seam allowance x 2)
Width: width of short side of mattress + (seam allowance x 2)
Example: my mattress is 5 cm thick; the short side is 60 cm wide; the long side is 120 cm wide.
So I cut:
– one strip of (60 cm +2 cm) by (5 cm + 2 cm) = 62 by 7 cm
– two strips of (120+2) by (5+2)= 122 by 7 cm
Instructions
1. Round off the edges of the top and bottom panel a bit (e.g. with a glass or mug).
2. Stitch the piping on the right side of the top panel, all the way around the edge. At the rounded corners, make a few snips in the piping first to make it easier to follow the curve (pic a). When you’re nearing the beginning of the piping, open the last bit of the piping, reduce the cording a bit, and fold the end of the ribbon in, and then over the beginning part of the piping (pic b). Continue stitching.
3. Stitch the blind zipper on one of the thin strips (see Fabrics part 2 of the materials) with right sides together. Use your zipper foot, and stitch close enough to the zipper teeth (but not into them).
Attach the other thin strip in the same way. Next, fold both strips with right sides together along the zipper, and stitch the open ends (toward the stitch lines of the zipper).
Press the piece, so that you end up with this:
(the green stitches you see in the pic are temporary and optional; I put them in to keep everything nicely in place for the next step).
4. Stitch the zippered panel and the other three side panels with right sides together so that you end up with a rectangle.
5. Pin this rectangle onto the top panel with right sides together. Turn the entire piece upside down so that you can see the stitches you made when you attached the piping in step 2. Using your zipper or cording foot, stitch right into these stitches (or a tiny fraction to the left of them for a perfect result).
You should end up with something like this:
6. Next, pin the bottom panel onto the sides with right sides together. Leave the zipper open a bit, so that you can turn the cover right side out again.
7. Insert the mattress. This goes easiest when you fold the mattress in two length wise, pull the cover over it entirely, and then let the mattress unfold again. Done!
Thank you again to Miss Matatabi for the Kokka fabrics!