Homemade Baby Gift Idea | Burp Cloths & Mess Rags

There has been a major baby boom in 2014! There have been so many babies among friends, co-workers, and even among my blogging friends. While I am not always the best gift giver I really try to make my gifts memorable and unique. When someone registers, I do like to get something from their registry, but I personally always remember when someone gives me something a little more personal or unique. This is especially true if that gift is something I actually use! 

Enter homemade burp clothes.

When Jonah was just a couple months old, my sister went through her burp cloth stash and gave me a burp cloth she'd made for my niece Emma who was born just a week before Christmas in 2009 - it was Christmas themed but had a heavier chenille fabric as the backing. I fell in love with it. It was the most absorbent fabric and really worked for milk dribble because it's basically a ribbed towel - but still soft. Long story short I used it well after Christmas was over and learned that it's my favorite for making burp cloths. Other than that and a few tips, I won't go into a tutorial here - because there are hundreds already online. I honestly don't remember if I used any kind of tutorial the first time I made them, but this is almost exactly how I make mine: iCandy Handmade. 

So, here are a few tips I've learned when making homemade burp cloths and rags:

1. Pin your fabrics - I tend to kind of free hand on my machine when it's just a straight line BUT the ribbed chenille will move and pinning helps to keep this minimal. 
2. If you do wind up getting a not-so-straight first edge and the fabric doesn't have to be straight because of the print - don't sweat it - just keep going. You can compensate on the other sides. It won't be very noticable that you didn't make them and exact certain size since burp cloths come in so many different shapes and sizes. 
3. Trim! your edges and corners and take the time to iron once you turn your fabric right side out - it'll save you time in the long run. 
4. Don't over buy fabric just to make these! Fat Quarters will work perfectly, look in the sale scrap bin at the fabric store, raid a friends scrap closet (that's what I did for these girly prints), or participate in a fabric swap. 

It's all about the presentation.

I have to say that even though these burp and mess cloths are pretty cute folded, nothing compares to packaging them with a little extra special touch!

I save all my trimmings, especially the longer pieces as I'm sewing. Occasionally, I'll cut a few more strips just to add a little to it if needed. Then, I just roll the cloths and tie with the scrap trimmings. I used a fairly plain bag I had around the house (I'm a gift bag hoarder) and tied extra scraps to the handle. This presentation makes the recipient question whether you went to a boutique or made them at home and you can proudly say I did it all myself! 

What's your favorite handmade gift to give for baby or other occasions?