{DIY} Contoured Changing Pad Cover

The nursery is really starting to come together now! We finally received the crib mattress, and yesterday I washed the mattress pad and sheets so now Baby A's crib is all set! I am so excited to show you everything in the nursery, but it's not quite ready for a reveal yet.

I had some fabric leftover from the crib skirt I made a few weeks ago so I decided to incorporate a little bit of it into a changing pad cover.

I found this tutorial on Pinterest but wanted to add a stripe of my accent fabric in so here is my own little tutorial.

Materials
1 yard of fabric
scrap fabric for an accent stripe (needs to be at least 33" long)
10" of 1/4" elastic
sewing machine + thread
rotary mat and cutter
scissors

Directions
You're going to end up with three pieces - one for the top and two pieces for the contoured sides.

First, you need to figure out the size your cover needs to be to fit the changing pad. Measure your changing pad from the front (4.5"), across the top (18"), and down the back side (4.5"). When you're measuring across the top, make sure that the tape measure follows the shape of the pad rather than measuring straight across. Add 3" to each side. This will allow the cover to wrap around the bottom of the pad. This totals to 33". Then, measure the width of the pad. A standard pad is 32" wide. Factor in a 1/2"seam allowance to both sides of the width. This means you will need a 33"x33" finished square piece of fabric to complete the large piece for the top.

Now we need to piece together the top. You can make the accent stripe any width you'd like, as long as it ends up being 33"x33" total. Here are the measurements I used.

3"x33" minky
12x33" accent fabric
19x33" minky

(Note: This equals 34" because we had to factor in a 1/2" seam on either side of the stripe. If you choose to use a different size stripe, make sure you factor in the 1/2" seam allowance!)

Pin right sides together and sew on either side of the stripe to make your top piece.

Next, we're going to cut the contoured pieces for the sides. Trace the edge of the changing pad. Add 3" to the bottom. Then add 1/2" around the other three sides to account for the seams. Cut your pattern out.

Trace the pattern two times and cut your sides out.

Now we are ready to put the three pieces together! Pin your sides (right sides together) to the top piece. Use as many pins as you need to because stitching around those contoured ends can be a bit tricky.

This is what it will look like when you're done.

After sewing the sides to the top piece, you can serge (or hem like I did, if you don't have a serger) around the entire perimeter of the cover. This will finish off the edges and also prevent fraying.

Next, we are going to tailor the cover to better fit the pad. Place it over the changing pad and pinch the underneath of the corners together, getting rid of excess fabric. Mark this with a pin. Before you actually make this diagonal stitch, pin right sides together!

Cut off the corner you just sewed.

Do this for all 4 corners.

Finally, sew a 2.5" piece of elastic into each corner. Be sure to pull the elastic very tight as you stitch it to the wrong side of the corner.

Slip the cover onto your changing pad, and you're all done!

I just love how the contour looks a little nicer than some of the others out there that are not so fitted.

I'd love to check out your work, so keep me posted if you make one!
Please feel free to contact me with any questions about the tutorial as well. 

+, Lauren Aiken