Do you have more bath towels sitting in your airing cupboard than you can shake a stick at? Why not try to put them to good use and make a bathrobe out of them? Or maybe you’re on the lookout for a brand-new bathrobe, but everything you’ve seen and liked is out of your budget? Either way, look no further!
We will show you a quick and effortless way on how to make a bathrobe out of towels at home. Making your own bathrobe will not only save you some money, but you can also have a lot of fun making it.
You’re also guaranteed to be the only one with a bathrobe like it. That is until your friends and family see it and want to steal your idea!
How to Make a Bathrobe Out of Towels
For this DIY bathrobe, you will need the following:
- Necessary Items
- Two bath towels (or sheets depending on your body size and desired length)
- Ruler or measuring tape
- Pins
- Good quality thread
- Optional Items
- Extra towel to allow for belt and belt loops
- Pockets
- Hood
What You Need to Do
1. Orient Your Towels
Essentially what you’re going to do is sew your two towels together so that they fall down your body lengthwise, with the shorter sides making up the neckline and hem. Place them with your desired outer layer facing inwards towards each other.
2. Connect the Towels
Using pins, attach your two towels together by the shorter ends. Working your way from the outside-in, leaving a gap for your head to pop through. Use a ruler or measuring tape to make sure that the hole for your head is central.
3. Sew
Check that your head slips in and out of the hole easily before sewing the two towels together, leaving around ½ inch spare on each towel for the seam allowance. Remember that you want the seams on the inside of your bathrobe, so make sure you have your towels laid out correctly.
Open up your towels and lay them flat with the seam poking up. Press apart your seam and fold each side of the seam back on itself all the way along your towel edge (including over the neckline area). Pin them down and then sew them shut so that each seam is being sewn back to the main body of the towel it came from, so it doesn’t poke into your shoulders or neckline.
4. Initial Try
Try your towels on for size (inside out is best) and place a pin or marker underneath one arm where you would like your side seams to start and finish. You want to leave enough space for your arms to get in and out easily and you want to finish your seam high enough so that you can still walk easily.
5. Final Touches
After taking your towels (which are already starting to resemble a robe) off, lay them down inside out, one squarely on top of the other. Pull them straight so that all sides are aligned.
Measure from the neckline down where your first and second pins are positioned. Then, place pins in matching positions on the other side. After which, place pins all the way along, between the two pins already in position, and then sew together where you have pinned.
Try on your new bathrobe for size!
What Are the Things to Consider
In order to have a bathrobe that suits your wants and needs, you should consider the following:
1. Overall Size
How long do you want your bathrobe to be? Popular lengths include mid-thigh-length, knee-length, and mid-calf-length.
2. Fabric
The thicker the towels, the harder the sewing. Thinner towels drape over your body in a more flattering way as opposed to thicker towels which will be more comfy or cozy but will benefit from having sleeves for warmth, so you will need to find a slightly different pattern to follow.
3. Pockets
You can add pockets for detail and convenience by using another towel or a couple of washcloths that are cut to size.
4. Style
If you’re a beginner when it comes to sewing, then we advise that you stick with the bathrobe pattern given above. For the more adventurous, you could very easily adapt this pattern and turn your bathrobe into one that opens at the front.
You simply measure where the middle of your bathrobe is at the front and cut your bathrobe open all the way from top to bottom (on the front towel only). Seam both sides shut, shaping the neckline if desired. Then, easily add in a belt by sewing in belt loops at waist height when sewing your side seams.
5. Customization
Remember you can always add extra details at a later stage. Planning them in sooner rather than later, though, may feel a little too overwhelming with the amount of sewing involved, so make the simple one first and then see if you’re up for more work!
Bathrobes with Personality
Once you make this simple bathrobe, you’ll see how fun it can be, especially when you get to wear your very own creation. With practice and time, you can build up your customization skills easily and will soon be the envy of the whole beach with your personalized, diy bathrobe.