~just call me braxton~: ~Crib Sheet Tutorial~

This tutorial is for beginners! Making a crib sheet will possibly be the easiest thing you'll ever make- well, maybe not, but it'll be close!

Go buy 2 1/4 yards of adorable fabric, a package of 1/4" elastic (I use knit elastic, but it doesn't matter what kind), and you're ready to go! You'll need 61" of total elastic (1yd+25").

**WASH, DRY, AND PRESS your fabric. Do not skip this step! You don't want your sheet to shrink once you've made it...it might not fit!

Cut your fabric so it is 44" x 68". I like folding my fabric into quarters (so it is doubled both ways) and making cuts at 22" and 34". It's a lot easier to handle this way.

Then, carefully cut 8.5" x 8.5" out of the corners (already shown in the picture above). I do this at the same time when the fabric is still doubled up.

Your fabric should now look something like this- a large piece with four corners cut out.

Now, you're ready to sew!

Match up each corner, and pin the good sides facing.

Stitch down each corner. I use 3/8th seam allowance. Reverse or lock stitch at the beginning of each line to secure your stitches.

You should have four "pockets" that look like this on each corner.

At this point, you have a few options:
1) serge each corner- makes for a professional look
2) if you don't have a serger, you can zigzag down the raw edges to keep them from fraying
3) or you can leave them raw. If the sheet is for your little one, and it doesn't matter if there is frayed fabric on the inside of your corners or not, then go on to the next step.

Now, it's time to prep the border of the sheet for the elastic casing.
I serge around the entire border of the sheet...very close to the edge. I don't want to lose much fabric in this step.
If you don't have a serger, you'll want to turn down 1/8th-1/4th" and then turn down 1/8th-1/4th" again to hide the raw edge. Try not to lose too much fabric on this step. Stitch around the entire border.

You can see in the pictures above that the entire border is serged, and the corners lay down nicely.

Ready to make the casing for the elastic!

I like to use a paper clip to feed the elastic through the casing, but many tutorials suggest a safety pin. I have pulled the head off of several safety pins and have ditched them ever since.

Using the paper clip as a guide, I turn the border under and pin all the way around the sheet. I want to make sure that the clip will fit through the casing, and I want the casing as narrow as possible.

Make sure to leave an opening in the middle of one side of your sheet. I "double pin" the beginning and end of the opening so I don't forget to stop. Reverse stitch at the beginning and end. I stitch right on top of on serge stitches...very close to the edge.

You can barely see where I stitch...it's right on top of the serge stitches. Makes for a clean look.

Cut 61" of elastic- 1 yd + 25"
The first time I made a sheet, I fed the whole 3 yds through the casing, and then pulled and pulled until there was a custom fit to the mattress. This ended up being 61". You can custom fit your sheet if you want.

Begin to feed the elastic through the casing. TIP: pin the END of the elastic near the opening. You can easily pull the end through the casing and not even know it!