Somewhere along the way, Olivia collected some store-bought baby doll diapers for her dolls. They were clearly modeled after disposable diapers. They were made of the cheapest plastic, and the closures were pieces of tape, which ripped the cheap plastic when you attempted to open the diaper.

But we kept the cheap, ripped diapers because it’s all we had and she loved changing the doll’s diapers.

When she got them out again, the other day, I was already in my crafty mood, and thus decided enough was enough. I could make something better.

Not having a huge fabric supply (because I had never really made anything before), I went to the closet to search for a shirt that hadn’t been worn in ages. I found one. It was Josh’s. Of course.

So I cut apart the long-sleeved t-shirt, and, using this pattern, cut out some diapers.

Oh, I told myself, but these are way too big. I got out the doll, looked back and forth, and decided they needed a trim.

Then I got to work, sewing the two pieces of fabric together, then turning them inside-out. And, lo and behold, turns out they were too big because there are such a thing as seam allowances. The extra fabric on the other side of the seam that goes unused.

So my first diaper attempt ended up resembling a thong-style diaper:

Olivia was thrilled and didn’t see anything wrong with it. But I got out the scissors and tried again.

Ahh, much better (when you actually follow the instructions):

But they still weren’t perfect. I had to be stingy on the soft velcro because I was also still fixing a few bumGenius diapers laundry tabs. The small velcro pieces were hard for Olivia to line up right, and they weren’t very adjustable, so the diapers didn’t fit both her newborn baby doll and her normal baby doll (I believe they are probably 10″ and 13″).

Also, the inside of the diaper was the same color as the outside, so she often tried to put the diaper on inside out.

So, while at Hobby Lobby picking up more velco, I checked the remnant bin and found some ADORABLE patterns. Using the new fabric for the outside of the diaper and an old white t-shirt for the inside, I made the perfect baby doll diapers.

Observe:

So, after all this work, and all the resulting cuteness, you would think Olivia would be gushing, right?

Ha.

You don’t know my three-year-old very well.

The night I had made the gray diaper, we were all in the toy room, and I noticed her dolls didn’t have any diapers on. I asked her, “Don’t you think they need diapers? What if they wet!?”

And she responded:

“They’re wearing pretend diapers.”

Ummm… All that work, and you’d rather just use PRETEND DIAPERS?

REALLY?

The next day, after I had made the ADORABLE printed diapers, I went in her room and noticed she was using the gray ones. I asked where the new ones were, the pretty ones.

And she responded:

“I like the gray ones better.”

REALLY?!

But, now that it’s been a few days, I think I have her successfully trained that pink paisley and stripes are much, MUCH cuter than old gray t-shirt. And real diapers are much, MUCH better than pretend ones. So we’re all good.

Stay tuned for my OTHER crafty project! It’s safe to say, I’M ADDICTED!

(And check out all the other great tips at Works For Me Wednesday over at We Are THAT Family!)