Help with cloth wipes - major fraying problems

velveena

I bought a bunch of flannel from the remnant bin & cut it up with scissors at first.  They frayed so bad when I washed them, they ruined items they were washed with and the lint filter was caked in threads.  When I realized my mistake and went back over them with pinking shears, it only cut the problem down by half.  I literally cannot continue or I will start a dryer fire.

What am I doing wrong here and is there any way to salvage the 40 or so wipes I've made so far?  What did you use to make cloth wipes?  How about using cheap fleece as it doesn't fray?  I have been using disposable wipes since he was born 6 weeks ago and I really want to switch over!  TIA

CraftyBaker

I usually wash my fabric before I cut it up. It still frays but the surface area fraying is not near as much. After I wash & dry it, I cut them into squares/rectangles and sew 2 pieces together. I do a zig zag stitch around the edge so they don't fray when washed. You could also use a serger if you have one.

jennyann28

I used flannel to make mine. Flannel shrinks a TON, so I prewashed it. Once it was clean & dry, I cut it up like PP but I sewed mine wrong sides together then turned them right side out and topstitched to finish/close the turning hole. Any cotton fabric is going to fray, so you need to finish the edges.

Teneniel

jennyann28:

I used flannel to make mine. Flannel shrinks a TON, so I prewashed it. Once it was clean & dry, I cut it up like PP but I sewed mine wrong sides together then turned them right side out and topstitched to finish/close the turning hole. Any cotton fabric is going to fray, so you need to finish the edges.

This is what I did for my wipes (terry/flannel), but for my family cloth I just did a zigzag stitch and neither one are fraying.

ToastieSimons

Do you have a sewing machine?  I do a quick zig zag stitch around the entire outside edges.  I was lazy once and decided not to, what a mess!