Click through to get the tutorial for these DIY fabric bowl covers, an awesome plastic wrap alternative for bowls, its simple, easy, and reusable!
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Do you have a lot of bowls that you wish you had a lid for?! Are you constantly using plastic wrap or throwing a kitchen towel over them when you need to cover something up?
There’s nothing wrong with this.. BUT it would be nice to have a designated bowl cover. Preferably something that stays on and thats reusable.
ENTER: DIY fabric bowl covers! I’m just like you. I love being in the kitchen. I make a lot of bread from scratch which necessitates a lot of dough needing to rise in a covered bowl.
On top of that, I am constantly bringing bowls of food and dishes to get togethers (hello big family with LOTS of get togethers;)) Some of my prettier, serving bowls don’t have lids, so I always just use plastic wrap.
Well, not any more!
I whipped up a few of these reusable bowl covers one afternoon, and I haven’t looked back.
You’ll love this easy sewing tutorial because its beginner friendly, and is fairly quick from start to finish.
If you love sewing projects for around your home (specifically the kitchen) then you’ll probably love this tutorial for making potholders and this tutorial for sewing oven mitts to match.
This tutorial does not include a bowl cover pattern, but just because you really don’t need one! Its super simple and easy to make the measurements for your fabric, and you won’t have to go through the hassle of printing out a pattern.
Keep reading to learn how to make your very own DIY fabric bowl covers.
What fabric to use for bowl covers?
A simple cotton fabric will work best for DIY bowl covers. Cotton is washable, easy to sew with, and perfect for putting on top of your bowls to keep food protected.
Some tutorials suggest using a waxed fabric that’s liquid resistant, at least for the inside portion of the bowl cover. I’m not too worried about my covers getting a little dirty because they’re SO easy to wash, but you could definitely try out a water resistant fabric if you’d like.
Do cloth bowl covers keep food fresh?
Cloth bowl covers will help prevent food from getting bugs and dust on it and keep it from drying out as quickly, however, they are NOT great at keeping food fresh for long periods of time.
Some great uses for cloth bowl covers are to cover dough that’s rising, to place over food on the dining table before your family is ready to eat, and to cover a bowl when you’re traveling to an event and bringing a dish.
How do you wash a fabric bowl cover?
Fabric bowl covers can be washed in the washing machine with cold water and a gentle laundry soap (try out THIS homemade laundry soap), and then air dried. If your bowl cover is made from cotton fabric (which is what is suggested in this tutorial) then it has the potential to shrink, so be aware of that when washing.
You could also wash your fabric bowl cover by hand in your kitchen sink with some dish soap and warm water.
How to Make a Fabric Bowl Cover (for Beginners)
To make your DIY bowl covers you’ll want to start with gathering all of your supplies. You’ll need basic sewing tools including a sewing machine, thread, and scissors, THEN, you’ll need the following:
- (2) fat quarters of fabric (this will make two bowl covers), washed and ironed if you prefer
- 1/4″ elastic band
- ruler
- pencil or fabric pen
- safety pin
Instructions:
Start by cutting out your fabric into circles: place your bowl upside down on the wrong side of your fabric.
Measure two inches out from the edge of the fabric and mark with a pencil.
Continue to do this all the way around the edge of the bowl, so you have a dotted circle around your bowl this bigger by two inches.
Once you have the shape of your circle marked, cut it out. Use this first piece as a pattern piece for any more that you want to make.
Use a serger, zig-zag stitch, or pinking shears to finish the edges of the fabric. I used a zig-zag stitch because I don’t have a serger OR pinking shears. HERE is a quick video tutorial on using a zig-zag stitch to finish off the edge of fabric.
Now, you’re going to turn the edges of your fabric over 1/2″ and hem all the way around, leaving a 2″ opening. You’re making a little casing for the elastic to go in.
Go slow, and adjust the fabric often as you go. There might be some wrinkling as you go around the edges (because you’re hemming a rounded edge) but don’t worry about this! You won’t see the wrinkling on the top of the bowl cover.
Once you’ve sewn all the way around and left a small opening, you can now insert your elastic. Cut your elastic the same size as the top of the bowl you’re making the cover for. Measure by wrapping the elastic tightly around the top of the bowl, and adding a 1/2″, then cutting.
Attach a safety pin to one end of the fabric, and insert the safety pin into the opening that you left. Wiggle it through and start to work it all the way around the the casing you created.
Once its all the way around and through, sew the two ends of the elastic together, overlapping a 1/2″. Don’t worry of the cover seems off or too scrunched on one side, you can adjust it in just a minute.
Now, wiggle the elastic back into the openings of the casings, and adjust the cover so the elastic is evenly inside of it. Finish stitching the opening closed.
Cut your loose threads, place it over your bowl to see if it fits good, and THAT’S IT!
Use your DIY fabric bowl cover to cover dough that’s rising, food that’s sitting on the table before dinner, bowls that are out that you don’t want flies to get to, bowls of food that you’re transporting, etc.
I hope you enjoyed this simple sewing tutorial! Its an awesome sewing project for beginners and would even make a cute DIY gift idea.
More DIY Sewing Projects for Around the HOME
If you liked this tutorial for reusable bowl covers, I think you’ll love some of these other posts, pin them for later if you’re not ready to try them now!
Be sure to comment OR tag me on Instagram if you make these, I would LOVE to see how they turn out. Thanks for stopping by!
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