How to Make a Duvet Cover
A while back I came upon the new home dec fabric at JOANN, you might have seen me petting it on Instagram. When I saw it I knew I needed to make something with the beautiful and soft velvet. This duvet cover/comforter is made from these beautiful fabrics and I couldn’t love it more.
How to Make a Duvet Cover
This post was sponsored by JOANN. I have been paid for this post but all opinions and ideas are my own.
What is the best fabric for duvet cover?
I used this Velvet Medallion fabric, and this Velvet Bubble fabric. They come in so many great colors, so you can pick and choose the best colors for your room.
There are a lot of fabrics that you could use for your duvet cover. A 54″ fabric is a good option because then you don’t have to piece together as many cuts of fabric. But you could use a shorter width fabric too, if you don’t mind piecing the fabric together.
How much fabric do I need for a duvet cover?
The amount of fabric that you need depends on the size of your bed. I have a king bed so I used the max amount of fabric. A good way to know how much fabric you will need is to find a flat sheet for your bed size and then do the math from there. I have done the work for you below, these numbers are for a 54″ wide fabric, or a home dec size fabric. If you are using quilting cotton the amount you need will be different.
For a king size bed a flat sheet measures 106″ x 102″. The length of the bed requires 3 yards of fabric. The width of the bed requires two widths of fabric. So you will need to piece together two cuts of 3 yards of fabric, or 6 yards in total.
For the following sizes you can run the fabric the other way across the bed, so you can use less fabric. The king requires the fabric to run up and down, where these let the fabric run left to right.
A queen sheet is 90″ x 102″. You will need 2 1/2 yards twice, or 5 yards.
A full sheet is 81″ x 96″. You need 2 1/4 yards twice, or 4 1/2 yards.
A twin sheet is 66″ x 96″. You need 1 7/8 yards twice, or 3 3/4 yards.
What is the softest fabric for a duvet cover?
The velvet fabric I used for this is pretty flipping soft. My husband has commented a few times that our new comforter is so soft.
You can use just about any fabric that you can sew. If you want to use a soft fleece, or a minky you can do that. Soft fabrics are typically a bit more difficult to work with, but see the tutorial below for tips for sewing with these softer fabrics.
I recommend you go to the store, feel the fabrics against your skin, and decide what you like the best.
Can you make a duvet cover out of sheets?
You can definitely make a duvet cover out of sheets. Simply follow the instructions in this post using two flat sheets instead of creating a top with velvet fabric.
I actually recommend using a sheet for the underside of the duvet. It is the best way to find the right size cut of fabric for your bed and you don’t have to do any cutting, which is winning in my book!
How to make a king duvet cover
The instructions for making a king duvet cover are the same as making any other size. The only difference is the amount of fabric you will need and the direction the fabric will run.
You can use the same fabric and piece the two 3 yard cuts together down the middle. OR as I have done use two different fabrics and piece them together with one cut in the middle and the second cut on either side.
How to Make a Duvet Cover with Sheets
So here are the steps for creating the duvet cover. You need the amount of fabric listed above, and a flat sheet that fits the size of your bed (i.e. king, queen, full.)
1) Fold the fabric you will use on the outside edges in half long ways. Cut the fabric in half along the fold.
2) Clip one of the cut pieces of fabric right side down to one side of the inside fabric. Use a lot of clips. With your walking foot sew the two fabrics together.
3) Repeat with the second piece of cut fabric and the second side of the inside fabric.
4) Place the pieced velvet fabric onto flat sheet, right sides facing. The top edge of the sheet should line up with what will be the bottom edge of the duvet. Clip around three edges.
5) Sew around the three edges, leaving what will be the bottom, open. The sheet and the velvet together is very slippery and will slip and move when sewing. I highly recommend hand basting before adding a machine stitch to secure the two fabrics together.
6) Clip the raw edge of the velvet fabric under 1/4″ or 1/2″, secure in place using a zig zag stitch to enclose the edge of the fabric. Top-stitch around the other three edges. this holds the sheet in place and keeps it from moving.
7) To close the duvet, after you have added your down comforter, you can add buttons and button holes. OR use strips of cotton to create ties to close the end of the duvet cover.
Alternately: Sew around all the edges, leaving 12″ open on one edge. Turn the piece out and top-stitch the opening closed to create a comforter. The velvet fabric is heavy enough that my husband and I are plenty warm without using a down comforter inside.
Tips and Tricks
* Add ties or snaps inside the duvet cover to hold the duvet in place. Create tabs with fabric, or use THIS snap tape. Then before sewing the velvet and sheet together place the tabs on top of the sheet, on the wrong side with the raw edge of the tab facing the raw edge of the sheet. Place these tabs on the four corners. Add a metal snap to the tab and a metal snap to the down comforter to snap the down comforter in place and keep it from bunching up.
* Now that you have a custom duvet you might need new pillowcases, check out THIS tutorial to learn to make an easy pillowcase.
How to Sew a Duvet Cover
Equipment
- Sewing Machine
- Sewing Needle
- WonderClips
- Walking Foot
Materials
- 6 yards 108" wide fabric
- 1 king size sheet
Instructions
- Piece the fabric together.
- Place the top piece face down on the right side of the sheet.
- Hand baste the sheet and the fabric together.
- Use a walking foot to sew the two pieces in place. Leave one edge open to create a duvet cover or close the majority and top-stitch to create a comforter.
- Top-stitch around the edges to keep the fabric from slipping and to close the opening of the comforter.
- Add ties or snaps to close the duvet cover.
Pin How to Make a Duvet Cover
Brenda Norton says
Hi,
I was looking at your lovely Duvet Cover. Wishing I was just 1/2 as talented. I also would love to know what kind of walking foot you have. I’ve seen a few while looking for one for myself but nothing like yours. It really looks awesome and I bet it’s amazing. Thank you so much and God Bless you in all you do.
sewwhatalicia says
I have the walking foot that came with my machine. It is a Brother machine.