This DIY Un-Paper Towels sewing tutorial is simple and beginner friendly! Un-Paper Towels are the perfect sustainable alternative to paper towels, helping you to save money and reduce waste.

What are Un-Paper Towels?

Un-Paper towels are the perfect alternative to regular paper towels. You use them to clean and wipe away dirt and spills, the same way you’d use regular paper towels. Except instead of throwing them in the garbage afterwards, you throw them in your washing machine, and can reuse them again and again and again!

Not only is this more economical – you’ll save lots of money! – but it’s also more environmentally friendly. With these DIY Un-Paper Towels you’ll stop creating so much unnecessary garbage every day. They’re also prettier too, which we love around here!

Watch This: DIY Un-Paper Towels Video Tutorial

The Best Fabric to use for DIY Un-Paper Towels

The best fabric to use for your DIY Un-Paper Towels is a soft cotton flannel. When you buy un-paper towels at the store, more often than not, it will be flannel.

This fabric is incredibly soft and absorbent, making it perfect for picking up spills and wiping away messes. I also love flannel because it doesn’t leave any lint behind when cleaning mirrors and glass.

Another option is a terrycloth towel-like fabric. This is especially handy for cleaning up really large spills.

Where To Buy Flannel Fabric

I got all my flannel fabric off of Etsy, but you can find it at most fabric shops. You could be extra sustainable with your fabric selection, and use an old flannel shirt you have hanging around, or pick one up at the thrift store.

While I love to make things pretty, you really don’t need to worry too much at what they look like. They’ll be picking up spills and dirt after all, so they won’t stay clean and beautiful forever.

If you are really concerned about what they’ll look like long term, I’d suggest choosing a darker fabric that won’t show stains as much.

DIY Un-Paper Towels Tutorial

Supplies Needed:

Flannel Fabric (1 yard makes 3 12×12 un-paper towels)
Cotton Thread
Sewing Machine
Sewing Pins

You’ll also need something to cut and measure your fabric. I love using these 3 tools listed below to get the perfect square every time, but you can also just use some fabric scissors, a ruler and a sewing marker (the marks disappear after washing).

self healing board — self healing cutting board

Step 1: Pre-Wash Fabric

Before cutting and sewing, prewash and dry your fabric. This helps ensure any shrinking happens beforehand. It’s especially crucial if you’re using different fabrics for each side, since they might shrink differently, potentially causing unevenness in your unpaper towels later.

Step 2: Cut Fabric

Align a quilting square with your fabric and cut a 12×12 square. Feel free to choose a size that works best for you. I prefer 12×12 as it’s ideal for folding into quarters for easy cleaning. If you don’t have a quilting square, simply use a ruler to make markings and cut with scissors.

Step 3: Pin Fabric

Pin the right sides of the fabric together, securing them all the way around.

I like to add a few extra pins to one section as a reminder to leave a small opening, large enough for your hand, in the next step. It’s easy to accidentally sew through it if you’re not careful – I’ve learned that the hard way! – so the extra pins stop me from making that mistake again.

Step 4: Sew Together

Sew a straight stitch around the edges, but leave an opening large enough to fit your hand through. This allows you to turn the fabric inside out later. Remember to secure your stitching at both the start and end with a few reverse stitches.

When approaching a corner, sew as close to the edge as possible. Then, with the needle still down, lift the presser foot, rotate your fabric 90 degrees, and lower the foot again before continuing to sew. This technique helps to maintain neat and tidy corners in your sewing.

close up of sewing machine sewing the DIY Un-Paper Towels

Step 5: Trim Corners

Trim any excess thread and diagonally snip off the corners. This helps the fabric lay flatter when you turn it inside out.

Step 6: Pull Inside Out

Find the opening you left earlier, and carefully insert your hand through it, taking care not to break any stitches. Then, gently pull the un-paper towels through the opening to turn it inside out.

Step 7: Iron Flat

Iron your un-paper towels, focusing on flattening the edges to make the upcoming sewing step easier. Also, fold in the edges of the opening and iron them flat as well.

Step 8: Sew Edges

Sew a simple straight stitch all the way around the edge of the un-paper towels. It’s a good idea to start at the opening to ensure it’s securely closed first.

And that’s it! Your Un-Paper Towels are ready for use. Told you it was easy!

How To Store Un-Paper Towels

I prefer to fold my un-paper towels and keep them in a kitchen drawer and a basket in the laundry room.

Alternatively, you can wrap them around an old paper towel roll for easy access. Adding fasteners is optional, as the flannel fabric tends to cling on its own. However, if you choose this method, ensure all the towels are the same size for a uniform look, unlike my example here.

Equipment

Flannel Fabric (1 yard makes 3 12×12 un-paper towels)
Cotton Thread
Sewing Machine
Sewing Pins
Self Healing Board & Rotary Cutter (or just fabric scissors)
Quilters Square (mine is 12×12") (or a ruler and fabric marker)

Instructions