How to make a baby cape

1. Materials & tools

Materials (size 0–1 year)

• Main fabric (fleece, wool or double gauze) — about 110 cm wide × 100 cm (43 × 39 in)
• Snap fasteners or covered buttons — 1–2 sets
• Double-fold bias tape, 12 mm (1/2 in), for the front edges and neckline — about 1.5 m (1 3/4 yd)
• Optional: fabric for a hood

Tools

• Sewing machine (or needle and thread)
• Fabric marker or pencil
• Ruler and scissors
• Iron
• Pins or clips

2. Make the pattern (auto-generated in Katagami)

With the Katagami pattern tool, you just enter the finished size and it drafts a seam-allowance-included pattern, tiled to print at actual size on Letter or A4.

1. Open the tool
   Open the pattern tool and choose “Baby” → “Baby cape” from the tabs at the top.
2. Enter the size
   Enter neck circumference, length from the neck and neck ease. Presets cover newborn, 0–1 and 1–2 years.
3. Set the seam allowance
   Use the slider at the bottom (beginners: 1.0–1.5 cm / about 3/8–5/8 in).
4. Print
   Press “Print (actual size)”, then in the print dialog set Scale = 100% and turn “Fit to page” OFF. Check the 50 mm calibration box on the first guide sheet with a ruler.

3. Cutting the fabric

1. Fold the fabric in four
   Fold it in half, then in half again. The corner where the two folds meet is the center of the cape.
2. Place the pattern
   Line the right-angled corner of the quarter-circle pattern up with that folded corner, so both straight edges sit on the folds, and trace the neck arc and the hem arc (the cutting lines).
3. Cut
   Cut through all four layers. Opened out you have a doughnut. Cut along one fold from the outer edge to the neck — that is the front opening. Because it is cut on a fold, the front edges have no seam allowance.

4. Sewing

4-1. Finish the front edges and hem

1. Bind both front edges with bias tape. They have no seam allowance, so folding them under would make the neckline smaller.
2. Double-fold the outer arc using the 2 cm (3/4 in) hem allowance on the pattern. It is a curve, so the outer edge is longer — ease it in gradually or press as you go.
3. Fleece does not fray, so you can leave the hem raw.

4-2. Finish the neckline

1. Sew bias tape around the inner arc, right sides together, then turn it to the inside and stitch it down.
2. Without tape, clip the allowance every 7–8 mm before folding — a curve that is not clipped will not lie flat.

4-3. Add the fastening

1. Fit one or two snaps near the neck at the front. Two, one above the other, keeps the wind out.
2. If you use buttons, sew them on with doubled thread — a baby will pull at them.

✏️ A circular piece stretches under its own weight, most of all on the bias. Finish the neckline the same day you cut it, and store it flat rather than on a hanger.

5. Tips & variations

• Add a hood: attach the hood from the hoodie pattern to the neckline and it becomes far warmer.
• Make it reversible: cut two, sew right sides together and turn. You skip the front binding and the hem fold, so it is barely more work (trim the hem allowance to 1 cm (3/8 in); the front edges are sewn 1 cm in from the edge, so add 2 cm (3/4 in) to the neck ease).
• Fleece is fastest: it does not fray, so only the neckline needs finishing. A good first project.