How To: Make a Toddler size Duvet from a single bed Duvet

Make a toddler size duvet from a twin single quilt - mypoppet.com.au

I have never enjoyed sleeping with sheets and blankets, I’m a doona/duvet girl all the way. So now that Emma has graduated to a toddler bed I thought it was time she had a duvet of her own. I have quite bad dust mite allergies which improved once I started using a wool filled duvet, but I really struggled finding a toddler duvet for Emma that wasn’t feather or cheap polyfill. What to do?

Then I had a brain wave…make my own.
I purchased a single bed Aussie wool filled duvet (on sale, yay!) and here’s what I did:
(please excuse the quality of the photos – night time sewing)

Note – This project although looking quite straight forward was a bit challenging to finish to my very high standard. I would recommend it only to confident sewers as the sheer bulk of the quilt made it difficult to handle.

Make a toddler size duvet from a twin single quilt - mypoppet.com.au

Step 1: Decide on the size you need the finished duvet to be and mark these out on your large duvet with a tailors marker or pencil. The size to fit Emma’s bed is 100cm x 140cmStep

2: Rather than cutting the duvet, which would let some of the filling out making a big mess, I decided to use my overlocker (serger) to cut and finish the edges at the same time. Sew along the marked lines. Also cut/serge away the current binding to reduce the bulk on the existing edges.

My overlocker managed to (just) get through ok but I had to pull it through as it was a little bulky, this caused me to break a needle, so take it slow.

You can stop at this stage if you don’t mind an overlocked/serged edge as a finish. I chose to bind the edges to make it neater.

Make a toddler size duvet from a twin single quilt - mypoppet.com.au

Step 3: Mark a small curve on the corners and cut.

Step 4: Bind edges with bias binding. I used the technique explained in yesterdays tutorial, although the finish was not to my usual high standard (I’m really anal with my binding).

The bulk of the duvet made it difficult but I think it looks pretty neat considering.

Now I’m off to make a couple of custom sized duvet covers…

10 Comments

  • Michelle says:

    Wow, that's ambitious – but what a great idea!

  • Michelle says:

    I love the colors of the binding! Nice work. I share your love for a duvet, no sheets and blankets for me either, happy to hear I am not alone. ♥

  • Miss Cinti - my poppet says:

    Hi Kristen, yes we call bias tape bias binding in australia. This tape was made by my mum from a striped vintage bed sheet. I thought the stripes would add some interest.

  • Kristen says:

    What a good I idea, I already have a twin size duvet just waiting for me to resize it! Did you make your own binding? I don't know that I ever see it in multicolor. Is it the same as bias tape??
    I hope you share your duvet covers too, I have been wanting to attempt one.

  • Anonymous says:

    Your tip came just in time for me, as I have a large quilt that is waiting to be resized.

    Thank you for the instructions. Can't wait now to sew it up.

    Love the binding too.

  • Mhairi says:

    I did this with Ikea quilts. They are super cheap and if you buy the double bed size you get two for the price of one – and they are fully washable. I never thought to bind them nicely though. Thanks for sharing this great idea!

  • Sarah Helene says:

    THANKS for the step-by-step instructions with sharp photos on your toddler-sized duvet tutorial. I may try to make one soon as a gift to a grandniece. THANKS for sharing. Sarah Helene, Minneapolis

  • Kids Single Beds - Bambino Home says:

    Briiliant idea and an excellent blog post by Cintia. My love for a duvet dates back to the time when I was a toddler. Now that I’m a father, Inwould love my little one to experience the same. The instructions provided on how to turn a kid’s single bed into a duvet is a good one and would love to implement it.

  • I totally understand your pain, Cintia. My uses a hand-me-down feather comforter that is old and so didn’t have sewn “channels” to keep the feathers evenly distributed, so the bulk would always end up pushed to one corner or end. I decided to just sew my own channels down the center of it and nearly broke my sewing machine doing it! It is definitely harder than it looks! 🙂 Lisa

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.