Cloth Diaper Cake Tutorial

If you are looking for a baby shower gift idea, a cloth diaper cake is both unique and practical!  Follow our tutorial to make your own.

What is a Diaper Cake?

Designed to look just like a tiered cake, but made of diapers and other baby necessities, diaper cakes are a beautiful and practical baby gift that deliver a Wow factor!

Why Give a Diaper Cake?

Are you organizing a baby shower? Looking for a more practical alternative to flowers when the new baby arrives?


Not only does a cloth nappy cake look beautiful when assembled, it has the added benefits of being eco-friendly and of saving parents money! If the expectant parents are planning to use cloth diapers, a cloth diaper cake will be a welcome addition that will quickly establish a great cloth diaper stash.


Diaper cakes made with disposable diapers have been a common centerpiece at baby showers for years. With the growing popularity of cloth diapers, cloth diaper cakes are a great alternative. Diaper cakes may also be a unique gift option for diaper parties, epsecially if they are planned for couples, not just the guys!

How to Make a Cloth Diaper Cake

Materials Needed:

• 18 prefold diapers (cloth diaper inserts also work well). Amazon usually has good prices for prefolds
  
• Roughly 24 elastic bands
• Roughly a dozen small safety pins
• One Snappi diaper fastener, or additional safety pins
• A receiving blanket or crib sheet (or you can substitute another 6 prefolds or inserts)
• 1 baby shampoo or lotion bottle that is fairly tall
• Decorative ribbon and/or baby accessories
• A cake platter (optional)

Instructions to Make a 2-Tier Cloth Diaper Cake

We used unwashed Bummis prefold diapers in this tutorial. If the mom-to-be plans to use another style of cloth diapers such as pockets or all-in-twos, you can also use cloth diaper inserts for a very similar look.

If you prefer to pre-wash the diapers before you make your diaper cake, keep in mind that they will fluff up more after several washings. Prewashing shouldn't impact the construction techniques below - but your cake will definitely be puffier! Some diaper cakes are assembled using 2-sided tape, but this could be hard to remove from cloth diapers, especially if the cake is left assembled for a few weeks or more, so I prefer elastic bands.

Set aside 4 diapers which will be used to wrap the cake layers.

One by one, fold 14 of the prefolds into thirds on the seam lines. Roll these diapers up

and secure each with an elastic band.

To assemble the top tier of your cake, group 4 of the rolls together and secure them with another elastic band. Next, take one of the diapers that was set aside. Fold this diaper in thirds on the seam lines, wrap it tightly around the 4 rolled up diapers, and secure with another elastic band. Your top tier should look something like the one below.

To start the bottom tier, use the receiving blanket and shampoo bottle to form a core. Fold the receiving blanket into a strip the same width as your top tier of the diaper cake. Wrap it tightly around the shampoo bottle, and secure it with another elastic band. The shampoo bottle should stick out the top, as shown below. Note, you could replace the receiving blanket with more cloth diapers if you prefer. This would take roughly 6 more prefolds.

You can now add your top layer on top of your bottom layer, fitting it on top of the shampoo bottle so that it will not slide.

Position the remaining 10 rolls around the bottom core.

Using the safety pins, pin the remaining 3 prefolds together lengthwise,

and then fold along the seam lines to create a long strip.

Wrap this strip tightly around the bottom layer of the "cake"

and fasten snuggly with the Snappi diaper fastener. (Or use additional safety pins).

Use ribbon, baby accessories and other creative touches to decorate your diaper cake. 

Check out our Cloth Diaper Cake Inspiration board on Pinterest to find lots of inspiring pictures to help you with your decorating!

Now stand back and admire your handiwork! You've just created a beautiful baby gift that can be admired, and then put to good use! What could be better?

You may also like:

Gifts for Baby Showers - If you're looking for other great gift ideas for cloth-diapering parents or green-minded moms, check out our suggestions for gift baskets, practical gifts, and even gifts under $30.

Creative Baby Gifts - 20 more unique and creative baby gift ideas!

Disclosure:  The opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own, and your experience with the product may differ from mine. I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. This article contains some affiliate links.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” For more information, see our Disclaimer and Copyright.

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