This nifty bottle cozy is a necessity for those hot and humid days but it's also a great accessory to tote around with you to sewing classes, the gym, the beach, or whenever you need on-the-go hydration. Mix and match colors and fabrics, add your favorite embroidery designs, and break a sweat.
Read below for these refreshing (and free!) project instructions!
Supplies & Materials:
- Sport water bottle (no handle) - ours is 3 1/2 inches wide by 9 inches high and we found it at our local Target retail store.
- 5 inch diameter plastic lid (or other circular item)
- 3/8 yard sturdy print fabric like twill, denim, or light-weight canvas for outer shell (we used lightweight canvas)
- 8 inch by 8 inch piece of sturdy solid-colored fabric - like twill, denim, or light-weight canvas for applique patch (we used light-weight canvas)
- 3/8 yard light-weight cotton fabric for lining (we used quilter's cotton)
- 1/4 yard Insul-bright insulated lining
- Double stick fusible web
- Medium-weight cutaway stabilizer
- Temporary spray adhesive
- Air-erase pen (or other marking tool)
- 16 inch length of 1/2 inch wide to 3/4 inch wide ribbon (for loop)
- 10 inch length of 1/4 inch wide elastic
- Safety pin
- Tape Measure
The designs used in this tutorial include:
Choosing Designs for your Water Bottle Cozy:Â
For our cozy, we stitched our embroidery design within a 5 inch circle, so we used a 4"x4" size design. Because water bottles come in many different shapes and sizes, it's important to keep the size of the design in mind so that it's not too large for your cozy.
To begin, we will prepare the fabric for the embroidered applique patch. Cut a piece of sturdy fabric (we used light-weight canvas) 8 inches wide by 8 inches tall. Using the 5 inch diameter plastic lid (or other circular item) and air-erase pen (or other marking tool), trace the shape onto the fabric.
Create a paper template of the design by printing it at full size using embroidery software. If you don't have embroidery software, you can cut a piece of paper the shape and dimensions of the design to help with placement and centering.Â
If you don't have embroidery software, we recommend Wilcom's Hatch software which comes in different levels depending on what you'd like to use the software for. Hatch Organizer works well to view your designs, print dielines and templates, change design colors, and create basic design layouts. (This is an affiliate link. We may earn commission on purchases made with this link.)
Trim around the design to make it easy to position. Place the template in the center of the shape and measure equal distances between the outer edges of the design and the edges of the shape. Poke a hole in the center of the template and mark the fabric. Mark the horizontal and vertical axis points as well.
Remove the template and draw lines to connect the marks. These lines will be used for hooping.
Spray a piece of cutaway stabilizer with temporary adhesive and smooth the fabric on top. Hoop the fabric and stabilizer together by aligning the marks on the hoop with the lines on the fabric. Attach the hoop to the machine and load the design. Move the hoop so that the needle is aligned with the center point on the fabric. Embroider the design.
When the design has finished, carefully trim away the excess stabilizer on the back of the embroidery.
Lay the fabric piece on top of the double stick fusible web and cut out the shape (follow the manufacturer's instructions on the package). Set the applique piece aside for now.
Using a tape measure, measure the circumference of the middle of the bottle (ours measures 11 1/2 inches). Take that measurement and add 2 inches - the 2 inch allowance is for the thickness of the insulated lining that will be added later and also for a seam allowance (our circumference measurement is 11 1/2 inches, plus 2 inches equals 13 1/2 inches). This is the width of the outer shell fabric.
Measure the height of the bottle along the side (do not include the cap) and add 1/2 inch for seam allowance (ours measures 6 1/2 inches, plus 1/2 inch equals 7 inches).
Measure the bottom of the bottle and add 1 inch for seam allowance (ours measures 3 1/2 inches, plus 1 inch equals 4 1/2 inches). Take the bottom measurement and divide by two (ours is 4 1/2 inches, divided by two equals 2 1/4 inches).
Add the height and bottom measurements together (ours is 7 inches plus 2 1/4 inches equals 9 1/4 inches). This is the height of the outer shell fabric.
Cut a piece of the light-weight canvas using the dimensions you just calculated (we cut ours 13 1/2 inches wide by 9 1/4 inches high). Measure and mark the center of the top and bottom edges by measuring and dividing by two. Draw a line to connect the marks.
Measure up from the bottom edge of the fabric along the center line using your bottom measurement (ours is 2 1/4 inches). Align the vertical axis points of the embroidered applique fabric piece with the center line on the outer shell fabric leaving 1/4 inch of space between the bottom edge of the applique piece and the mark you just made.
Using a pressing cloth, iron on the applique piece with an iron. Again, refer to the manufacturer's instructions.
Using a zig-zag stitch, sew around the entire outer edge of the applique piece.
Cut a 16 inch length of ribbon. Bring the ends together to form a loop and pin the end of the loop about one inch from the upper left corner of the outer shell fabric. Leave about 1/4 inch of the ribbon extending out past the edge of the fabric.
To prepare the fabric for the inner lining, cut a piece of cotton (we used quilter's cotton) to the same dimensions as the outer shell (we cut ours 13 1/2 inches wide by 9 1/4 inches high). Align the inner lining on top of the outer shell, right sides facing, and pin along the top edge. Sew a 1/4 inch seam along the top edge only. Turn the fabric right side out, press the seam, and top stitch a 1/4 inch seam along the top edge only.
Lay the fabric flat with the wrong sides facing up. Measure and mark one inch down from the top seam along the side edges of the inner lining. Then, cut a piece of Insul-bright large enough to cover the area one inch down from the top edge of the inner lining, 1/2 inch in along each side, and up the same distance as your bottom measurement that you used earlier (ours is 2 1/4 inches). This leaves the areas for the top ruffle, bottom folds, and side seam allowances open for easier stitching later on. Spray the Insul-bright with a quick shot of adhesive and then align it on top of the inner lining fabric.
Fold the fabric together, wrong sides facing, and pin in place (the Insul-bright will be in-between the layers of fabric). Sew a 1/8 inch seam around the side and bottom edges. Measure and mark one inch down along the side edges starting at each top corner. Then, measure and mark 1/4 inch down along the side edges from the marks you just made. Draw lines across the fabric to connect the marks. Sew a seam along each line - creating a pocket for the elastic.
Align the side edges together, pin in place, and sew a 1/4 inch seam along the pinned edge. Leave the space between the elastic pocket seams open to allow the elastic to be added later.
Align the bottom edges together, pin in place, and sew a 1/4 inch seam along the pinned edge.
Pinch the corners at the bottom bringing the bottom and sides together. Measure and mark the center of the bottom edge by measuring and dividing by two. Take the original measurements of the bottom of the bottle and divide it by two (ours is 3 1/2 inches, divided by two equals 1 3/4 inches). Take that measurement and mark out on both sides from the center point along the bottom edge. Draw lines perpendicular to the bottom seam along each of the marks you just made and pin the corners in place.
Sew a seam along each line.
Trim off the corners leaving about 1/4 inch of excess at each seam.
Now, to add the elastic, add a safety pin at the end of a 10 inch length of 1/4 inch wide elastic. Work the pin and the elastic through one of the openings at the elastic pocket. Pin the loose end of the elastic in place at the opening.
Remove the pins and allow about one inch of the elastic, at each end to extend out past the openings (adjust as needed to create the proper amount of cinching for your bottle). Pin the elastic in place, then zig-zag stitch the elastic in place by stitching over the pocket openings. Turn the cozy right side out, insert the bottle, and you're done!
Hit the gym with your cool new water bottle cozy and sip in style!
