Flats from T-Shirts?

[Pumpkin_Pie]

I want to make up some flats from found materials around my house and I am wondering if it is possible to make them from old T-Shirts? I really don't mind if the size is a little wonky, and am basically thinking of just cutting the front and back into big squares and using those. Would they work? Are they absorbent enough? Will I have to finish the edges? I use T-Shirt wipes that are not finished around the edges, and they wash and dry just fine without fraying, but they are super duper curly.

TIA!

[SophieAnn]

There's instructions for making Prefolds and Fitteds from old t-shirts here:

http://fernandfaerie.com/frugaldiapering.html

I haven't made prefolds, but I've been using these instructions to make the stuffable fitteds from old t-shirts. They look great and they're so soft (because the t-shirts are old)!

For the outside edges: The stuffing/soaker for the stuffable fitted is just a multi-layer rectangle of fabric. What I do is just zig-zag stitch around the outside (don't have a serger) and that seems to work great. It finishes the edges nicely and I think that will prevent curling quite well.

Edited to add: I reread and see that you want to make flats. There are instructions for flats on that page as well. You might want to make it double-layer for a t-shirt at least. With the folding I'm not sure how many layers total that would give you. The instructions for prefolds from t-shirts are for a 4x8x4 prefold.

[thixle]

Use THIN t-shirts if you use the Fern and Faerie prefolds pattern.
I made the mistake of making a bunch of those with thick, heavy duty t-shirts and, well, they were too stiff even for burp cloths. They became changing pads
Course, that was 3 years and several dozen diapers ago

Honestly, any 100% cotton found material will make a perfect flat. *Most*T-shirts won't fray, so you won't have to hem. Cut them 2-3 inches bigger than you want your finished size to take up the slack of the rolled edge. Bigger is better than too small.
My personal favorite cloth diaper material is 100% cotton flannel sheets from the thrift store. Just make sure to strip the fabric because fabric softener keeps it from being absorbant. I love to rip fabric, though. Perfect straight lines, takes a few seconds to demolish a sheet. : But you would have to hem or serge to finish.

[medicmama]

Funny I was going to link the Fern and Faerie site but I was beat to it. I also have used reciveing blankets as flats. I'm sure you have a ton hanging around,I do.