Scrappy Hot Pad Tutorial

This is the start of a group of tutorials I want to post this fall that are all easy gift ideas. I like to give homemade whenever possible and thought I would share some of my ideas with you.


I went into my sewing room yesterday to clean up after the Fall Festival madness and got very sidetracked. I grabbed a pile of hand dyed fabric scraps left over from wrapping my soaps and had the pile over the trash when I realized they could still be used. I dyed up this bunch of fabric using some hunter orange fabric I got from one of my friends. I had almost 70 yards of the stuff and only needed to make one hunter jacket. So I dyed it. I have been finding uses for it for years. Now what is left of it is used to wrap my handmade soaps.

Supplies:
Fabric strips 1" to 2" wide - just whatever you have
2 pieces of cotton batting or tight poly batting slightly larger than the finished hot pad you want to make
Backing fabric
thread
Binding fabric

To start with I just randomly sewed together the strips I had. They were about 9 inches long.



Then I used my rotary cutter and squared it up.


I cut it to be 8 1/2" by 9 1/2". The size doesn't matter. That is just how big it could be to get it all square. I have large hands and like a large hot pad when cooking so I don't get burned. I also like larger hot pad for putting a hot pan on the table.

Next I layered my top, batting, and backing. I cut the backing last to make sure it was wider than the other two layers. I do this so that if the thing shifts while quilting it, I won't find that the back is now smaller than the front or off center by a fraction.
Then I pin the layers together

Next you bring it back to your sewing machine and quit it. YES YOU CAN QUILT IT TOO. I just did stitching back and forth. Since I am no good and a straight line, I did wavy. You can do all kinds of fancy things but this is the easiest.

When I have enough quilting in it for me, I stitch all around the edge to make sure it is secure.

Then I square it back up again.

This is what the back looks like.

Then I bind it.

Sorry I won't show you how I bound it because I am a binding spaz but I will direct you to some great binding tutorials I used.
Sandi Henderson's Bias Tutorial
Angry Chicken's Bias Tape tutorial (all on the machine)
Heather Bailey's How to Bind a Quilt Tutorial

Skillet Pot Holder Tutorial - PPP

I think I saw this idea at a dinner. It was so cool! I love pot holders but hate having to grab for one all the time when I am doing a ton of cooling where I constantly have to pick up the pan, such as when I am making crepes. I have singed a good many darling hot pads in the process.
Well here is my solution and a very clever on at that (not my idea but my version of it.)
I decided to make a skillet handle pot holder. This stays on the handle while I am cooking. I don't recommend walking off and leaving it unattended but you shouldn't leave a hot pot unattended anyway. :o)
After making several apron from jeans, I have several bits of scraps left over. So this is my material of choice. It is heavy, durable, washable, and free.

Skillet Pot Holder Tutorial

1. Trace the handle of your skillet onto paper to make a pattern.


2. Add a generous amount of space around your tracing to fill out your handle, maybe 1/4" to 1/2". Don't add too much space at the top or it will make your pot holder too long and it will keep sliding off. Cut out your paper pattern.


3. Take a piece of denim twice as long as your pattern is. Fold it in half lengthwise. Fold it in half again the other way. This gives you 4 thicknesses. Place your pattern piece along the folded edge and trace it with pen or pencil. Sew on the traced line. (By using the folded edge, the bottom of your pot holder is already finished when you are done. )


4. Trim within 1/4" of the sewn line.


5. Turn and you are done.


There you have it a pot holder that exactly fits your pan for quick, safe and easy fast cooking.

Year of the Mouse - PPP - Potholder

Please remember that P also stands for Perfect, and that DONE is BETTER than Perfect!!

I did this really fast so bear with the imperfections in sewing this time (ok most times).

In keeping with the theme of the Year of the Mouse or Rat, the potholder for January is mouse related.
This is just a simple, padded square pot holder, the simplest of potholders.

Materials:
White scraps for mice
Dark scraps for background and backing
Scraps of bias binding tape
Decorative thread for embelishments

Instructions:

1. Cut out your background piece. Mine is 8 inches square. I like a hotpad big enough to cover most things.

2. Make some teardrop shaped templates, one large, one small. Trace them onto your "mouse fabric". Double the fabric over and sew directly on the lines all the way around. Trim the mice to about 1/4" of the line.


3. Make a slit in one side of the mouse body. Turn the mouse right side out and press. Place the mice on the background fabric where you like them and stitch in place.

4. Use your thread to add details to your mouse like ears, nose, and tail.

5. Layer the top, batting and backing together and pin to stablize. The batting and backing should be larger than the top.

6. Top stitch around the outside edge to anchor the three layers. Now quilt in any fashion you like. I tried to stipple and found that I kinda bite at that and need some more practice.

7. Add the bias binding tape and you are done.

This one was done so very fast. It is not perfection but it will do and will be just fine for spilling chili and such.