Some Kitchen Sewing....

Some of you know that we did a complete kitchen make over with countertops, backsplash and new door fronts. It was quite the process and took some time since we did most of the work ourselves. Or let me rephrase that.... hubby did most of the work. I directed what I wanted... and he was super sweet to agree. One of the things we added was a coffee bar area, which I absolutely love! Coffee bar by day can be switched to a wine bar at night for guests. Well while I was planning and plotting this area of my kitchen, I of coarse bought some adorable coffee fabric. I spent yesterday afternoon doing some sewing for my kitchen, finally. I made a 10-minute table runner for the coffee bar. I had some left over fabric and wondered, what can I do with this.   Hummmmm, with a little thought I came up with a potholder. I always need new potholders. They get worn, dirty, wet, so I never have enough when I cook. So let me show you how I made them. Pretty easy peasy and a great way to use left over batting and fabric.

I started out by layering my light coffee fabric and dark coffee fabric with two layers of batting. (one layer could be the insulated batting if you choose) and made a quilt sandwich. I then quilted my piece with lines about one inch apart. You could also use a meandering design too. I then trimmed it up to measure 6 1/2" by about 12". If I had to do it again, I would start with more of an 8" x 14-15" piece. (bigger potholder)

Cut a strip 2 1/2" by width of quilted piece. Fold in half wrong sides together and press.

Sew onto one of the ends of the quilted piece.

Fold over and top stitch in place.

 I thought I had taken a picture. The next step is to fold the bound end over to form a pocket. I folded it over enough so that the quilted piece was a 6 1/2" x 6 1/2" square. If you have a wider piece such as 8" etc. you would fold it over to make an 8" square. I used a couple of wonder clips to hold it together so that I could bind the edges.

To bind: Cut 1 2 1/2" by WOF strip and fold in half lengthwise and press. The on the back side of your pot holder sew like you are binding a quilt, mitering the corners. If you want to make a hanging loop. When you begin- fold binding end under 1/4" and start sewing your binding 1/4" away from the corner. I know this sounds confusing and goofy but I hope it makes sense when we get to the end..... After you get all around your potholder leave a 4" tail of binding. Again, I wish I took a picture... But fold this tail over on itself folding over the raw edge to the inside a 1/4" and stitch close to the edge. When you get to the 'potholder' topstitch you binding in place as if you are machine binding a quilt.

Remember to miter your corners....

Remember that folded over end on the binding? Well the end of the loop gets tucked under that final edge when you bind your potholder. 

The little hanging hoop is totally optional. I like to sometimes hang my potholders on the knobs of my cabinet doors.

I had enough leftover fabric from my 10 minute table runner to make two pot holders. They were fun to make for a change of pace.

If I make these again, I would make them bigger. The size works well for my hands, which are small but for the men in the family they are dinky. It was a fun project and a great way to use up my fabric that I had leftover. 

Hope you have a great day and find some time to do some stitching!

Happy quilting,

Cindy and Belvedere

Mark your calendars- I'll be vending and doing a mini trunk show....

Country Quilters Guild Biannual Quilt Show

The biannual Quilt Show is the major fundraiser for educational and philanthropic programs. It is held on odd-numbered years. The 2017 Quilt Show featured 400 traditional, antique, contemporary and fiber art quilts. More than 200 door prizes were given away during the show.

Dates for the 2019 Quilt Show: "Quilts for All Seasons"

Saturday, September 28, 2019 - 9 am to 5 pm

Sunday, September 29, 2019 - 11 am to 4 pm

Admission: $5 / Quilt raffle tickets $1 each

Location

Willmar Civic Center, 2707 Arena Dr. NE, Willmar MN 56201