Scrappy Potholder


So, looking for some potholder inspiration for your entry into THE SEWING MACHINE DOUBLE DOWN contest?  Here’s another take on our Pretty Potholder.

For this one, I delved into the scrap bucket to bust through some itty bitty pretties I’d been hanging onto.  Get the full Scrappy Potholder tute after the jump…

And remember, your comments could win you some pom pom trim. Hmm, pom poms on a potholder could be pretty cute, no?

Scrappy Potholder

First off I pulled out the scrap bin and dug into it.  Seeing that disaster of a gardening glove i tried to sew last year cracked me up.  It’s on the running list of D-I-WHYs? that Jacinda and I keep.  Anyhoo, I dug up some thin fabric strips out of the old bin.

For the front I grabbed some Paula Prass Chevron in yellow leftover from the Hamptons Hooded Beach Towel tutorial and some Anthology Fabrics Folk Life Wallpaper Roses in Blue/Yellow.

Then I sewed them together in a general stripe pattern, not paying much attention to the shape at first, but making sure it came to at least 8″X8″ when all was said and done.  I sewed each strip to the previous strip right sides facing with 1/4″ seam allowance, then cut the whole block down to 8″X8″:

Ironed all of the seams open on the back:

On the opposite side I used the same Paula Prass Chevron fabric in black and some Kokka Trefle Cotton Matryoshka Dolls in Black leftover from the Snappy Toddler Top and repeated the same process.

Then I laid them right sides facing with the stripes in the same direction:

Laid a thick piece of 8″x8″ cotton batting on top:

And starting at the middle left of one side, sewed all the way around, leaving a hole for turning, back stitching at the beginning and end:

Then I trimmed the edges, clipped the corners, and flipped the whole thing right side out through the hole and pushed out the corners:

I took a 5″ piece of double fold bias tape I had made out of another piece of fabric and sewed it together, then created a loop and inserted it into the turning hole:

Then I sewed all the way around at the edge, closing the turning hole and securing the loop in place.  Then I used my walking foot to quilt a sunburst shape.  In retrospect, I think quilting along the piecing lines would have looked nicer, but what are you gonna do?

I used sparkly yellow Kreinik thread on one side, and black thread on the other:

Done.  It’s funny, when I finished this potholder I was not a huge fan, but it’s the one I always grab first now.  Don’t know why.

Hope you are feeling inspired to get to work on your contest entry!  Good luck!

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