Hey everyone, Corey here. Today you will learn how to turn leftover batting sandwich scraps into patchwork potholders, sewn as a matched pair for gifting.
Every quilter I know has the bin. Trimmed quilt edges. Practice sandwiches. Test blocks that came out fine but never found a quilt. Too good to throw away. Too small to back a throw. So they sit.
Here we go. A potholder is the perfect landing spot. That scrap is already a quilt sandwich, already stitched together. Half your work is done before you start. Trim it square, add one heat-smart layer, bind it, and you have a kitchen tool. Make two from the same leftovers and the same binding, and you have a matched pair. Tie them with twine and they look planned.
One honest note before we sew. A plain sandwich is fine for warm dishes. For a hot Dutch oven, it needs backup. Cotton batting insulates well. A layer of heat-reflective batting does the heavy lifting. Polyester alone is not my pick here. It does not love high heat.
What You Need
- Two quilt-sandwich scraps or test blocks, at least 9 inches square each, from the same quilt if you can
- Heat-reflective insulated batting, like Insul-Bright, cut 8 1/2 inches square, one per potholder
- Backing fabric, two 9 inch squares, if your scraps need a fresh back
- Binding fabric, about 1/4 yard, cut into 2 1/2 inch strips
- Rotary cutter, ruler, and mat
- Walking foot, plus all-purpose thread to match your binding
- Pins or binding clips
- Twine or ribbon and a gift tag
How to Sew the Pair
- Sort your scraps. Pick two pieces that belong together. Same quilt is easiest. Same color family works too. If they look like cousins, they will read as a pair.
- Check the quilting. Your sandwich needs quilting lines no more than about 4 inches apart. Sparse quilting lets layers shift in the wash. If a scrap is under-quilted, add a few lines now. Simple diagonals are fine. Use a 2.5 mm stitch length, about 10 stitches per inch.
- Add the heat layer. Lay your scrap face down. Place the insulated batting on top, shiny side facing the scrap. That shiny side should face the heat source in use. If the backing is worn, cover it with a fresh backing square, wrong sides together.
- Baste and quilt the stack. Pin through all layers every couple of inches. The insulated batting is springy. Pins earn their keep. Then stitch a few lines through the stack with your walking foot. Stitch in the ditch looks clean. Echo a block shape if you are feeling fancy. Completely up to you.
- Square up both potholders. Trim each one to 8 inches square. Here is the pair trick. Measure the smaller one first. Trim the bigger one to match it exactly. Matching size makes them look like a set.
- Make the binding and loops. Join your strips into one long strip. Fold it in half lengthwise and press. Cut two 4 inch pieces from the folded strip first. Those become hanging loops.
- Bind the first potholder. Fold a loop piece into a U. Pin it at one corner, raw edges out. Bind all four sides like a tiny quilt, mitering the corners. The loop gets caught in the binding as you go.
- Bind the second one the same way. Same fabric. Same loop corner. Just like that, you have a pair. Press both flat, stack them loops together, tie with twine, and add a tag.
Tips and Variations
Test before you gift. Grab a hot skillet with the first one. Hold for a slow count of ten. Too warm? Add a second layer of cotton batting inside the next pair.
Odd sizes are fine. A 7 inch pair suits small hands and small pans. A 9 inch pair fits big casserole dishes. Match the pair to each other, not to a ruler.
Pair a test block with a plain partner. One fancy block plus one simple nine-patch, same binding, makes a really really cute set. The fancy one is the star. The plain one is the workhorse.
Make four for a hostess set. Two pairs in the same fabrics stack into a gift that looks store-bought. Super duper cute. Wash them like quilts, cool water and a gentle dry, and let them earn their spots and stains.
Folks, it does not have to be perfect. A wobbly corner never stopped a casserole. You are your own worst critic. If I can do this, y'all can do it. We're not reinventing the wheel here. We are just refusing to waste good batting.
Thank y'all so much for sewing along with me today. Go rescue that scrap bin. We'll see you next time. Bye.
Shop Insul-Bright® Insulating Thermal Lining – 45" x 1 Yard at Linda's Electric Quilters.
