Thursday, June 8, 2017

Hot Hot Hot Pads!

I've made a few hundred (I'm guessing!) pot holders in my day, but I have never ever made a set that was round!  Go figure!  



Round pot holders aren't something weird or strange.  Let's face it, most pots and pans are round not square.  Yet it never occurred to me to make anything other than square.  I take that back, one time I made a couple sets that were really a weird and funky shape.  But not round!!



I had a request for round red pot holders using improv.  At first I hesitated, but not because they wanted round.  Again that is not weird!  Because of red.  I have red fabric.  I was worried I wouldn't have enough contrast between each shade.  And they were going to need at least a spot or three of something else.  I ended up picking a few woven stripes that had red tones and also black and dark grey.      



I pieced some strips together trying to follow an imaginary curve hoping I wasn't wasting my time. For this particular design, I felt it was important to have curves to keep the round flow. Like the wheels on a bus.  (I know, you are singing it now!)



When making pot holders, I make a tidy little pot holder sandwich before quilting.  Starting with the backing, then a layer of Insul-Bright, cotton batting and the top.  Insul-bright has a reflective film inside poly fibers that reflects hot and cold energy.    



With the layers secure, the quilting can begin!  With small 'quilts' like these, you can really get creative with the quilting.  Machine quilt or free motion.  These were a combination of both.  It that the best of both worlds?!  I think so!



I just happened to have the perfect thread for the quilting!  Not always the case with me.  I'm slowly trying to build my thread stash, as there is nothing more frustrating than not having that perfect match for a project.  

Aurifil Burgundy #1103 was just right.  These pot holders have a lot of different shades of red. The burgundy thread was perfect!

I will admit that I may have shied away from round pot holders because I didn't want to deal with cutting something round...that was until I found the perfect tool, the perfect sized tool! Kitchens are the best place to look for tool alternatives!  

The pot lid is round, which made my job a whole lot easier!  I used a marker to trace the circle and cut it out with scissors.  Scissors just to be safe.  I could see the rotary cutter slipping and slicing off part of my curve...nightmare!!



With that, circles aren't so bad!  One thing that was easier was stitching the binding to the back. I didn't have to worry about mitered corners!  Hopefully I won't be asked to make oval pot holders...I do not have an oval lid!


LINKING:

33 comments :

  1. they are wonderful. I've never heard of the insul-bright. I wish I'd known of that. I made oven mits that aren't thick enough really for enough protection.

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    1. As long as your mits are thick enough to pull a seaming pot out of the oven and not burn your hands…your fine! Insult-bright gives an extra layer of protection and easy to use!

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  2. Sweet. BTW, I have an oval lid you can borrow, but it's more the size of a mug rug. Hmmm, that gives me an idea...

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    1. I haven’t seen you in so long Libby!! It’s funny I haven’t tried round before, but sometimes its the obvious things that elude me! Now I want to know your idea and borrow your oval lid! Maybe you could trace it on a piece of paper for me?!

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  3. Those are not just pot holders, those are little works of art!

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  4. These are super, Jayne! I love all the shapes your improvised pieces have! Wow the pot lid is perfect and has even the handle, I have used only plates and bowls. x Teje

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    1. It is the perfect template for a circle, the handle helps a lot! I went through my entire kitchen until I found the perfect size to use!

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  5. They are awesome. I really like the color variation you were able to get in the pieced tops. I found making round placemats to be somewhat similar and liked the round binding. Fun finish!

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    1. I was worried I wouldn’t have enough red shades when I started. It wasn’t until I pulled what I thought would work that I saw a huge pile of the perfect shades! I was worried the round binding would pucker and bunch up. It was more difficult sewing on than a square quilt, but stitching it down wasn’t a problem at all.

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  6. Those are great. The circle shape is perfect for the kitchen.

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  7. Now you've got my creative juices cookin'! <3 I need to sew up a few of these for my kitchen. I'm wondering how difficult it was to sew in the binding without puckers. Any tips?

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    1. Good! That’s my goal with many of my posts! I didn’t have an issue with the binding puckering. My bindings weren’t even bias cut. I think if they were it would make it even easier. Where it made it harder was sewing the binding to the front…the first step! It was a bit harder than stitching it to a square, straight quilt.

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  8. These are gorgeous! I have made circle potholders once and use them all the time. And I agree - that burgundy thread is a keeper - used it in my most recent quilt!

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  9. What a great idea. The improv is just perfect for this project.

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  10. I could never use your hot pads as 'hot pads'!! They are so pretty and I wouldn't want them to get dirty and scorched - my hot pads are usually scraps of practice FMQ that I bind.

    These two red ones are just so pretty!!

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  11. These are beautiful! I love your improv, always, and the circle part doesn't seem so tricky now that you walk through it! Lovely finishes!

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  12. Hi Jayne,
    Love, love, LOVE these! Red is my favorite color - I used to have a red kitchen. All my potholders are square, but this sure makes a good case to move to round ones. ~smile~
    Roseanne

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  13. Great idea ! I love how you added contrast to the different shades of red.

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  14. These are such fun hot pads, Jayne! I love this project idea for playing around with scraps and quilting motifs.

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  15. Those are really too pretty to use as pot holders!

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  16. Some crock pot lids are ovals. Nice work.

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  17. These are beautiful! I love the quilting!

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  18. OMG these are gorgeous! HOT, HOT, HOT! :D

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  19. These are fabulous! Great inspiration--where did I put my Insulbrite?

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  20. Those are fun with all the different reds and improv piecing! I'm going to go dig out my Insulbrite and make some more hot pads now!

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  21. I always fall in love with your red improv projects. I still think about your red and black pillow. Thanks for sharing with Oh Scrap! I will have to remember to try round next time I make a pot holder!

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  22. These are sooo good! I actually have made an oval potholder, out of selvedges, of all things...I think I may have used a store bought hotpad as the pattern...probably what gave me the oval idea in the first place! I made an oval "bucket", too, and used a crock pot lid😊You will find ovals when you need em!

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  23. Pretty and practical.....got to be happy with that.

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  24. I simply love, Love, LOVE all those shades of red. They are gorgeous and far too pretty to use as potholders, I'd have to keep them for decoration only!

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