patchwork potholder (a quick tutorial)

I really, really enjoy sewing up projects for our home so when I realized we needed new potholders I was more than happy to drop everything and get stitching.

I think it turned out quite lovely  :)

I started off with some of my screen printed scraps and a few pieces of Essex linen (my favorite combo), and randomly pieced them together until my patchwork measured about 7.5'' x 8.5''. This measurement wasn't really important as potholders could definitely be smaller or larger depending on one's preference.

I then quilted my patchwork piece to a layer of Insul-Bright to ensure I could use the finished potholder to handle hot things.

 I then trimmed and squared my quilted piece to measure 7'' x 8'' and I did basting stitches all the way around the panel's perimeter to ensure quilting stays in place. I also basted a slightly larger piece of fabric to cotton batting and quilted it as well.

I then placed quilted front and back wrong sides together, pinned, basted, and trimmed off extra backing + batting.

A little note on quilting: as you've noticed I quilted the top and bottom part of the potholder separately. The reason for that was I was using my backup machine with no walking foot and two layers was all I was confident to stitch over without worrying about puckers. You could, of course, layer all four panels on top of each other (backing right side down, cotton batting, Insul-Bright, and patchwork panel right side up on the very top) and quilt through it all at once.

All I needed to do then is add the binding the same way I would add it to a quilt. I first machine stitched the binding to the front and then used running stitch to attach it to the back. And then I added a leather strip + rivet to make a hanging loop. Easy peasy!

What do you think? Pretty fun and quick to make, isn't it?

I'm sure I'll be making more of these pretty soon.

Happy sewing friends. Svetlana