Skip to main content

Microwave bowl mitts


Microwave mitts made with "Garden Project" fabric designed by Tim & Beck for Moda

I learned how to make these bowl-shaped potholders at the American Sewing Expo in Novi, Michigan this September. The potholders are meant to be used with bowls inside the microwave to keep diners from burning their hands on crockery filled with hot liquids. The microwave mitt is made entirely of cotton materials because polyester might melt in the microwave. I think it would also work well to cook a potato in the microwave. If packaged with a covered soup bowl and dry soup-mix, this mitt would make a thoughtful holiday gift.

 Please read and print the WARNING at bottom of this post. If used as gifts, include a copy of the warning with each gift.

 Materials

  • 2 10-inch squares of 100% cotton fabric in coordinating colors (I used "Garden Project" layer-cake precuts by Tim & Beck for Moda.)
  • 2 10-inch squares of Pellon Wrap-n-Zap Tator batting (or other 100% cotton batting)
  • 100% cotton thread
  • You will also need a "walking foot" to assemble your microwave mitt.

Directions

 Begin by marking both batting squares according to the template, below. Instructions for marking the lines follow after picture.

1. Draw an X through the center of your batting.
2. Mark the center of each side and connect marks to create a diamond shape.
3. Mark a dot 3.5-inches from each center mark toward the center of the batting
4. Mark a dot 3/4-inches to the left and right of the center dot on each side.
5. Connect the side dots to the dot marked near the center of the batting.
6. These V-shapes are the sewing line for the darts that create the bowl shape.

 Layer one pre-marked 10-inch batting piece to the wrong side of one 10-inch fabric piece; repeat for the second pair.

Using 100% cotton thread and a walking foot, stitch one piece of fabric and one piece of batting together along the marked lines that create the X and diamond shapes. 
Fold with right sides of one fabric/batting piece together on the center of the dart, matching dart markings. Sew from the point of the dart to the edge of the square -- sewing along the marked line on the batting. Repeat for each of four darts.
Clip center of each dart, cutting 1/4-inch from sewing line.
This is how your work will look after sewing all the darts.

 Repeat for second piece of batting and fabric. 
When both pieces are sewn and darted, layer both pieces with right sides together and stitch around all four sides a scant half-inch from the edges of the fabric. 

 Leave a four-inch opening on one side of the mitt; reinforce the ends of your stitching by sewing back and forth. Clip corners.
Turn the mitt right side out by pulling the inside through the hole until the entire right side is turned out. Push out corners with blunt utensil.
Stitch opening closed, close to edge of mitt. Topstitch around all four sides of the mitt. (See top photo for topstitch detail.)

 Warning from Pellon:
When working with products intended for use in a microwave, certain precautions should be taken.  Use only 100% Cotton batting, thread and fabric.  Wrap-N-Zap® is made of 100% Cotton fibers without any additives. It is not fire retardant or flame proof. For this reason, we suggest cooking in 2 minute intervals for a maximum of 8 minutes. Never leave the microwave unattended.  Do not use in a Convection/Microwave oven. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Scrappy log cabin blocks

by Linda Theil Scrappy Log Cabin quilt block by Linda Theil  Next month the Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild will host a virtual quilt-along to make quilts for the SafeHouse Center womens' shelter in Ann Arbor, Michigan. One of the suggested blocks to make at the event is a Scrappy Log Cabin suggested by GAAQG member and artist Mary Bajcz. I love the Log Cabin block design and decided to get a head start on next month's event by organizing my materials and develping a process for making my Scrappy Log Cabin blocks. I began by watching Mary's YouTube video: "Scrap Quilt Strategy: The Log Cabin Technique" , and many others available on the topic. What a variety of approaches!   I'm not much of an improvisor and this is the first time I've tried the scrappy approach to quilt making. So It was quite an adventure for me. I pulled out my scrap bin and began sorting for lights and darks. After looking at many videos, I decided to work with a central square of 2.5-i...
1 comment
Read more

Diane's Archie

by Linda Theil Diane Spencer-Ogg, owner of Spencer-Ogg, Ltd. in Greater Manchester, UK, released a new mini-duffle pattern she calls "Arch Zipper Pouches" in two sizes with printable pattern pieces and video tuturial. Her video introduction can be viewed at the end of this post. As always, Spencer-Ogg has hit the ball out of the park with the elegance of her design and the precision of her process. I have made two of the 10x8x4-inch large-sized Archies -- as her  fans have dubbed the new pattern. The bag shown above is made of Mora Faux Leather in grape from Emmaline Bags of Alberta, Canada. The interior, shown below, is cotton from the "Art History" collection by Marcia Derse for Windham Fabrics. For my second Archie, I quilted a panel from the "Guess How Much I Love You" collection by Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram for Clothworks. With this new design, Spencer-Ogg debuts an updated pattern-production method that provides printable pattern pieces and a c...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sterling goodie-bags

Cathy and Carla on the beach at Sterling State Park, Monroe MI, May 2024 by Linda Theil Several years ago, Alisa discovered the full-amenity cottages on the beach at Sterling State Park in Monroe, Michigan; and we have enjoyed several family vacations there. Two years ago, I invited my cousins to spend a long spring weekend at Sterling, We enjoyed it so much we went again last year, and plan a trip for this year, too. I wanted to make a commenorative goodie-bag for this years trip so I chose a photo from last year and developed a color scheme for a tiny duffle and matching mini-backpack. The duffle is made from the Spencer-Ogg "Arch Zipper Pouch"   in the medium size -- 9 x 6 x 3-inches; and the mini-backpack is the "Bitty Bug Pack" pattern by Carolina Little Stitches. Both bags are made with Tilda "Chambray Dots" and faux waxed-canvas from Sally Tomato . For the feature panel on the front of the mini-backpack, I resized the  Sterling beach photo with my...
Post a Comment
Read more