Hot Pad Makeover

I had fun stitching these hot pads from scraps left over from the quilt top I had pieced for Kathy!

I never think about how bad my hot pads look until company is looking over my shoulder when I'm cooking for them.  Then, I totally forget about doing anything about it....  But, a few little scraps from Kathy's quilt were all the inspiration I needed!

I simply recovered the old hot pad, then made another one to match out of scraps of Warm and Natural 100% cotton batting; four layers seemed about right.  

It was a fun way to try out some walking foot quilting designs.

For the backing, I used some Denyse Schmidt fabric that I had on hand from a previous purchase from Jo-Ann Fabrics, then machine stitched on the bias binding. 

I'm terrible at throwing out my hot pads - both of these nasty-looking pads were hostess gifts back when I was living in my first apartment out of college; I can still remember the guests that gave them to me.  Throwing them away is like throwing out memories!

I have a feeling that I'm not going to want to chance getting my new lovely hot pads dirty, even for the best of company....