Craft a pretty kitchen towel for all seasons with this sew simple craft: a hanging potholder dishtowel. Designed to button around an oven handle or towel bar, it's a useful, festive gift.
Using coordinated kitchen linens for this project, you'll need only a potholder, a kitchen towel, a button and some basic sewing skills to create this colorful holiday gift.
With materials for each towel priced at just over $1.50 at the dollar store, you'll bless your budget. Better, each towel takes 15 minutes or less to craft, so it's perfect for busy schedules.
Since only the simplest sewing skills are needed, hanging potholder dishtowels make a good project for youth groups or children's gift-making.
Get the how-to with our photo tutorial!
Materials and Supplies
For each hanging towel, you'll need:
- square potholder with hanging loop
- kitchen towel
- large button
- pins, needle and thread
- marking pencil
- sewing machine
Coordinating linens make pretty hanging towels. Check discount or dollar stores in your area for materials; with potholders sold 2 for $1 and dish towels for $1 apiece, this craft can be made for $1.50 to $2, depending on the cost of buttons.
The construction method means that the potholder will display "upside down", so avoid potholders with directional patterns or printed words.
Instructions
With the right side down, measure the dishtowel in the long direction. Mark the center line with a marking pen.
Set the sewing machine to sew a straight stitch, and adjust stitch length to maximum. Pull threads behind presser foot, leaving a 6" to 8" tail.
Stitch two lines of gathering stitches, one on either side of the marked center line, and about 3/8 inches away. Using two rows of gathering stitches creates prettier puckers, and gives greater control over the material when it is joined to the potholder.
Adjust the gathering lines so that the towel is the same width as the potholder. Note: some decorative towels look better if undecorated edges are tucked to the back; if using this method, adjust the width accordingly.
Mark two lines across the center of the wrong side potholder, about 1/4th inch apart. Be sure that the hanging loop lies on the end of the potholder, not on the marked edges.
Place the potholder right side down, and align markings with the gathered area of the right side of the towel. Pin.
Set the sewing machine to a standard stitch length. Sew along both marked lines of the potholder, pivoting the needle at the end of each row and stitching across to the next row. Use several backstitches to give strength to the edges.
From the front, remove gathering stitches.
Fold potholder's wrong sides together. Fold the hanging loop to the front, and mark button position with a pin. Sew button to marked location.
Hang the towel from oven handles or towel bar ... and enjoy this sew simple holiday craft!