Okay. You know what I love more than having an inside line on the upcoming dies being released by Accuquilt? I love it when I ask them to make something new and a few months later they send it to me. I’m not saying that they manufactured this one just for me, but I’m not not saying that, either. ;-). In this case, it is a die to make an oven mitt! I’ve wanted to start making them as little projects to use up scraps of fabric and batting, and I was right – they are awesome. Today I’m going to share the scrappy oven mitts I made with my new Accuquilt die.
A little back story – I’ve been quilting at a pretty fast pace lately, and I’m generating a ton of scraps. I’ve submitted several magazine projects, and the way I work is last minute – I need that adrenaline rush to get me moving. Once I’m done with one and ship it off, I’m usually on the brink of being late for the next thing. So, scraps get swept into the bin under my cutting table, to be dealt with “later”. Later usually comes in the form of a trash bag, which is really upsetting to me. I fantasize about a zero waste studio, but that means I need to be making time to use up all of these gorgeous scraps.
This month I have set aside some blocks of time to start working on this mountain of scraps. There is everything in here – from little bits from trimming, to large pieces (almost fat quarter size), and long strips of backing and batting from trimming the quilt before binding. Sometimes Mom processes the leftover backing into binding strips, which is excellent. (The perfect use for my 2 1/2″ strip die).
For oven mitts, I’ve been playing with a couple of different techniques. First, I will sort out a little pile of scraps into an interesting color assortment. I run these pieces through my 8″ Qube dies, whichever shapes I feel like playing with that day. I’ll piece these together into a patchwork piece about 10″ x 14″. Then layer this with backing, batting and Insul-bright, which is designed for making insulated items. I quilt it, then run the piece through the die. Make two, sew them together, then add a binding strip to the cuff, and I have a very lovely oven mitt.
These are made with Kaleidoscope Wovens, designed by Alison Glass for Andover Fabrics. They are the scraps from my version of the Orbital Quilt.
Just a note – the instructions from Accuquilt suggest just one layer of Insul-bright, sandwiched between two layers of quilting cotton. I need a little more insulation than that, so I throw in a layer of cotton batting, too.
This generates a bunch more scraps, and now they have weird shapes. This is the fun part. I stitch these pieces together haphazardly, making an improv piece of patchwork. The piecing can get as crazy as I feel like getting – as long as I control the color palette, it looks fine. Then I do the same thing as before – layer, quilt and assemble.
Okay. Head over to Accuquilt and get yourself an oven mitt die. Don’t forget the mat if this is your first large die board!
I’ll be back with more oven mitt ideas in a few weeks. I was just so excited to share these with you, I couldn’t hold it in anymore.
Very cool, or is it hot? Love the idea and so glad they listened to you. Good way to use up scraps!
Dang it, Jen. I’m going to stop following you. Both your posts and on IG. I still have the journal cover to make – instructions and fabric pulled, journal purchased . . . just not started. NOW I’m going to have to buy an AccuQuilt cutter and the die and make some oven mitts. This whole weekend I was telling myself that I am going to buy new mitts and pot holders in whatever I think is pretty. Of course, I could make them . . . and, sigh, now you even show me how easy it is. And cute, too. And, a great use of scraps – or not. {{Hugs}} Great job . . . I’m muttering to myself about how to unfollow . . . and I hope Oscar is fabulous! ~smile~ Roseanne
Jen,I need to ask a question about the accuquilt qubes? What size do you recommend for general quilting. You seem to use the8” a lot. Appreciate your comments. Thanks