Glue sticks and potholders

Two things came up recently, and I thought I would ask about both of them in the same post.

In another group that I read, rec.food.cooking, recently there was a discussion about pot holders, and somone mentioned making your own

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Someone else mentioned that was stupid because once you bought the "special" material and thread and insulating material, you would have an oven mitt that cost thousands of dollars, thousands of dollars is an exaggeration, but it would still cost more than just buying one at Bed, Bath, and Beyond or at TEPWFNBWAW - (That evil place whose first name begins with a "W", Wal-Mart, and abbreviation I an trying to get going like TSWLTH for Joann's). I don't think this is at all true. Most quilters could make one for free, at least in the sense that most have all the materials already sitting around in their stash anyway, probably enough to make hnudreds of them. If you had to buy the materials for it, it might cost a bit more, but would not be prohibitively expensive.

For the material, you would have to buy something that does not melt, but other that that, any regular cotton fabric would do, I think. As for the thread, "special" thread is not needed ("special" is the word the OP used, he did not explain exactly how it was supposed to be special), do you?

Also, what is used as insulator: just regular cotton batting?, polyester batting?, some kind of special batting made out of some thing like fiberfill or down?. The patten I linked mentioned that you need both cotton and poly/mylar batting, but can you get away with using just one or the other. Many cooks get pots and pans out of the oven with just a folded towel, not using anything special like a potholder or oven mitt (there even is an urban myth going around that professional cooks do it this way, and that your'e just a piker if you use oven mitts anyway), so I was wondering if you could get away with just using regular washcloths (perhaps doubled) as the insulating material.

So I guess thegist of my question is that while most quilters probably have the materials, or at least most of the materials for making these, and they really do not look that hard to make, at least to me, would it be better for a non-sewer to just go to Bed, Bath and Beyond or TEPWFNBWAW and just buy one.

My second is about using the glue sticks instead of pins. For my last fe projects, a cooking apron (I haven't tried making the oven mitt) and the exercise mat I recently posted about I used the glue sticks instead of pins.

I think they have several advantages. In the long run, pins might be cheaper, and they might be more "green" because you use them over and over again, but the advantages of glue sticks are: Several times I have forgotten to remove the pin before sewing over the spot where it is, and most of the time nothing happens, but a few times, I hit it just right (or perhaps wrong) and broke the machine needle, but this does not happen with the glue, and sometimes the pin misses getting back in the pin cushion, and it is "lost" until I step on it and it stabs me in the foot, this does not happen with the glue sticks, and finally, I seem to lose a lot of them this way, or bend them and have to constanly replenish my supply of pins to my pin cushion from the little package that they come in at the store.

There are probably other as well, but I think those are the main 3. I was just wondering if anyone else has tried the glue sticks and what they think.

Brian Christiansen

Reply to
Brian Christiansen
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Sharon Schamber uses a very fine line of water soluble school-type glue (think Elmer's white glue) on her bindings. She irons the fabrics to dry the glue. I think this is neater- as in not getting glue stick all over the place since a glue stick makes a rather thick line of sticky. The bottled glue is probably cheaper, too. I bought some special plastic dispenser bottles from Joann's that have a very tiny nozzle on them and that makes the line of glue very fine which in turn dries more quickly with the iron.

As far as the potholders- two layers of Warm & Natural would be plenty thick. The advantage of using the insulatedsilver-y stuff is that it wears better than using quilting cotton on both sides.

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

Two things came up recently, and I thought I would ask about both of them in the same post.

In another group that I read, rec.food.cooking, recently there was a discussion about pot holders, and somone mentioned making your own

formatting link
Someone elsementioned that was stupid because once you bought the "special" material andthread and insulating material, you would have an oven mitt that costthousands of dollars, thousands of dollars is an exaggeration, but it wouldstill cost more than just buying one at Bed, Bath, and Beyond or atTEPWFNBWAW - (That evil place whose first name begins with a "W", Wal-Mart,and abbreviation I an trying to get going like TSWLTH for Joann's). I don't think this is at all true. Most quilters could make one for free, at least in the sense that most have all the materials already sitting around in their stash anyway, probably enough to make hnudreds of them. If you had to buy the materials for it, it might cost a bit more, but would not be prohibitively expensive.

For the material, you would have to buy something that does not melt, but other that that, any regular cotton fabric would do, I think. As for the thread, "special" thread is not needed ("special" is the word the OP used, he did not explain exactly how it was supposed to be special), do you?

Also, what is used as insulator: just regular cotton batting?, polyester batting?, some kind of special batting made out of some thing like fiberfill or down?. The patten I linked mentioned that you need both cotton and poly/mylar batting, but can you get away with using just one or the other. Many cooks get pots and pans out of the oven with just a folded towel, not using anything special like a potholder or oven mitt (there even is an urban myth going around that professional cooks do it this way, and that your'e just a piker if you use oven mitts anyway), so I was wondering if you could get away with just using regular washcloths (perhaps doubled) as the insulating material.

So I guess thegist of my question is that while most quilters probably have the materials, or at least most of the materials for making these, and they really do not look that hard to make, at least to me, would it be better for a non-sewer to just go to Bed, Bath and Beyond or TEPWFNBWAW and just buy one.

My second is about using the glue sticks instead of pins. For my last fe projects, a cooking apron (I haven't tried making the oven mitt) and the exercise mat I recently posted about I used the glue sticks instead of pins.

I think they have several advantages. In the long run, pins might be cheaper, and they might be more "green" because you use them over and over again, but the advantages of glue sticks are: Several times I have forgotten to remove the pin before sewing over the spot where it is, and most of the time nothing happens, but a few times, I hit it just right (or perhaps wrong) and broke the machine needle, but this does not happen with the glue, and sometimes the pin misses getting back in the pin cushion, and it is "lost" until I step on it and it stabs me in the foot, this does not happen with the glue sticks, and finally, I seem to lose a lot of them this way, or bend them and have to constanly replenish my supply of pins to my pin cushion from the little package that they come in at the store.

There are probably other as well, but I think those are the main 3. I was just wondering if anyone else has tried the glue sticks and what they think.

Brian Christiansen

Reply to
Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

Right on all counts, Brian. The favorite potholder here is some great-grandmother made that are simply washcloths folded with a sturdy crocheted edge. When you replace your silver/gray/whatever ironing board cover, save the good parts and use them for a potholder innard if you feel compelled to add a heat-proof something. And yes, oh my yes! I do love the glue sticks. You need to be right stingy with the application or you can lump/gum your SM needle but they do such a happy job of holding appliqué in place. Just this week I needed the socks and fingers on some SunBonnet Sues to be still until stitched. The glue stick was a little too klutzy so I used a corsage pin to sort of pinpoint where the gluing needed to be. Ah. Yes. Good stuff. Polly

Reply to
Polly Esther

I've made plenty of successful potholders and mitts using a double layer of cotton batting. (If you're worried about maintaining the size, especially for mitts, quilt a big enough piece and wash before cutting. the batting will shrink and become even denser.) I do like using mitts for the oven, because I'm careless about bumping my wrist on hot places.

You could of course use old towels for insulation, but they aren't as easy to quilt. The slightly thicker cotton sold for curtains and such is better for potholders IMO than what we use for piecing quilts.

No advice re glue sticks -I seldom p>Two things came up recently, and I thought I would ask about both of them in

Reply to
Roberta

I've made hundreds of pot holders, hot pads and oven mits using scraps from my stash and a heat-resistant batting called Insul-Bright made by the Warm Company, makers of many types of quilt batting. It is available at Joann's.

I use glue a LOT instead of pins, particularly specifically school glue, which washes out and is available in tubes, sticks, and in 'pens.' Craft stores carry a good selection.

I use qlue instead of pins on quilt bindings and hems. A thin bead or 'wipe' of the glue stick, set the fabric in place, then press with a hot iron to set the glue, so the work stays put while you stitch it. Then it washes clean out.

-Irene

On Sat, 19 Feb 2011 21:48:30 -0700, "Brian Christiansen" wrote:

Reply to
IMS

On Sat, 19 Feb 2011 22:48:30 -0600, Brian Christiansen wrote (in article ):

I'm not expert on glue sticks, so can't contribute there.

But on the pot holder front, I don't think they'd have to be prohibitively expensive to make, even for a beginner/non-sewer.

Yes, you'd want to stick with a cotton fabric if you aren't using the silver potholder fabric. I don't think either the silver fabric or even the cotton would have to be expensive. TSWLTH has regular sales and coupons. you could get by with fat quarters or remnants.

And any cotton batting would work if you used a layer or two. A craft sized batt of Warm and Natural would make a lot of potholders and wouldn't be that expensive if you used a coupon or bought it on sale.

Maureen

Reply to
Maureen Wozniak

I have "filled" potholders with pieces of a worn-out (& well washed) wool blanket. Pieces of worn out towels also work. So do scraps of batting, preferably cotton. Most quilters -- and many people who sew but do not quilt -- probably have the materials on hand.

Julia > Two things came up recently, and I thought I would ask about both of them in

Reply to
Julia in MN

Brian, I use BOTH 2 layers of Warm'n'Natural cotton batting and 2 pieces of "that silver ironing board stuff" along with 100% cotton print for the outside layer. Most of my "innards" come from left-over scraps. I make potholders as the oven mitts seem to take up too much room.

I make layers: cotton print (or matching solid color) for outside (right side down) ironing board fabric (shiny side down)

2 layers of W'n'N batting Ironing board fabric (shiny side up) cotton print for outside (right side up)

Then I do just enough "quilting" to hold the layers together, and then put a narrow binding around the outside edges.

This way, I can have a potholder that matches my kitchen colors AND I have yet to get burned using it . I can also use the potholder as a hot pad for a casserole dish!

---you can get fancier if you want by making an 8" block out of scraps!

ME-Judy

Reply to
ME-Judy

Hello Brian,

I made some oven gloves out of a pair of old blue jeans and a towel which had a hole in it. Throw in a bit of cotton thread and it was "free":

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It's on my Webshots album under "Rags to Oven Gloves" and everyone who comes into the kitchen remarks upon them! I recommend using a large needle in your sewing machine - like a 16 or an 18 but otherwise, it's daed easy and will take you 2 hours or less. And no money, if you have a pair of blue jeans that you are willing to cut up and an old towel lying around which has seen better days.

As for the glue sticks, I use them for small applique projects, but wouldn't personally replace all my pinning with glue. It does have to be washed out, and well... I think you need to slow down when you're sewing a bit and take the pin out before you sew over it! I bought a child's magnet, and I can swipe that over the carpet around my machine when I've dropped a pin. It works well and cost almost nothing.

Replenishing pins which have bent or been lost is a pain, but it's far cheaper than say, a heroine habit. Consider it one of life's little treats and buy the nice ones!

-- Jo in Scotland

Reply to
Jo Gibson

I hate oven mitts. I am really really clutzy when trying to use them. I have only just grudgingly accepted those heat proof knit gloves they have now. Those things actually work, and are nothing like trying to pull pans with pillows strapped to your hands. Then again I still pull sugar with buttered monkey grips, call me old fashioned.

Pot holders are easy. They are so not expensive! I imagine if you insisted on having them made of nothing but space age materials and sewing them together with lasers that you could push the cost up into the ridiculous. Me, I usually don't buy them because I think the prices are outrageous and I usually have everything to hand to make some.

I do not use the silver stuff, my ironing board cover does not even have the silver stuff. Usually I just smack old washcloths or towels together, and if they are just too tatty looking I stick a spare quilt block on the front and a spare bit of fabric on the back. Quilt, bind, and if I am feeling fancy add a hanging loop.

If I have kids hanging about being annoying, I will hand them some jersey loops and a looper loom and tell them to practice until they have made plaid. That usually works out well on so many levels. I like loop potholders.

Glue sticks are fine for small areas IMO. I like them for applique. For larger areas where I know I am going to stick myself a thousand times if I use pins I prefer a fine line of liquid thread well away from the stitch line. That is only suitable for heavier fabrics because on the thinner ones it will soak in and make stiff spots. I like it a lot for things like the binding/neck loop/ties on an apron, or for keeping the creases sharp in denim hems or seams. It is also the very stuff when you get suckered into sewing fancy patches onto things. Those are usually a pain to pin, and by the time you have them thread basted you may as well have just sewn them down to begin with.

NightMist

Reply to
NightMist

Insulbrite (sp) is the only $pecial thing I use in pot holders, otherwise I use all cotton "left overs"!

As for glue, I have a huge bottle of "Elmer's" washable school glue, very cheap. I do put it into a smaller bottle for ease of use! It is so much nicer than being stuck by hundreds of pins! Bonnie, in Middletown, VA

Reply to
Bonnie Patterson

Howdy!

Potholders: Dollar store or any place that has them on sale for about a dollar; really, they're all pretty much alike, last forever (here, anyway), and I'd much rather spend the sewing time on a quilt top.

TEPWFNBWAW: they still around? I never go there; don't have to, can't make me. (p.s. wallyworld is our single-word moniker)

Glue sticks: one more thing to have to find; don't want another chemical near my hands or on my machine; pins work and don't have to be washed out.

And this is why the Big, Wide, Wonderful world of quilting is so B, W, W: we get to use what we like, like what we use. ;-)

Good to see you, again, Brian. (you got a website now?)

Cheers!

R/Sandy

Reply to
Sandy E

Reply to
Julia in MN

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