Here’s a cute way to protect hands and furniture while enjoying a hot bowl of soup, stew, chili, or oatmeal!
These soup bowl cozies are fast and easy to make and make wonderful gifts. I made two of them in less than 45 minutes.
After making quite a few of these I’ve come up with a list of helpful tips to save you time, money and aggravation! You’ll find it at the end of the instructions.
How to Make Microwaveable Bowl Pot Holders
Materials:
- 2 10″ squares of cotton fabric
- 2 9″ squares of cotton batting
- marking pen
- cotton thread
- sewing machine
- iron
- rotary cutter
- rotary mat
Note: use only 100% cotton fabric, thread, and batting so that they are microwave safe!
Instructions
Step One: Center a batting square on a fabric square. Draw a line from corner to corner with marking pen
. Stitch along lines.
Step Two: Fold one fabric/batting square in half with batting side out. Mark a dot 1-1/2″ from the fold along the top edge and 2-1/2″ from the top along the fold. Draw a line to connect these dots. Stitch along the line. Trim seam allowance.
Step Three: Fold the square in the opposite direction. Mark the same as Step 2. Draw line, stitch, and trim seam allowance.
Step Four: Open the square. It will sit like a bowl! Halfway there!
Step Five: Repeat Steps 2-4 for second fabric/batting square. You now have the outside and the outside ready to sew together to make the soup bowl cozy. (I love that these are reversible!)
Step Six: Turn one bowl inside out and pin the two bowl pieces together (right sides together). Sew around the edges of the layered bowl shapes with a 1/4″ seam allowance. Leave a 3″ – 4″ opening between pins for turning.
Step Six: Trim seam allowance to reduce bulk. Also trim seam allowance at points as shown above.
Step Seven: Turn right side out through the opening. Push out the points.
Step Eight: Top stitch 1/4″ from the edge of the bowl, turning in the edges of the opening.
I made a total of six of these soup bowl pot holders in one afternoon. I plan to make a bunch more for Christmas gifts. These would be perfect for co-workers who heat up their bowls in the microwave at work!
By the way, you can make these bigger or smaller. I made two smaller ones using 9″ squares of fabric and 8″ squares of batting for the small bowls that you see in front in the photo above.
Here’s that list of helpful tips that will hopefully save you from making some less-than-gift-worthy bowls like I did when I first started making them.
- Use fat quarters. You can get two bowls out of two coordinating fat quarters.
- Use the lowest loft batting you can find to save bulk.
- Follow my instructions and cut the batting one inch smaller than the fabric square. If you don’t, the edge is too bulky to topstitch neatly.
- Measure the darts precisely.
- Press your fabric and batting
- Trim all of the threads before
photographing for the bloggiving as gifts. 😉
Now it’s time to see all of the other handmade gifts. Oh, and be sure to enter the contest at the bottom to win some fabulous prizes from our sponsors!
Kelli says
November 7, 2017 at 11:04 amThese are great! I need to make a couple for sure!
Dana Tatar says
November 7, 2017 at 11:23 amBrilliant idea! I don’t know anyone who couldn’t use a set of these pot holders. I love the mix of fun fabric. Thanks for sharing!
Pam Larmore says
November 7, 2017 at 12:09 pmThese are great, and perfect for gifts. No more burned fingers!
Cat says
November 7, 2017 at 12:16 pmOh this is such a great idea! I’m always struggling to try to wrap a potholder around each side and not spill when I’m taking a bowl out of the microwave and this is just so much better! Thanks for sharing!
Toni | Small Home Soul says
November 7, 2017 at 12:33 pmOh my gosh, this is brilliant. How many times I’ve burned my fingers and nearly dropped the bowl on the floor. I need these, maybe I’ll show this to my mom and she can make a few of them for me as a Christmas Gift 🙂
Toni | Small Home Soul recently posted…His & Hers Phone Charging Stand – Easy DIY Gifts for Handmade Holidays 2017
Sue D says
November 7, 2017 at 1:01 pmFabulous idea–thanks for sharing.
Janice Carl says
November 7, 2017 at 1:44 pmI need these right now!
Chelsea @ Making Manzanita says
November 7, 2017 at 2:38 pmWhat a cute idea. I bet everyone loves receiving these as gifts! Thanks for sharing your tutorial.
Beverly Jordan says
November 7, 2017 at 3:09 pmFabulous soup cozzies!! Love the eaze of the tutorial your funny “cut threads before photographing” exerp! You are terrific and have been a follower of yours on FB since before this!! These are fun to use and as you said, to give as gifts!! Fun stacked too!!
Patti says
November 7, 2017 at 3:22 pmHi Jeanne,
Another great project to use all my hoarded fabric. Love it!
Victoria @DazzleWhileFrazzled says
November 7, 2017 at 5:20 pmLove this idea! Pinning. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve reached into to pull out a steaming hot bowl from the micro. Visiting from Handmade Holidays.
Melissa says
November 7, 2017 at 9:20 pmThis is brilliant! I could definitely use some of these in my life!! Great project and a fabulous gift idea!
Victoria Banaszak says
November 8, 2017 at 1:56 amMy friend makes these and gets requests for them all the time, They are so great to keep you from getting burnt fingertips.
Cathy Lillie says
November 8, 2017 at 3:52 amI love this idea! It’s so clever! These would definitely be appreciated, and they’re so bright and cheerful!
scrappyrat says
November 8, 2017 at 4:31 amNeat project! I am the worst when it comes to using a sewing machine, but someday I’ll get brave and try to make something with it again. I like hand stitching, but it does take a long time.
Michelle from Weekend Craft says
November 9, 2017 at 8:26 amHow clever is this!
Diane Wilkins says
November 22, 2017 at 12:44 amFantastic idea. I really like the colors, gonna try to make a couple of these soon. Thanks for sharing.
lilly miles says
November 23, 2017 at 8:16 amOMG what a lovely and cute idea, I love it and I definitely need one! Just today I burnt myself with a plate out ot the microwave.
kathy says
November 27, 2018 at 3:21 pmHow important is the 100 per cent cotton thread.
Every spool I own, is not 100 0/0 cotton😳
I need a regular spool for my machine
Thanks
kathy
Vickie Bailey says
December 9, 2018 at 8:38 pmIt is very important! I’m just making these myself. Had to go find 100% cotton thread . It’s a safety issue because of microwave use.
Also , I just made my first one, and it is too small to fit any of my bowls. And mine are just standard Corelle bowls. I think 10 inches is too small for most of us. And I have 5 more already cut out. 😩😩😩