Tutorial: Folded Fabric Hot Pads

I stumbled on a sample of these pretty folded fabric hot pads and thought they would be a perfect quick project for the hope chest. They are really easy. You'll need: 1/4 yd of color/print A, 1/4 yd of color/print B, 1/4 yd of Insul-Brite, thread to match primary fabric, 2 buttons to match, rotary cutter, ruler and mat. This is a great project to use with scraps as well, as long as they are at least 9" square. Five different fabrics would be just as cute as the co-ordinated pair I've made here.

Once you have your materials, cut 5 (8 1/2-inch) squares from each fabric and 2 (8 1/2-inch) squares from the Insul-Brite. Iron 4 squares from each fabric in half, making a total of 8 rectangles.

Now you'll make a stack. Place the square of Insul-Brite batting on the bottom. Place an 8 1/2-inch square with the right side up on top of the batting. Place one folded rectangle (A) across the top of the stack, with the cut edge to the top and the fold toward the middle. Stack a second folded rectangle (B) with the cut edge toward the right of the stack and the fold toward the middle. Place the third rectangle (A) on the stack with the cut edge to the bottom.

Place the last (fourth) rectangle (B) on the top of the stack with the cut edge facing to the left. Tuck the top of the fourth rectangle under the left edge of the first rectangle. The rectangles will appear woven together with the cut edges on the outside and the folded edges coming to a point in the center.

Pin the edges and corners well.

Make sure to pin carefully at the point where the folds come together. They shouldn't overlap.

Sew carefully all around the edge of the hot pad, using a 1/2-inch seam allowance. You can use a walking foot if you wish - I didn't.

Cut the excess fabric from the corners and trim the seams so that the corners will turn more easily.

Turn the hot pad right side out. Use a point to make sure the corners are pushed completely out.

Press the hot pad so that it lays nice and flat. Topstitch 1/2-inch around the outside edges and sew a button at the center to help secure the center folded point.