Sew yourself a set of these handy, beginner-friendly pot holders in less than 15 minutes for your kitchen.

These adorable but functional pot holders are a must-have for anybody in the kitchen. They are incredibly versatile, used as a countertop protector from hot dishes, to pull hot trays out of the oven or to hang and look pretty in your kitchen.

floral and striped pot holders in wire basket on kitchen bench. Rolling pin and eggs in the background.

Originally published February 12, 2021, and updated November 2022 with fresh content.

Home sewing projects are often simple and quick to sew together, not to mention more affordable. I rarely buy fabric items for my home because I know I can make my own. Can you relate?

Once you begin sewing home projects like my reusable paper towels, ruffle cushions, fabric coasters or these adorable ruffle pillowcases, you won’t return to buying mass-produced items. Having unique, handmade pieces in your home adds character and charm.

When we moved into our new flat, I found myself burning my hands when getting hot dishes out of the oven with tea towels. I wanted thick protective pot holders to stop this, so I made these lovely floral and pink stripe ones. They look beautiful in my kitchen, but they’re also very practical.

If you need gift inspiration, these are perfect for new homeowners or someone moving out for the first time. Present them in a gift basket with other homemade gift ideas, like a matching apron, to create a thoughtful present.

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Why You Will Love These Pot Holders

Easy to make in less than 15 minutes each
No pattern is required. Keeping these nice and simple
Incredibly useful to use in your kitchen
You can customise these to suit your home style
They make for a lovely gift idea

White and floral pot holder with stripe tab laying on white bench top. There is a white/pink striped potholder behind it on a white bench. There are eggs in the corner of the shot that are sitting in a ceramic egg tray.

Want an ad-free copy of this tutorial? Scroll to the bottom of this post for more details!

Materials and Tools You Will Need:

The supplies list below is for one pot holder. Multiply this to make as many as you require.

Scraps of cotton or linen fabric (25x25cm)
Heat-resistant batting (like Insul-Bright)
Cotton thread
Sewing machine
Fabric shears or rotary cutter
Iron
Pins

The Best Supplies to Use

Pot holders must be heat-safe, so using natural fibres like cotton and linen is essential. Synthetic fabric types like polyester will melt when hot, which is dangerous, so please do not use anything that is a polyester blend or includes synthetic fibres like nylon.

Pot Holder Fabric Options:

Quilting Cotton
Lightweight denim
Lightweight canvas
Linen

The same goes for the thread you sew these together with. I recommend using a cotton thread to keep these completely safe from melting. Most cheaper spools of thread are polyester and will melt.

For the batting, it’s essential to use heat-resistant batting that will guarantee to protect your hands from getting burnt. Heat-resistant batting includes a layer of mylar to protect your hands from heat.

Shop my Supplies

Images of products, fabric, sewing machine, pins, cotton thread, rotary cutter and insul-bright to make pot holders sewing project — fabric | thread | pins | rotary cutter | sewing machine | insul-bright batting

Watch Pot Holder Tutorial

How to Make Pot Holders with No Pattern

Step One: Measure and cut out the pot holder pieces

Cut two 25 x 25cm squares of fabric
Cut two 25 x 25cm squares of batting
Cut one 4 x 16cm rectangle for the hanging tab

Fabric cut into squares to make potholders. Fabric sheers on top of the cut out fabric.

Step Two: Sew the hanging tab

Fold the tab in half lengthwise and press to crease. Unfold it, then fold in the sides to meet the middle crease. Press in place and fold the tab in half again to hide the raw edges. Edgestitch the tab closed.

Folding the pot holder tab in half and stitching down

Step Three: Attach the tab

Fold the tab in half to create a loop and pin the raw edges to the pot holder in the left-hand corner. Sew along the tab a few times to secure it in place.

close up pinning the tab to the corner of the potholder.

Step Four: Join the fabric to the batting

Place the outer fabric’s right sides together, then place the two layers of heat-resistant batting on top. Line up all the edges as best you can and pin them to hold them in place.

Sew around the outside with a 1cm seam allowance. Leave a 5cm opening in the seam.

pinning the pot holder in place then sewing on the sewing machine.

Step Five: Turn the pot holder out

Trim off all four corners and the seam allowance about 3mm from the stitching lines.

Turn the pot holder through the seam opening to the right side. Use a knitting needle or pencil to help push out the corners as best you can.

using a rotary cutter to cut off the corners and seam edges to reduce bulk on the potholders.

Step Six: Topstitch

Press the pot holder flat, pushing out all the side seams.

Pin the opening closed, then sew a 5mm wide topstitch around the pot holder. To add rows of topstitching, sew a few evenly spaced rows.

makyla sewing a seam around the pot holder edges.

Purchase this as a printable sewing pattern. Included are clear, step-by-step sewing instructions and a printable sewing pattern with 3 pot holder sizes 15cm, 20cm, 25cm (6, 8, 10″).

Purchase pattern

More Sewing Projects You Will Love:

Yield: 1 Pot holder

How to Make Pot Holders with No Pattern

Learn how to make potholders for your kitchen with this simple, DIY sewing tutorial. They are super handy to place on the kitchen bench with a hot dish on top. This can be a really pretty touch if you are entertaining and have lots of hot dishes to place out for dinner. Perfect sewing project for beginner sewers.

Active Time 15 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Difficulty Easy

Estimated Cost $10.00

Materials

Scraps of cotton or linen fabric - 2x 25x25cm
Heat-resistant batting (like Insul-Bright) - 2x 25x25cm
Cotton thread

Tools

Sewing machine
Fabric shears
Pins
Tape measure
Iron

Instructions

Measure and cut out the pot holder pieces
Cut two 25 x 25cm squares of fabric
Cut two 25 x 25cm squares of batting
Cut one 4 x 16cm rectangle for the hanging tab
Sew the hanging tab
Fold the tab in half lengthwise and press to crease. Unfold it, then fold in the sides to meet the middle crease. Press in place and fold the tab in half again to hide the raw edges. Edgestitch the tab closed.
Attach the tab to the pot holder
Fold the tab in half to create a loop and pin the raw edges to the pot holder in the left-hand corner. Sew along the tab a few times to secure it in place.
Join the fabric to the batting
Place the outer fabric's right sides together, then place the two layers of heat-resistant batting on top. Line up all the edges as best you can and pin them to hold them in place. Sew around the outside with a 1cm seam allowance. Leave a 5cm opening in the seam.
Turn the pot holder out
Trim off all four corners and the seam allowance about 3mm from the stitching lines. Turn the pot holder through the seam opening to the right side. Use a knitting needle or pencil to help push out the corners as best you can.
Topstitch
Press the pot holder flat, pushing out all the side seams. Pin the opening closed, then sew a 5mm wide topstitch around the pot holder. To add rows of topstitching, sew a few evenly spaced rows.

Notes

Pot holders must be heat-safe, so using natural fibres like
cotton and linen is essential. Synthetic fabric types like polyester will melt when
hot, which is dangerous, so please do not use anything that is a polyester blend
or includes synthetic fibres like nylon.