The kitchen is a real female kingdom. Every housewife strives to make her cozy and comfortable. All things in the kitchen have their own functions, but I want them to also please the eye. Potholders are necessary accessories; they help protect hands from hot dishes.
When did kitchen potholders appear
They were invented when it was possible to cook hot food in the dishes. Protective gloves were made from herbs or pieces of animal skins. When the fabric appeared , the manufacturing process became easier, and housewives all over the world began to make beautiful and practical handpicks. The interior of a cozy kitchen is hard to imagine without this decorative and useful accessory.
The heyday of patchwork technology has led to the creation of true masterpieces - hand stitches and blocks can be viewed for hours. In the 1920s, potholders began to be made of lace, and they were just a decoration of the kitchen. Then came the fashion for such motifs as cars, animals, fruits and flowers. Later it was possible to sew whole kitchen ensembles in a single style. In the 1950s, there was a real boom when magazines began to print interesting diagrams and drawings of tacks. It has become fashionable to collect and give them to friends and relatives.
Buy or sew?
Today it’s not so easy to buy beautiful oven mitts - in stores goods are of dubious quality or at an inadequate price. There is a way out: create do-it- yourself kitchen gloves. Patterns can be drawn by yourself. Here, the scope for creativity is unlimited.
Kitchen gloves are available in various types and sizes. You can devote a lot of time to choosing design and materials. A great idea is to sew several sets of different tacks and change them periodically. So your kitchen will become individual.
Types of products
A light single tack is useful for a teapot, pan lid or small frying pan. Double - convenient for pots or baking sheets. Removing hot dishes from the oven (pot, pot), it will be convenient to immediately use two separate mittens. If they are long enough and almost reach the elbow, this will provide additional protection. If the handles of your dishes practically do not heat up, you can not zealous with the thickness of the protective layer of tacks. And if this is not so, you will have to sew products that will reliably protect your hands from hot pans and pans.
How to sew a kitchen glove so that it is functional and beautiful? Our tips will help you.
Beginning of work
If you are thinking about how to sew a tack, look through the magazines, see the workshops. Take your time, choose the appropriate model, evaluating the level of its complexity. If you feel insecure, try making simple kitchen potholders. Patterns will be simple in this case. You can cut several sets at once in different colors. "Surplus" can be a wonderful gift for friends. Be sure: they will appreciate your creativity and will ask about how to sew a tack yourself. After all, this is a real decoration for the kitchen!
Materials
Select the base material. A dense fabric with a beautiful pattern is suitable for the external part. Natural materials - cotton or linen - hold the heat very well. You can combine fabrics of different colors, but it is desirable that they be the same thickness.
The main role of the tack is to protect your hands from hot dishes. Therefore, the product must have an insulating dense layer. Materials such as dense coat, batting, and synthetic winterizer can do this function perfectly. Before sewing, check the insulation properties of the material. Perhaps one layer will not be enough.
For edging, a purchased oblique trim is suitable , dozens of shades are on sale. If the assortment of the store does not suit you, you can make an inlay yourself. Do not forget that you need to cut it obliquely and the width of the strip should be carefully calculated.
Design
More practical if your product has a two-sided motive. This will allow you not to think about which side to hang the tack in order to make it look spectacular.
You have the opportunity to choose the individual size of the product. Too small, as well as a large tack or mitten will cause a lot of inconvenience. Therefore, if you have already decided to sew oven mitts, the patterns should be carefully sized. Consider sewing allowances and material density.
Secrets of sewing gloves
The kitchen is a fire hazardous place, so it is important that the potholder does not break at the wrong time. Make sure the seams are tight, the threads are not sticking out.
When sewing clothes, we are used to turning the product to the front side after connecting the parts. In the case of tacks, this is not necessary, especially if you are working with drapes. In addition, the size will be easier to guess. A rectangular tack will look great if the seams are outside, but done neatly. A special chic is attached to the treatment of the external seam with floss thread.
If you are just learning how to sew kitchen gloves, patterns should be simple. Square, rectangle, heart are ideal for the first work. But do not make eye contact. Cut out patterns from regular cardboard and the details of the tack will be even. Products will look stylish if you pick up a fabric with an original pattern.
The tack, as a rule, consists of three layers: two external and one internal, which serves to isolate from a hot surface. Sewing a product is quite simple if it is made from a single piece of fabric. With a mitten, things are more complicated. Each half consists of an outer, insulating and inner layer. Before stitching the halves, you need to connect the layers of each detail of the cut. It will be better if you quill them.
If you are sewing two pair of gloves at once, carefully monitor the symmetry of the layers, especially if you combine several types of fabrics for the front side. Such work is more painstaking, but it is very convenient to use the mitten.
Subtleties of decor
Selection of a picture. If the fabric has a large pattern, when cutting out the details you need to place it beautifully. If you have two tacks or mittens, pay attention to the symmetrical arrangement of the elements of the picture.
If you feel confident in sewing gloves and you want to decorate them additionally, there are many ways and materials for decoration. Braid, lace, beads - complete freedom of creativity. But make sure that the decorative elements do not interfere with the tack to fulfill its direct role. And it is very important to sew the jewelry firmly, because it will be insulting if they fall into the soup. Experiments can relate to the shape of tack: fruits, vegetables, animals look very nice. If you are good at patchwork, you can create a true masterpiece in miniature.
It will be great if all the accessories in your kitchen look harmonious: a tablecloth, an apron, and oven mitts in the same style. If you saw a fabric from which it is impossible to take your eyes off, buy it in sufficient quantity: you might want to fill the whole kitchen with cute handmade things.
Crochet kitchen gloves
Such products can not only be sewn, but also knitted. If you take thick yarn, you may not need an extra sealant.
To crochet oven mitts, it takes a little time and the rest of the yarn. If you are a beginner knitter, holding gloves is a great way to practice. Models can be simple and complex, but they are all admirable. The figure below, for example, shows a product for the creation of which several simple techniques and types of yarn are used.
And here is another simple model of kitchen potholders. The photo shows a delicious “orange”, isn't it?
When knitting gloves, you can use one scheme, but combine different yarn. Here your imagination is unlimited. Such a product is a wonderful gift for any occasion.
Master Class: Butterfly Tack
If you start sewing oven mitts, a workshop will let you do it right, step by step. These instructions are especially useful if the model is complex.
Butterflies are the favorite design for many oven mitts. This is not surprising: it looks simply gorgeous and will delight anyone who sees it in your kitchen.
In addition, the “butterfly” is very practical to use. Thoughtful cut allows you to conveniently take the lids and handles of pots.
Below is a pattern for sewing such a tack. When printed, it can be enlarged to the required size.
Lateral details of the "butterfly" and parts for the application are shown separately.
As can be seen from the diagram, this model is simple. It’s better to sew a tack on a sewing machine to get it neat. If you pick up fabric of interesting coloring, the “butterfly” will turn out to be very beautiful.
Have a nice craft! Let the new potholders please you and your loved ones!