Have you noticed that most of these blogs start off with a question? Well, this one does not. (Actually, I guess it does, but this question does not count as a question.) Starting with a question is a way to entice you to read to discover the answer. Does this early February blog session need a question to tie the project to Valentine’s Day? (Oops, another question that does not count as a question.) I doubt it, because the picture above definitely has a heart in it, and there is pretty much a direct correlation of hearts and Valentine’s Day. So, forget the questions above and just read the blog for the fun of it. Maybe it will spark you to action and solve a problem that you did not know you might have – what to give for Valentine’s Day?  (Oops again, sorry. That is the last question that does not count as a question.) The narrative follows.

I love Valentine’s Day. It is sort of like Christmas without the holiday stress. Likely, when we were in elementary school we exchanged cards. Just because we are no longer in school doesn’t mean we can’t send a valentine to someone special. Here is a quick and easy project that the recipient can use all year.

Supplies:
2 – 9” squares of fabric (I used denim)
1 – 9” square of Insul-Bright batting
1 – 9” square of 100 % cotton batting
1 – 6” square of fabric for heart applique
1 – 6” square fusible web (I used steam-a-seam)
1 – 2 1/2” X 40” strip of fabric for binding

1. Draw a heart shape on the paper side of the fusible web approximately 5 ½ inches high and wide.

2. Trim excess fusible web approximately ¼ inch from cutting line.
3. Press fusible web (with warm iron) to the wrong side of the applique fabric.
4. Cut heart shape out of fabric following the line you drew.

5. Remove the paper backing from the fusible web. If you have problems getting the paper off, use a pin to score the paper, then start peeling from the score. This is much easier than trying to start at the edge of the fabric.
6. With one piece of fabric right-side up, center the heart applique on the 9 inch square.
7. Follow the fusible web manufacturer’s instructions and press the applique heart to the 9 inch square of fabric.

8. Create a sandwich of layers including the back fabric wrong-side up, both layers of batting (only one layer of batting is shown here, but 2 were used), and the top fabric with the heart right side up.

9. To hold the sandwich together, use a blanket stitch along the edge of the heart. The length and width of blanket stitch you use is a personal choice. I used 3.0 width and 2.5 length. The fusible web will keep your fabric from fraying when washed.
10. This is how it will look on the back side when you are finished.
11. Square up your potholder to an 8 inch square (with the heart centered) using a ruler and rotary cutter.

Binding
If you have one, use your favorite quilt binding technique to finish the edges.
The following instructions detail the technique I use.

1. Cut a strip of the binding fabric 2 ½” wide by the width (selvage edge to selvage edge) of the fabric.

2. Line up the long edges, fold in half and press.
3. Start at the corner where you want the hanging loop to be. With the back side of the potholder facing up, line up the cut edges of the binding fabric with the sandwich edge. Set the needle in the center of the presser foot. Line up the edge of the presser foot with the fabric sandwich edge. Using a slightly long stitch length (about 3.0 stitch length and a Jeans size 14 needle because there are 6 layers when using 2 layers of batting), start sewing from the back edge of the sandwich along the first edge. BUT…..
4. Stop sewing at the width of your seam allowance from the end of the corner. Pivot fabric 45 degrees and sew off the corner of the fabric. Cut the threads.
5. Fold the binding away from the sandwich, forming a 45 degree angle.
6. Fold the binding back down, lining up the raw edges of the binding with the raw edges of the next side of the sandwich. The fold in the corner should be even with the edge that you just sewed. Align the binding and sandwich edges with the presser foot edge and start sewing from the back edge of the sandwich along the second edge. Continue this technique on the remaining sides.
7. When you get to the corner where you started, move the folded edge of the first sewn run of binding fabric out of the way so it won’t get caught by the needle. Stitch up to, but not over, the line of stitching on the first sewn binding strip. No new stitching should touch the fabric of the first sewn run.
8. Measure out a 6 inch tail and cut off the excess binding fabric.
9. On all 4 sides, fold the binding strip to the front of your potholder, covering the stitching you created when you sewed from the back side.
10. Starting with the first side sewn, pin the binding fabric to the front along the long edges, mitering the corners as you go.
11. If done correctly, the 6 inch tail on the last side should cover the raw end of the binding sewn to the first side.
12. Fold the long raw edges of the tail inward toward the long folded edge of the binding so that the width of the tail matches the width of the binding sewn to the edges of the sandwich. If necessary, pin the tail to hold the folds.
13. Starting at the end of the of 6 inch tail and using a zig-zag stitch or a straight stitch, sew towards the potholder. I used a zig-zag stitch on the tail and changed to a straight stitch when I got to the potholder. Top stitch (or edge stitch if you prefer) near the folded edge of the binding all around the square.

14. When you near a corner, slow down and leave the needle in a down position at the miter fold. Pivot the potholder 90 degrees and stitch towards the next corner. Continue stitching all the way around the potholder.

15. To form the loop, fold the 6 inch tail over to the back. Adjust the loop to the size that you want and figure out how much, if any, of the tail to cut off.  You need to allow for a fold at the end to conceal the raw end and some overlap along the side where you will tack down the loop end.

16. If your machine has a stitch for sewing on buttons, you can use it to make a great bar tack. Otherwise, set your machine to do a wide zig-zag stitch with 0 stitch length.