DIY Potholders for the Kids’ Play Kitchen: Simple Sewing Tutorial

Turn fabric scraps into sweet little potholders for the kids’ play kitchen – mindful, simple and perfectly sized for small hands.

Imagine a quiet afternoon.Rain is tapping on the window, and on the table there’s a small pile of fabric scraps: a bit of linen, a checked cotton square, maybe an old pillowcase you always loved.

Next to you sits a child with bright eyes and one clear question:“Can we make something for my play kitchen?”

This is where the magic of DIY potholders for the kids’ play kitchen begins.Not perfect, not industrial, but handmade – with threads that carry stories and stitches that speak of closeness.

Why DIY Potholders Make the Play Kitchen So Special

A play kitchen is more than just a toy. It’s a stage, a little café, a restaurant, a laboratory – and sometimes a tiny magical kingdom where soups are made from wooden vegetables and invisible cakes come out of the oven.

When there are potholders hanging there that look like the ones “the grown-ups” use, something very subtle happens:

• Children feel taken seriously in their play.

• They are allowed to try things out, copy, imitate and feel along.

• The play kitchen becomes a real place where they can act and create.

  
  

Handmade DIY kids’ potholders add even more:

• your personal touch,

• your family’s colours,

• your small patterns and shared memories.

  
  

Maybe you sew them from your grandmother’s old tablecloth.Or from a dress that no longer fits.These small potholders quietly carry those stories into the play kitchen – soft, but very much there.

What You Need for Simple DIY Kids’ Potholders

You don’t have to be a professional to sew potholders for a kids’ play kitchen.More important than perfection are calm, love and a little time.

Materials

• Cotton or linen fabric (e.g. fabric scraps, an old tea towel, an old blouse)

• Filling (e.g. a piece of terry cloth, batting or a second, slightly thicker fabric)

• Thread in a beautiful matching colour

• Scissors, pins or clips

• Sewing machine (or a needle for hand sewing – for small potholders, that works very well too)

• A small strip of fabric or bias tape to go around the edge and for the hanging loop

Optional, if you like:

• small appliqués (heart, star, mushroom, gnome)

• embroidery thread for delicate details

Step-by-Step: DIY Potholders for the Kids’ Play Kitchen

Let’s walk through a gentle, simple process together. You can think of the steps like a tiny sewing ritual – stitch by stitch.

1. Choose the Size

For small children’s hands, it’s nice if the potholders are on the small side.

• Cut two fabric squares, for example 12 x 12 cm or 14 x 14 cm (around 4¾–5½ inches).

• Cut the filling to the same size.

  
  

If your child is already involved, they can:

• hold the ruler,

• draw the squares with a fabric marker,

• choose the colours.

  
  

That way, a sewing task turns into a shared moment.

2. Prepare the Layers

Lay out the pieces like a little sandwich:

1. Bottom fabric square – right side facing down

2. Filling on top

3. Top fabric square – right side facing up

   
   

Pin or clip the layers carefully along the edges.Already it looks a little like a finished mini potholder – just without seams yet.

3. Sew Simple Quilting Lines (Optional, but Lovely)

Now you can sew a few straight quilting lines across the potholder with the sewing machine (or by hand):

• once across,

• once lengthwise,

• or diagonally to form a small diamond pattern.

  
  

This keeps the filling in place and gives the potholder that typical, slightly padded structure.

Children love this soft thickness and gentle texture in their hands –like a tiny cushion for pots and pans.

4. Binding the Edges and Adding a Hanging Loop

• Cut a strip of fabric about 4 x the side length of your potholder plus an extra 10 cm (4 in), or simply use ready-made bias tape.

• Fold the strip lengthwise in half, then fold the edges in towards the fold line – like a narrow band.

• Stitch the strip along one side of the potholder all the way around.

Then:

• Turn the potholder over,

• fold the band over the raw edge to the other side,

• and topstitch it all the way around.

  
  

At one corner, form a little loop:

• Fold the end of the strip into a loop,

• tuck it in and stitch it securely in place.

  
  

Make sure the ends of the loop are well caught in the seam – then the hanging loop will hold even when small hands pull on it with enthusiasm. This way, your DIY kids’ potholder can later hang at eye level in the play kitchen, ready to be used in every pretend baking session.

5. Decorating & Personalising

Now comes the best part: You can decorate the potholder with tiny details:

• a sewn-on heart in one corner,

• the first letter of your child’s name,

• a little mushroom, gnome or star made from a contrasting fabric scrap.

  
  

Here, children can decide as much as possible:

• “What picture should go on it?”

• “What colour should the heart be?”

  
  

In this way, a potholder is created that is not only for your child,but also a little bit by your child.

Sewing Together: What DIY Kids’ Potholders Can Teach Children

From the outside, it might look like “just” a small sewing project for the play kitchen.In reality, much more is happening.

Children experience that:

• things can be created rather than just bought.

• hands can shape something – from fabric, thread and imagination.

• time doesn’t only need to be filled, it can be designed.

  
  

While choosing fabrics, feeling textures and marvelling at the finished kids’ potholders, they learn:

• fine motor skills (holding pens, gripping fabric, counting stitches)

• patience (some things take several steps)

• self-efficacy (“I helped make this!”)

  
  

And maybe your own inner voice becomes a little quieter too –the one that says everything has to be perfect,that the to-do list is more important,that crafts and sewing are “too much effort”.

Sometimes one small potholder is enough to remind youhow good it feels to do something slowly and consciously with your hands.

Ideas for How to Use the Potholders in the Play Kitchen

Once the potholders are finished, the real play begins.

• They hang visibly on small hooks next to the play kitchen.

• Your child “fetches” them when the imaginary cake comes out of the oven.

• In your real kitchen, your child might bring their potholders along and hang them next to the big stove – as a sign: “I belong here, too.”

  
  

You can use them for:

• hot (in reality cold) pots and pans in the play kitchen,

• little role plays: café, restaurant, bakery,

• picnics in the children’s room – the potholders become tiny placemats.

  
  

And sometimes they just sit there quietly –as a loving decorative detail that makes the play kitchen feel warmer, more real, more cosy.

A Gentle Tip to Finish

If you like, you can use the same fabrics to sew:

• a small kitchen towel for the play kitchen,

• a mini apron,

• or a tiny oven glove in kids’ size.

  
  

Step by step, a little, coherent textile world for the play kitchen emerges – one that feels just like you: soft, playful, nature-loving.

Maybe next time you have a quiet cup of tea, you’ll jot down a short list of fabric scraps you’d like to use.And one day – when it’s quiet outside and you all feel like a creative afternoon – the idea will already be waiting:

DIY potholders for the kids’ play kitchen.Small fabric dreams that carry big cooking games.

On my blog you’ll find more DIY ideas and little everyday magics that are easy for you to recreate. And in our frifri shop, lovingly illustrated prints, family calendars and beautiful accessories are waiting for you – pieces that make your play kitchen and your home feel just a little warmer, more organised and more magical.

If you’re longing for even more gentle inspiration around the kids’ play kitchen, sewing with children and mindful family rituals, feel free to explore the rest of the blog. In the tutorial “Sewing Large Potholders for the Family Kitchen” you’ll find the matching version for your real kitchen. Soon there will also be more DIY Ideas for the Kids’ Play Kitchen: Easy Handmade Accessories”: more small projects that make the play kitchen feel magical and personal. And if you’d like to spend even more sewing time with your child, you might enjoy our article “Mindful Sewing Projects with Children: Small Steps, Deep Connection.”

A hug and see you soon!