From the Yarn Basket: Practical Goods for Our New Apartment #2

To continue my series of posts describing all of the useful items I was able to craft for our new apartment, I present you with these lovely and simple hot pads. After all, Cory cannot bake his delicious breads or scrumptious evening meals without something to protect his fingers! 

I knitted both of these in stockinette stitch. I made the blue one first, using Hometown USA yarn leftover from the blue cowl I made on the road trip. I crocheted a border around it using some dark brown Loops & Threads Charisma yarn, including a loop in the corner for easy storage. Cory gave it a test run, and despite the yarn's bulky weight, it wasn't quite thick enough to keep the heat out completely. We still use it, but we fold it in half to increase the thickness.

In an attempt to improve the functionality, I made the next one double-sided. I also added some stripes to it to keep myself from getting too bored (stockinette stitch is not the most exciting thing in the world). The pink yarn is also Loops & Threads Charisma yarn in Think Pink. The opposite side (not shown) is solid pink, and I crocheted the sides together while adding the border. This one works a little bit better, but it still isn't perfect. Still, we have been putting both to good use, and saved ourselves a few euro in the process!