• To avoid extra ends and make a robust ring for the potholder:

After you slip stitch across the top, ch 6, loop it around to make a ring, sc 8 stitches in the ring to cover it firmly. Make a sl in the last sl st in the potholder, tie, cut & hide end.

• To insure your pot holder is square:

Fold you potholder diagonally so the bottom & side are together. Quit when the side is as long as the bottom.

• Do NOT use a single crochet foundation (fsc) to start the potholder!

You’ll end up with a bottom row of posts that stand out & are visible in all my potholders prior to the “Blue Ombre” set. I put two photos of the bottom of two potholders, one with fsc and the other made with a chain start, in the “Blue Ombre” project, along with some comments on the desirable features of these potholders.

• General observations:

I was making a swatch for a yarn/pattern combo I’m thinking of using for a tote bag, & Hubby walked by and asked if I was making a potholder. As in, he really, really was looking forward to some hand made potholders, since they’re sooooo much more flexible & easy to use, compared to just about anything you can buy.

I was using acrylic yarns, but I did have a roll of cotton yarn in my stash that hadn’t been touched. Back in my college days I knitted a pair of potholders using a trick thick stitch (I’d have to dig that one up); I’ve managed to hang onto them and they are still in use, if you overlook one being misplaced & the other starting to ravel due to a gas stove accident some decades ago. Time to whip up some new ones! I much prefer to crochet household items (more stable under high use than knits, in my opinion), but how to make a potholder that’s tight and thick? Internet to the rescue; I found this pattern and it works like a charm! I did forgo the loop; my potholders live in a stack instead of hanging around somewhere.

Very easy and quick for me (see more below), got two potholders out of one ball of yarn. My only problem is that my tension drifted up and the second potholder is about 1/2 inch smaller than the first (5.5 inches per side, vs. 6). Not good, that half inch can be significant for larger hands. Regardless, they’re in use right now.

While I was on the internet searching, I ran across some comments outside ravelry concerning this pattern. MikKnits has some excellent photos here which show where your crochet hook goes when you start your first pattern row.

If you still are confused:

• Undo your work to the last plain sc on the very first row, or work thru the first plain sc row to the last stitch.
• Work the last sc & do the ch-1, don’t turn yet!
• Locate the ch stitch that you just crocheted into with your last sc.
• Keep your eyes on that little puppy!
• Now, turn your work and start the first pattern stitch by putting your hook thru the back thread of your last sc. You should now have one loop on your hook.
• Your hook should now be pointing to the ch stitch that you’ve got your eyeballs glued to.
• Slide your hook thru the thread of that ch stitch, just like you just did thru the sc stitch. You should now have two loops on your hook, and the work starts to fold in on itself.
• At this point, you need to note how that thread from the ch stitch looked. This is what you will look for in future ch stitches.
• Throw your yarn over the hook and pull it thru both of the loops, first pattern stitch completed!
• Continue by hooking thru the next sc & the outside loop of the ch stitch that sc was made in.
• Note how your work is folding in on itself, and it looks almost like you’re crocheting upside down. Never fear, keep going, it will work out and make sense when the row is complete.

Hope this helps those who have trouble getting started with this pattern.

I’m planning to make sets of these for Christmas presents.