Potholders-what do you use for the middle?
 

What do you use for the middle layer of potholders? Do you use plain batting (cotton or polyester) or a special batting that is heat resistant? Also, do you quilt these? Maybe stitch in the ditch or a different design or just leave unquilted. Is it a quilter's perference?

As I give them as gifts I always use Insulbrite for safety reasons. http://www.warmcompany.com/ibpage.html

Wool is a very good insulator and if it's felted down completely it can survive trips through the washing machine. I have knitted potholders and felted them down; if you're not a knitter, you can still do this. Old wool sweaters can be washed in very hot water to make felt (just make sure the tag says hand-wash or dry-clean; wool can be treated to be safely machine washed). Thrift stores are a good place to look for wool sweaters; check the men's section for more yardage. ;-) There are lots and lots of resources online for felting knitted fabric, if you're interested in trying it.

ETA: Whatever you decide to use, do not use polyester. It will melt.

I like Insulbrite too. I just ran across this cute potholder tutorial this morning. I think I'll whip some up. http://www.mygirlthursday.com/2011/0...t-holders.html

I too use Insulbrite - but I sandwich it between two layers of Warm and Natural (I like thick potholders)

I have found only 1 layer of Insulbrite too thin and insufficient protection. Two layers is much better. It's thin and doesn't bulk up your hot pads or oven mitts.

Thanks, this site said to use heat resistant fabric as well. Is that necessary or can I just use my regular fabric for the top/back with the Insulbrite middle.

I think by heat resistant, she means nothing synthetic. You wouldn't want to use poly/cotton blends. 100% cotton, linen or wool are all heat resistant.

I use a 'retired' cotton mattress pad for the innards of potholders...old ones are best, thicker and more closely quilted...and very minimally quilt them. Remember, every time you take a stitch through the layers, you put a hole through the heat shield.

The mattress padding is plenty enough heat protection for anything coming out of an oven (unless you plan to hold it for an hour or so), it's easy to work with, it results in a nice 'grandma' type potholder and it's cheap.

I just can't see buying special batting whose only purpose is to resist heat, has no real safety advantages (it is NOT flame resistant, and does not claim to be...it's almost entirely poly after all), can be difficult to find, and only works if the correct side of the potholder is facing the heat.

I use one layer of warm-n -natural and one layer of insulbrite. I have made mine of cotton fabric and quilted them. They work great.