The Gray Potholders

A couple of posts ago, I mentioned I was making a couple of potholders for a friend of my daughter's, and M had requested I use gray fabrics.

She stopped in and picked out some fabrics from the (scant) grays I had in my stash.  I, personally, would never have chosen grays, but have been pleasantly surprised at the attractiveness of the finished product.

The fronts of the potholders.

And the backs.

Here's a close up to show the fabrics

a little more clearly.

M and her husband, J, share cooking duties at their house and J had put in a request for a smaller potholder than the first ones I had made for them.  We gals (M, my daughter and I) questioned why his "bigger hands" would want a smaller potholder . . . but we aim to please so his is the smaller one shown.

Gotta say the particular block M picked out for J's potholder was a bit of a challenge.  All those small triangles cut on the bias made for a not-so-square block when I got them all put together.  Another lesson learned that some old-fashioned blocks (this one is Aunt Mary's Double Irish Chain) don't go together as easily as others.  (In my opinion, Aunt Mary must have been a glutton for punishment.  Or a really, really good quilter who loved a challenge.)

I'm glad I was forced to use the gray fabrics, colors I would never have chosen myself as I tend toward brighter colors with more contrast.  Just shows to go, that working outside the box every now and then is a very good thing.