Tricia, if you would like to send my your snail mail addy, I will send you some hand made ones! And what color kitchen you have. You can email it thru my page.

Tami

That's a very nice offer from Tami. We have these real thick terry cloth ones that have a pocket, so they are double thick when you need them. Neither of us can remember where we got them from though. I did find some that look just like them at a restaurant supply site. They come in a dozen for the current sale price of $17 something. Cheap enough to sock away an extra 4 and still have 4 to give as presents. lol.

Here is a link that might be useful: pot holders

I think silicone feels weird, too.

My favorites are handmade ones I pick up at craft fairs. The best ones were made by a lady who used old washcloths for the stuffing. She is gone now and I still pick them up at craft fairs, but hers were the best. It's hard to find hot pads that are flexible and can stand up to heat.

I've found nice ones on Etsy, too.

YEARS ago, Dad brought home 2 RED mitts from work... in oil refining industry and used in lab?? SUPER heavy uty "terry" material. We called them the "bloody hands". Think ya could almost picked up molten lava with them. BUT... one time one got into laundry with WHITES... and EVERYTHING came out PINK!!

I like leather ones. They are pliable, fire-resistant, washable, and the heat doesn't go thru easily... If extra hot I use two together. I had to order mine online, but no longer have the address, sorry.

As hard as I am on hot pads, I don't spend a ton of money on them. Mine always end up with stains and burn marks on them! LOL

I just picked up two really nice ones at IKEA for $1.99! I know you ae looking for terry, and I really like terry pads, too. They seem more "flexible".

I hate the silicone pads. Actually not a fan of silicone anything excpet maybe a silpat (which I do not own, but think I might like...)

Good luck, I hope you find a source! Personally I'd take Tami up on her generous offer!

Linda

The ones I make are 100% cotton and either knitted or crocheted. I make several different ones. LOL! If I meet one of you, you are more likely to get knitted/crocheted dishcloths or hot pads than you are food items!

Tami

Mine always end up with stains and burn marks on them! LOL

Yeah....me, too. I get black ones whenever I can because of the soot from my cookstove. The craft fair lady's were $1.25...sighhhh.

It IS hard to find good pot holders. I finally replaced mine with silicone pot holders, linked below. They feel a little weird, but they work, and ultimately, that's what counts.

I have made my own for years. The best ones were made with a thick wool blanket from a US Naval Hospital blanket I bought at a tag sale as the filling. The previous iteration used old cotton mattress pads as the filler, but those mattress pads are fossils, now.

Here is a link that might be useful: silicone pot holders

Another vote for the Ikea hot pads or pot holders as we call them. Made of cotton, they are flexible and when they get yucky, I can wash them. Ihave white, blue and now red.

(Hot pads to me are the things you put under a hot container, like a trivet)

My son knits them for me.

For hotter stuff, I have welding gloves with a cut up silicone pad glued to the fingers, thumb and palm.

Also comes in handy when messing with the fireplace. Just reach in and grab the burning log.

Tami made a lovely offer. I'd take her up on it, too!

I was thinking hand crocheted pot holders when I saw her post.

Someone recently gave me two potholder made on a loom with cotton loops. It is an extra large loom with big loops. I remember making these as a small child but with a small loom and nylon loops. They are very thick, large enough, and pliable.

Eileen

Here is a link that might be useful: Potholder loom.

Some of my favorites are Le Creuset - purchased at one of their outlet stores a number of years ago. Heavy terry on one side, quilted to a heavy weight twill on the other. These go through the laundry well - a place where quite a few of my lesser potholders have met their demise.

Well, I do like mitts but I buy cheap ones ones too as they shortly look awful. I usually look for thick ones cheap, that's about it, other than liking the color/pattern.

The current ones are from Target and were 1.99 and have lasted a couple years fine, surprisingly.
I only use them for indoor oven things and if I need to carry something a distance- say from the downstairs kitchen to upstairs- and I also use a folded dishtowel.

I know this doesn't help you a bit, it's just adding to the now general discussion about pot holders. My mil has the worst ever, 5"x5" crocheted things from 1962. I have to bring my own potholders when I cook over there :-)
Along with everything else...

My favorite hot pads are now looking very tacky so time to make new ones. I got the black chicken one at the thrift store or sale somewhere, I am going to use it for a pattern as it is the one I use most. Patty

Tami, I'm overwhelmed with your generous offer - you've got mail!

All these snazzy LC, Staub, Cuisinart, etc. pots available and I can't find a good basic. Frustrating. We are short on kitchen storage so ours usually sit out on the counter.

Here's one from amazon that I *thought* had potential. Have to hurry though - there's only 3 left and has 4-1/2 stars! :(

/tricia

Here is a link that might be useful: Get it while they last...

I agree with Peppi. I call them potholders, and a hot pad is like a trivet, to put under hot dishes to protect the table. My favorite potholders are some good thick terry ones, although I often just grab the tea towel and bunch it up, and use that (hoping it is not damp).

I don't know where I got the terry potholders, but nowhere special, maybe the grocery store.

They are 'potholders' in my world, too.

My favorites are a couple I got from Walmart,
They were in a set,
The 2 potholders, with 3 or 4 matching dish towels.
I'm not sure how well they'll last,
I've only been using them about 6 or 7 years now.
The dish towels were absolutely worthless!

I've tried the silicone, both holders and mitts.
Didn't like it at all!
In fact, I don't like mitts of any kind!

And with all due respect to those of you
That knit and/or crochet potholders,
I've never had one that was thick enough
to be any good.
Not even those I crocheted myself.
They are pretty though!
Maybe there are some new patterns out there
That work up into useful potholders.

Rusty

I'd check on Etsy for handmade ones or also at a restaurant supply store for institutional grade terry.

Here is a link that might be useful: terry pot holders

Do you have a Mom and Pop hardware store like True Value or Ace? Try looking there, often times they will have simple old style things that are great but yet you can't buy them in the big box Walmart type stores. Also search Ebay, maybe you will get lucky. Another thought is that you could ask on Freecycle for some!

Another thought, make them out of wool clothing cut into squares(stack them up) then covered with old terry towels or wash clothes(cut the wool for the wash cloth size!). Even if you can't sew, you can use a needle and thread just make sure your thread and towels are 100% cotton. They say that wool is the best thing for heat.

I detest those silicone mits. I like these because they're not cumbersome and give me a good sense of mobility.

Here is a link that might be useful: OveGlove?

I love the cotton ones my mother knits/crochets for me. But I also love the silicone ones pictured in the link tricia provided. Mine aren't dogs - just plain.

I've always called them pot holders also.

If you get an oveglove, get the genuine one not a "just like" one because they are too thin. What I didn't like about the oveglove is having to put it on as you do a glove because it takes extra time.