Pie Cozy Pattern with Pictures

I love making pies for potlucks, holidays, really all the time. But transporting pies can be a pain. Years ago I saw something called a "pie cozy," which is like a pie-shaped potholder with sides that wrap up alongside the outside of the pie pan. So, recently when I came across a strawberry fabric that reminded me of strawberry pies, I decided to make my own pie cozy. I've now made two -- one strawberry, one pumpkin. Here are the directions, in painful detail and with pictures.

 Materials

• Pie Center - At least .25 of a yard (more if the print is bigger) 
• Contrast - .5 yard for contrast on front + backing 
• Sides - Strip 4" wide and approximately 42" long
• Piping - Strip 2" wide and approximately 42" long
• Batting - Strip 2" wide and approximately 42" long + Square 15" wide and 15" long
• Thread for piecing
• Thread for quilting (hand or machine, or both)
• Spray adhesive
• Spray starch

Steps

1. Press all fabrics. I use a spray starch and high iron setting.

2. These pie cozies use repeated prints stacked on each other and cut precisely so that each triangle is just like the others. You want to start by observing how big each print is and cutting your total piece into 6 roughly similar pieces. For the pumpkin print, I noted how the stems lined up and cut the total quarter yard in 6 places.This can be tricky, so spend some extra time making sure your pieces each have the repeated pattern. Here are my 6 pieces lined up to check for the repeating pattern.

3. Now you want to line up the 6 pieces more exactly. There are great directions for how to do this in Maxine Rosenthal's book. Basically, I pick a distinctive point in the pattern (like where the stem meets the pumpkin) and stick the pin through it in each piece of fabric individually. I select 3-4 distinctive points and stick the pins through each, shaking out the fabric stack gently between each. This will force the fabric to come together exactly.

4. Using a ruler and rotary cutter, cut a strip that is 4.5 inches tall. You then want to cut it into a 60* triangle. You can do this with a triangle ruler, a diamond ruler, or even just with the 60* line on the cutting mat. Be careful not to shift any of the layers as you cut, and be as precise as possible. This is one of the reasons you starch the fabric so much at the beginning. It makes it easier to cut. If your strip is wide enough, you might be able to cut additional 60* triangles. Save these for potholders or some other fun project.

5. Now you want to add the contrast fabric to the repeating triangles. Be sure to mark the corner of the triangle that should be in the center. From the contrast fabric, cut 6 strips that are 2.5" wide and 8" long. Using 3/8" seam, you will sew the outside edge of the pie center fabric to the center of the contrast strip. You should have 1.5-2.5" extra on each side. Once this is stitched, you'll use your ruler and rotary cutter to trim each piece to a triangle with a pie center and a contrast.  

6. Sew together two triangles, starting from the center point and moving to the edges. Add a third triangle, opening up the original seam as you go. Always stitch from the center out. At this point, you should have two halves of the hexagon. Press them gently, opening up the seams between the triangles. It might be necessary to trim up the halves to make sure they are straight. Pin the two sides of the hexagon together, with special attention to matching the centers. It's not terrible if the center points don't perfectly match up. Most people won't notice, but it is a nice victory when it does match up!

7. Now it's time to make the quilt sandwich. Use the remainder of the contrast fabric for the backing. Cut it to 15" x 15" square and add the batting between the backing and the front. I like to secure all layers with a spray adhesive. At this point, quilting can be done by hand or machine. I did a simple machine quilting around the edges of the center and through each of the corners. I added some hand quilting at the end, but that is optional.

8. Trim up the hexagon after quilting. It can be helpful to use a zig zag stitch all along the outside of the hexagon. You are going to attach each of these edges to the raised sides and the piping, so zig zagging around the edges makes it easier to keep all the layers together.

9. Now it's time to work on the raised sides. Take the 42" side strip and fold it in half lengthwise (it should now be 2" x 42"). Carefully pin the folded side strip along the edge of the hexagon. At each corner, fold it to match the seam line and then re-fold to stay along the edge. This is the same technique you would use for a 90* mitered corner. You are pinning this carefully to measure the exact length you need for the sides and piping. Leave an extra .5 inch, unpin, open up the fold, and sew the edges together. You should now have a continuous loop.

10. Add the strip of batting inside the fold. Stitch alongside the bottom of the strip to keep the batting secure. I also recommend quilting the edges. I like a curved line that resembles a finished pie crust.

11. Cut the piping to the same length as the sides. Sew together the ends to make a continuous loop. Then fold the piping loop in half lengthwise as well (it should now be 1" x 42"). Press both the side strip and the piping strip firmly.

12. Now pin the side pieces to the front of the cozy and the piping to the back of the cozy. The side pieces should be folded in half. The piping should be just one layer. Carefully pin the rest of the piping out the way so you don't catch it in the stitching. Slowly stitch around each side. Stop at each corner and back up a stitch or two. Start again on the other side of the corner.

13. Remove all pins and press the sides up and the piping out. Fold the piping over to the top of the seam with your fingers as you press it. Fold the corners to neatly cover the seams.

14. Secure the piping by hand. You can use a slip stitch or a top stitch or whatever looks nice to you. You can probably secure it by machine as well, but it is many layers and the 60* corners can be tricky. I recommend doing it by hand.

15. I loved the top stitching so much that I decided to finish it all off with more hand quilting on the inside of the pie center! Do what looks good to you. Enjoy!