DIY 9”x13” Casserole Warmer/Carrier

Last year, I got one of these for Christmas. I had seen it on Pintrest, so it already was on my, “when I can get to it” list. A friend saw it when I delivered a casserole to a funeral dinner recently.  She wants written directions on how to make one as a Christmas gift.  If I am going to write a pattern, I might as well write an Instructable while I am at it.  So here is how to make your own 9”x 13” Casserole Warmer/Carrier.

Supplies:
1 – 12” (30cm) length of double quilted material (got beige color)
2 yards (180cm) of 1” (2.5cm) wide strapping (this is 100% nylon)
10” (25cm) hook and loop fastener (used what I had, pink)
Thread (in a complimentary or contrasting color)
Scissors
Sewing machine
Straight pins

First trim off the excess batting on each edge of the quilted material. 

Then pin down the edges that you just trimmed.   Pin down each half of the hook and loop fastener along the same edge 

and sewed them in place, being sure to sew down the edges that are not held down held down by the fastener.

Next, I melted each end of the strapping and the zigzagged the ends together to make a circle.  I used a straight pin to determine where the halfway point on the strap was.

Next, I determined where the center of the width of the material and were the center of the length were located, by folding them in half and marking each place with a straight pin.  Do all this on the inside of the carrier.  The straps will be carrying a the weight of the casserole filled dish, so I centered the sewed edges on one center line and then halfway point about 1/3 of the way from the  hook and loop fastener covered edge.  Pin the 2 parts of the strap down from edge to edge of the material and then sew them in place, sewing long each edge of the strap.

The handles need to be on the outside of the carrier, so pin the straps around the edge of the material. 

Then fold the material so that the outsides will be inside along with the straps.  Pin the edges together.  

Sew a ¼ inch (½ cm) seam down each side.  

Go over these edges again, only this time, use zigzag stitches, between the seam and the edge.  Trim away all the extraneous pieces of thread.

Turn the carrier inside out and it is pretty much done. 

I put the casserole dish I use most into the carrier to see how it fit.  Wonderful!  

Just one more thing to do; personalize it so that it becomes a wonderful Christmas or Wedding or Birthday gift.  I grabbed a metallic permanent marker and wrote the capital letter, of the last name, of the person it will go to.  

That looks really nice and it only took about 1 hour of work.  Enjoy!