How To Sew A Beginner Bowl Cozy | Free Pattern

January 29, 2026

How To Sew A Beginner Bowl Cozy | Free Printable Pattern

This article shares instructions for sewing a simple bowl cozy. A bowl cozy allows you to heat a bowl of food in the microwave and remove it without burning your hands. And to hold the hot bowl in your hands while you eat (if you’re like me and eat more meals on your couch than at the dinner table;).

I’ve altered this free pattern from my original bowl cozy pattern to make it more beginner-friendly and to reduce costs if you’re sewing these to sell.

If you’re comfortable with bias tape, you may want to try my other bowl cozy pattern too:

>> How To Sew a Bowl Cozy To Sell (free pattern)

Sewing bowl cozies to sell

Bowl cozies are one of those things; if you know, you know (and you use them regularly). But for people who have never heard of them, they likely won’t understand the point of them (for years, I didn’t).

You may want to include a tagline or short sales pitch that explains the benefit. E.g.:

Heat your bowl; not your hands.

If you want to skip the microwavable part and market these to ice cream enthusiasts, you might use a tagline such as:

Enjoy your ice cream without the frostbite

If you’re targeting people who eat meals on the couch while watching TV:

Bowl Cozy – For people who dine on their couch

A few other tips for selling:

Sets – I would sell these in sets of two. Pay attention to how many sets people buy and adjust. If you find a lot of people buy 2 sets, you may start selling sets of 4.
Add-on – to build a product line, you may want to also offer:
Gifting – these make a great gift item for a housewarming gift (especially for young adults moving away from home and who will likely be heating a lot of food in the microwave), but would also make a great stocking stuffer, sold individually and folded to fit nicely into a stocking.

Microwave bowl cozy instructions for use

When sewing microwave-safe bowl cozies to sell, it will be important to include instructions, warnings, and be sure you’re following labelling regulations (for the location you’re selling/shipping to).

Below is an example of instructions and safety warnings.

Please be advised: it’s your responsibility to ensure you’re following local labelling laws and requirements, and that you’re using materials that are microwave safe.

Alternatively, you can market them as “bowl cozies” and remove all suggestions that they can be placed in the microwave. It would still be important to use 100% cotton materials in case customers choose to use them in the microwave at their own risk.

Microwavable Bowl Cozy – Use & Care

Use Safely:

1. 1. 1. Place your microwave-safe bowl inside the cozy before heating.
    2. Heat in short intervals (no more than 2–3 minutes at a time).
    3. Remove carefully by holding the corners — contents and bowl may be hot.
    4. Always ensure there’s food or liquid in the bowl when heating.

Important Safety Warnings:

- - - For microwave use only — do not use in ovens, air fryers, or toaster ovens.
    - Made from 100% cotton materials (fabric, thread, and batting).
    - Never leave the microwave unattended while heating.
    - Do not microwave an empty cozy.
    - Use with care and at your own risk — variations in microwave wattage and fabric content may affect heating results.

Care Instructions

Machine wash cold, gentle cycle. Air dry or tumble dry low. Do not bleach or iron

Disclaimer:
This product is handmade using 100% cotton materials intended for microwave use. Seller is not responsible for damage or injury resulting from misuse, overheating, or use with non-microwave-safe dishes. By using this product, you agree to do so at your own discretion.

I’ve made printable instructions as well. For the double-sided version, be sure to set your printer to print on both sides of the paper.

Printable microwavable bowl cozy instructions (one-sided)

Printable microwavable bowl cozy instructions (two-sided)

*IMPORTANT PRINTING NOTE

If choosing the two-sided option, test printing before printing multiple copies.

If your printer doesn’t “flip on long edge” when printing two sides, your text will be upside down on the back side. If you experience that, you can use this two-sided version: Alternative two-sided instructions.

Materials

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It’s important to use 100% cotton materials. Polyester and other synthetic materials are flammable when exposed to microwave heat.

If sewing to sell, keep proof of the material’s content (fabric receipts, product listings, product packaging/labels).

100% cotton fabric or 100% linen
100% cotton batting (I used Wrap-N-Zap)
100% cotton thread

Printed cotton fabric

Typically, dyes used to create prints and patterns on fabric are synthetic, but they bond with the natural cotton fibres, making the fabric itself 100% cotton. Therefore, the dyeing process does not introduce synthetic materials into the fabric.

To keep these cozies microwave-safe, avoid cotton fabric with metallic or foil prints, glitter, or shiny additives, and/or blended fabrics (e.g. poly-cotton blend), as these are unlikely to be microwave-safe.

Tools

Sewing Machine
Walking foot (highly recommended when working with batting)
Fabric clips or pins
Scissors
Iron

Steps to sew beginner bowl cozies

Step 1

Print your free pattern pieces and cut them out.

Your pattern piece will have a “FOLD” indication along the side. Be sure to place that edge on a fold when cutting.

Alternatively, you can print the pattern pieces twice, cut them out, and flip one over to mirror the other, then tape the pattern pieces together with no overlap.

You’ll need:

- 1 piece of 100% cotton fabric for the top of your cozy
- 1 piece of 100% cotton fabric for the bottom of your cozy
- 1 piece of microwave-safe batting (Wrap-N-Zap is ideal). If you want more heat protection, you can use two layers of batting.

Step 2

Using your walking foot, sew your top piece of fabric and batting together. If you’re using two layers of batting, repeat this for the bottom piece of fabric.

Trim the batting on either side of your darts (cut about 1/4″ inch) so you can see the edges of your fabric when you fold the darts together. This helps ensure you’ll sew an accurate seam allowance and can follow the edge of your fabric.

Step 3

Using a 1/2” seam allowance, sew all four darts on your top piece. Repeat with your bottom piece.

Clip the batting only down the center fold, to about 1/4″ away from the point of the dart so you can open the batting’s seam. Don’t cut the cotton fabric.

Then trim the batting on either side of the dart so it’s about 1/4″ away from the dart’s stitching.