So I decided to try seasoning my cast iron skillet in the oven. After a few hours I made the mistake of thinking I could take it out and look at it with some pot holders. It turns out pot holders than will be just fine at 350 can't stand up to the max heat of my oven -- Fibers melted on the handle, or maybe they got stuck in the oil, I'm not sure -- but I can't get them completely off with a brillo pad.
My next step is something a bit more drastic -- sandpaper or a dremel with a buffing wheel. This will leave bare cast iron exposed unfortunately. I realize it's just the handle, but I don't really want that to rust either. If I do wind up scrubbing it down to shiny metal, is there any reason I wouldn't be able to just reseason it using advice on this site?