This week has seen some pretty cold mornings in the South East of Australia. This is a text message I received from Miss 12 on her way to school one morning this week:
"My fingers are really numb & hurt". Reply text from Mum (me) : "You'll live princess :)"
OK, that may of been a little harsh and unsympathetic but the simple solution of wearing a pair gloves was dismissed with a scoff as they are way uncool for Year 7 (so are wearing long socks apparently!).
So after the mother guilt sunk in I decided to make the Princess in residence some mini heat bags to slip into her blazer pockets. This will keep her fingers warm and nimble, so texting her friends & changing tunes on the ipod on the way to school is a much more pleasant experience.
This is more of an idea than a tutorial and it could be adapted to make much bigger ones for more serious occasions!
To make the mini heat packs I made:
- Cut 2 pieces of fabric 20cm x 10cm (8" x 4") - try to use a heavier fabric.
- Fold in half with the right sides matching and sew a 2/8 inch seam down both sides leaving the top open
- Clip corners and turn in right way and press.
- Using an erasable maker, draw a line at 3cm and one at 6cm and sew a straight stitch.
- Erase lines
- Using a funnel, fill each channel 3/4's of the way with rice (there are a number of different fillings you could use)
- Roll over open edging twice and sew across
- Heat in the Microwave for about 10-15 secs each. All microwaves will vary, they take very little time to heat so be very careful when removing.
That is such a cute idea!
ReplyDeletethat is brilliant!
ReplyDeleteWhat a good mum!
ReplyDeleteCould do with some of those for the early market mornings! Its shaping up to be a VERY cold winter in our part of QLD.
ReplyDeleteHow clever!!! X
ReplyDeleteHow cute is that!
ReplyDeleteCan you really use rice?
I've heard of wheat but never rice.
Hi Kate,
ReplyDeleteYes, I did some googling before I started and a number of sites mentioned uncooked rice. I think wheat would be the much nicer option with a bigger bag but for this exercise I just used what I had in the cupboard.
Jodie
I had a bag with rice before (it was purchased) and it was awesome! I think I'll make another now :)
ReplyDeleteYou cannot wash them, can you? Thanks for the idea ;)
ReplyDeleteMadalina, no I wouldn't wash them. Which means they don't have that long a life!
ReplyDeleteYou can't wash them, but you will ultimately 'use up' the rice, and need to replace it, and you can wash the empty fabric at that point.
ReplyDeleteMaybe make one end with a plastic zipper (not metal since you have to use the microwave) so you can replace the rice every once in a while?
ReplyDeleteI have many of those! But instead of rice, we use wheat!
ReplyDeleteIt is so nice to sleep with the in cold winter nights...
Sometimes I just feel like making a teddy bear completely filled with that so I can cuddle with it whenever I´m cold.