Now that its fall, cooler temps are coming and I’ve been
thinking of ways to stay warm these next few months. Ok, so it’s still in the 90’s here in AZ, but
we are all pretending its fall around here.
I came up with a fun little project for you to try this weekend! Make your own herbal heart heating pad! I bought an herbal rice heating
pack many years ago in a shoulder shape and was always twisting it around
trying to get the shape just right for where I wanted it, on a sore leg muscle
or tummy. Then quite a few years ago a
friend showed me how to make them myself using flaxseed instead of rice. Flax is much softer and because it is a
flower seed, not a grain like rice, it has much more oil and will hold the heat
a lot longer. I made some for my boys
(not heart shaped) for Christmas about 6 years ago and they still use them all
the time.
What you need:
3 ½ cups of flaxseed (I found this in the bins at Sprouts
for $1.19 per pound)
Dried herbs (I use lavender, chamomile and spearmint - also
found at Sprouts for around 69 cents an ounce, you don’t need much, a couple
tablespoons per herb depending on your preference)
2 - 10” squares of fabric (I often use flannel, but found
some soft pink sweatshirt material I loved for this tutorial, cotton is just
fine as well, fleece is too thick)
Matching thread
Sewing machine
Scissors
Pins
How to make an Herbal Heart Heating Pad:
1.
Cut a
heart shape out of your fabric (fold the fabric in ½ so both sides of your
heart will match)
2.
Pin inside out
3.
Sew inside out with a ¼” seam around the edges
leaving about a 2” opening
4.
Turn right side out
5.
Fill with flaxseed and add herbs to your liking
6.
Finish sewing the opening
Microwave 1-2 minutes depending on the size of your heating
pad and the power of your microwave.
Don’t burn yourself! If it’s too
hot, let it cool before putting it on your body.
You can also put your heart in a bag and stick it in the
freezer for a couple of hours and use it as a cold pack!
You can make any shape you want, shoulder pads, eye pillows,
squares, tubes, small hearts or squares for pocket warmers. Sew
many possibilities. :)
If you don’t have access to a sewing machine or don’t want
to attempt this, you can buy an herbal heart heating pack from me here - Creative Wave Studios.
I’ll also take custom orders for any other shape, eye pillows, shoulder pads, etc. These make great gifts!
Send an e-mail to creativewavestudios@gmail.com
or contact me through my shop on Etsy for custom orders.
If you make a herbal heating pad send me a photo! I would love to see what you make :)
