{DIY} Rice Heating Pad

For those of you who follow along on Facebook & Instagram you will know that for Christmas I got a sewing machine. I have been wanting one for quite sometime, so I was super excited to get one. 

I haven't had a ton of time to play around on it, I've mainly just been "practicing" on scrap fabric etc.

The other day I went into the fabric store just to "look" but saw that they had some fabric on sale. I saw this flannel & decided to pick up 1/2 meter of it {I know, I splurged} so that I could try and make a rice heating pad {I've got to start somewhere, right?}.

 I just loved this herringbone pattern of navy & orange. 

So, here's what I did to make the heating pad...

1. Pick a fabric {I've read that flannel works best for this project}.

2. Cut two pieces of fabric the size you want - you can make it whatever size - I chose to go long and somewhat skinny so that I could place it nicely around my neck. The measurements I used were 20"x8".

3. Once you have your fabric cut, place them on top of each other with the backside of the fabric facing out {so, the right side of the fabric of each piece is facing each other}. Pin together along edges...this will help you sew straight and keep the fabric in the right place.

4. Next step...Sew. Sew along the edges of the long sides and one short side. Once you are finished, turn your bag inside out {or right side in?} so that the fabric print is now on the outside. Poke the corners so they are crisp.

5. Get some rice - I used about 5 cups of brown rice. If you want to add some oil for a nice fragrance this is the time {or you can just leave it plain}. I took a cup and 1/2 of rice at a time and put it in a ziplock bag. I then added a couple of drops of peppermint oil, zipped it up, and shook it up.

6. Take the cup and 1/2 of rice and add to the flannel bag. 

7. Next, measure about 6 1/2 inches up your fabric {you are going to have 3 rice sections so that the rice is evenly distributed}. Sew across so as to create a barrier - your rice shouldn't be able to escape from that little section.

Repeat step 6 & 7.

8. Place your last cup and 1/2 of rice in the bag. Then take the open ends of your bag and fold them in so the frayed ends are no longer visible. Then sew along the top to close off your bag.

In the end your should have something that looks like this...

You'll also notice that I did an absolute horrid job at sewing straight lines for my sections. I didn't pin them off when I sewed and with the weight of the rice hanging it didn't help me any. So, I would highly recommend "pinning" off your section, if only to help guide you a little. Once the first section came out rather crooked I purposefully tried to make the other crooked so it looked planned :) Haha!

Hey, it's my first project, no one said it'd be perfect!

Now your heating pad is ready to use. 

Place on a plate in your microwave and heat for about 2 mins. I start with 1 min, flip it, and then do another minute {everyone's microwave varies}. 

Be careful because it does get HOT. So use with caution. Also, if you have never used one of these before, the rice is a bit smelly & it is especially smelly if you over heat your bag.

Happy Thursday!

{I got my inspiration for this project from here & here}. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Linking up to:

live laugh rowe
Flamingo Toes
C.R.A.F.T.
Clean & Scentsible