‘Tis the season to be freezin’. But we’ve got just the cure. Make yourself DIY hand warmers to bring some warm and cozy into your cold and frozy.
Materials
- 1/2 cup flaxseed
- 1/2 cup barley
- Funnel
- Scissors
Basic & Advanced Sewing Materials
Basic
- Sock
- Needle
- Thread
Advanced
- 2 cotton fabric squares
- Sewing machine
- Thread
- Needle
- Pins
Optional
- Lavender
- Rose petals
- Sage
- Eucalyptus
- Chamomile
- Spearmint
Prep Step 1: Gather Your Smells
Collect any aromatic herbs you would like to use and grind them up in a coffee grinder. Here I’m using whole lavender buds and ground up rose petals, sage, eucalyptus, chamomile and spearmint.
Prep Step 2: Mix, Mix, Mix
Take 1/2 cup of barley and 1/2 cup of flaxseed and mix in your ground herbs and lavender.
Here is where our paths diverge.
Basic
Fill your clean sock with as much filling mixture as you would like, leaving enough room at the top to sew it shut.
Thread your needle, and tie a big knot at the end. Fold your sock opening over so it’s smooshed up against where your heel would go.
Then you can quickly close the opening with a messy (or clean) whip stitch. It doesn’t need to be pretty, as long as the stitches are close together so the filling doesn’t fall out.
Clip off the extra thread and you’re done!
Advanced
Cut up two squares of fabric in the size you want your hand warmers to be.
Pin right sides together.
Sew three of the four sides using a 5/8ths seam allowance.
Turn right-side-out, and fill 3/4ths full of filling mix. Use your pins to create a tight horizontal barrier between filing and fabric opening.
Roll the top of your fabric to the inside to create a uniform seam.
Run your hand warmer through the sewing machine one more time to close off the top.
Regardless of which method you used, you now have a secret tool for keeping your hands toasty warm (and smelling good). Toss it in the microwave for 30 seconds, flip it, and microwave for 30 more seconds.
Ta-da! Way to go, you crafty human, you! Heat them up and hide them in your coat pockets. Use them to summon cats. Give them as gifts. The future is in your capable (and warm) hands.
