It's Because of the Warmie-Things!
Warning**** this post turned into a tutorial!
Please tell me you know what a warmie-thing is. It is one of those little pouches made of fabric that is filled with either cracked corn, rice or buckwheat in which you toss in your microwave to heat for various reasons: to warm up, to put on a sore muscle or to alleviate cramps. We have one warmie-thing in the house. Mine. We used to have more - each kid had their own. However, as hard as kids are on their stuff, theirs eventually developed holes. What comes out of the holes? Whatever is inside, of course! All over the place!On Monday, I needed a warmie-thing real bad for the latter reason. Well, my son uses the warmie-thing to warm up after eating slushies. He also has this annoying habit of forgetting where he puts it. So, after an hour long hunt and being so unsuccessful in finding it, I decided to retreat to the studio (nice and clean, now) and make a warmie-thing. But not just one...three...so the kids will leave mine alone once again.
Here's how to make your own warmie-thing:
First, I start by cutting a piece of muslin to construct the actual warmie-thing. I cut the fabric so that it folds in half lengthwise. After folding it in half, I sew a seam along one short end and the long end to make a tube with one end sewn. Clip your corners. Turn the tube right-side out and sew a 1/8" seam along the edge you have just sewn. This serves as a reinforcement so that the seam doesn't split and stuff doesn't fall out everywhere. Now, for the filling. I use cracked corn from my local feed store. It is super cheap and doesn't tend to smell rank over time as rice does. Besides, it kind of smells like popping corn when you warm it and who doesn't like that smell?! You can use buckwheat or flax seed (which I believe holds the heat the best), but it can be pricey and you are going to need a lot!
Pour 1/2 cup of cracked corn into your tube. Fold the fabric over the lump of corn inside and place on your sewing machine. Gently fold the fabric back down to lay flat and sew a seam going perpendicular to the short edge. This creates a little chamber to hold the corn, otherwise it will all gather at one end. Not cool. Continue to do this for the remainder of the length of tube. My warmie-thing has 9 chambers sewn into it. When you are doing your last chamber on the end, simply fold the fabric end over twice (as if you would with a bag of potato chips) and sew a seam on top of it. You can refer to pictures above.
Now you have your warmie-thing! However, you may want to make a cover for it if you used muslin. The other option is to make the actual warmie-thing out of calico instead of muslin. I prefer to use muslin and make a cover for it for two reasons: 1) the cover reduces the wear on the warmie-thing which reduces the chance of a seam busting or other tears and 2) should you develop a tear, anything that spills out of the bag will stay in the cover. No mess! It is a matter of preference, really. A cover is not necessary.
This is how I made my covers:
I chose fabrics of interest for the recipient (my son's is camoflague, my daughter's is music notes and instruments, mine is those cool fishies!). I doubled my fabric right sides together (not on the fold) and laid the warmie-thing on top. Using a chalk pencil, I marked the fabric an estimated 1/2" further than every chamber seam as it lies on the fabric. Doing this will ensure your cover is a little bigger to accommodate the warmie-thing but not so big that it is swimming inside the cover. After you have totally marked it, remove the warmie-thing from the top. Cut the fabric on the lines you just made. At this point, I finished the fabric on one end (so be sure to accommodate for this. I basically cut the cover 2" longer than the actual warmie-thing. I then folded the edges on one end separately and seamed them down. Dang, I wish I would have taken pictures while I did this! Place your pieces right side together again and sew a 1/4" seam around the remaining three edges. Clip your corners, turn right side out, press and slip your warmie-thing inside. Tada!
Two extra things I did: I made my hemmed end to fold like a pillow sham. For ease, you can just make it like a regular pillow case. I then tacked that end lightly with button thread to keep the warmie-thing from slipping down into the tube. You may still want to do this. That way, if the warmie-thing slips inside, simply grab the tacking on the one end and shake down. Your warmie-thing will settle inside as it should be.
Finally, here is me showing you how long mine is. I apologize for the picture - it is so dark and dreary here in New York and I am using the mirror in the kid's bathroom (which I am embarrassed to say is soooooo dirty!)So, there you have it. Now you know why I didn't get any work done on Monday. I spent all day in the studio making three of these! The worst part? By the time I was finally done, my cramps subsided :(
Now, go make a warmie-thing...just keep them away from your kids. You may never see it again!
