These simple and easy-to-make wheat bags will help soothe aching joints or warm up cold hands and feet.
What you will need
- fabric (something thick like corduroy, cotton or flannelette)
- fabric scissors
- sewing machine
- chopstick
- wheat (buckwheat is recommended for lower fire risk)
- dried lavender (optional)
- sewing needle
- thread
How to make the wheat bags
Using your fabric scissors, cut your fabric into two rectangle shapes. It doesn’t matter what size, as long as they are both the same.
Place your two pieces of fabric face to face, with the wrong side of the fabric facing outwards. Sew the two pieces together with a seam allowance of approximately 1cm and leave an opening of about 1-2cm so the wheat can be added in later. Reinforce the opening by doing a back stitch (stitching back and forward a few times) on each side of the opening.
Cut off the corners so that it doesn’t bunch up when you turn it inside out and you get nice points.
Turn it right side out. You can use a chopstick or a pencil to push out the corners into points.
Fill the bag roughly three-quarters full with wheat. I make a funnel out of thick paper to make it simple, but you could just spoon it straight into the bag if you like.
I have added around a cup of dried lavender to this bag as well so that it smells nice when heated. Lavender is said to induce calm and sleep, which can’t be a bad thing!
Hand sew the opening of the wheat bag closed using a slip stitch. If you’re not sure what a slip stitch is, here is a simple video tutorial. It just means you won’t see the stitches after you’ve sewn.
And you’re done! Now that you know how quick and easy they are, you’ll be making one for each member of the family and for everyone you know as handmade gifts!
Notes
- When you’re ready to use your wheat bag, just pop it in the microwave (along with a cup of water, see note below) for 30-second intervals until you reach the desired temperature. It will depend on the size of your wheat bag and on your microwave settings as to how long it will need to be heated for. I put mine in for 90 seconds, which is perfect for me. Be careful not to overheat the bag or the wheat will burn.
- Sit a cup of water in the microwave alongside the wheat bag to prevent the wheat from drying out and causing a fire risk.
- Wheat bags are not recommended as hotties in children’s beds as they pose a fire risk. Do not cover with blankets or use to warm up a bed.
- Do not reheat the bag until it has completely cooled – which may be two hours after initial heating.
- Always monitor the use of wheat bags around children.
- This article was created by Emma Rowe for Kidspot.com.au and has been adapted for Kidspot.co.nz
What easy sewing projects have you done?
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Awesome! This reminds me to make another one. A friend just made some for her children and she used rice instead of wheat. I’ve made an awesome panel skirt for dress wear. I also love pottering around with the sewing machine fixing our clothes if I can.
Wow! That is so easy. And they are great for this time of year too. When you need to warm up a bed, or to snuggle in the couch with.
This looks so simple and wheat bags are so good to have on hand, they are great for cold nights and sore muscles, I will be getting my teenagers to whip up a few of these I think!!
I am a complete newbie with sewing but I would love to give this a try as our wheat bag has most certainly seen better days! Love the short, simple instructions 🙂
Gosh this is my weakness. I’m not a big fan of sewing at all. I have no patience. So I’d probably purchase something like this instead. But this a good article to share to people who are keen in making crafts and such.
Ive always wondered how these were made… will try my hand at it soon…thank you for the idea during a time its most needed…
Looks like this would be a great item to make. We would also put ours in the freezer for a cool pack as well.
This is awesome I was actually thinking about buying my two children a wheat bag for winter. They haven’t had one in few years since the last time when my daughter set hers on fire in the microwave. This would be awesome to do next school holidays with the kids. Great read and great instructions to follow.
What a great idea I used to make these when I was younger. I am going to buy some fabric and do this with my 10 year old she has always wanted a wheat bag so I will teach her these.
I LOVE wheat bags, we have 3 at our house haha – they are easy to make though by the looks. The 3 we have I purchased from out local Countdown as part of the Kids Can Appeal so a good donation I feel 🙂