I don't know what it is but my daughter loves herself a good cold pack. She asks for one whenever she has a fall, stubs her toe, gets a scratch, has an aching body part or just generally needs to feel better. She recently pulled too much nail from her thumb, which made it sting when she sucked it and so she needed a cold pack "weally, weally wickly" so she could get back to sucking it asap!
Normally, I grab a frozen lunchbox brick from the freezer, wrap it in a tea-towel and hand it to her. It is neither comfortable, nor attractive and quite often the brick doesn't make it back into the freezer once it has tended her wounds - then I'm out of lunchbox bricks for my son's lunchbox ... and well, that's just frustrating.
Being that I am in Canada right now (without my machine) and haven't sewn anything for months, I have been feeling the need to sew a little something - nothing too big or too complex, because I would need to use my mother-in-law's vintage (40+ years old) machine, just something straightforward and simple. It came to me. I knew just the thing. Of course, my daughter needed her very own cold pack. Perfect! And I would get to keep my lunchbox bricks nicely frozen in the freezer!
I decided to DIY the actual cold pack as well. It is extremely simple. You just need to half fill a sandwich bag (a heavy duty one is the best) with 1 part rubbing alcohol and 2 parts water, squeeze out as much air as possible, seal well (I added two layers of duct tape to the top of the bag) and pop it in the freezer. It freezes nicely but because of the rubbing alcohol it doesn't completely solidify and will be pliable very quickly (much better than a solid old freezer brick!).
I made the cold pack covers using a red and a white flannel and went with a "first aid" theme because I thought it was kind of appropriate and I knew they would stand out in the freezer and not be mistaken for a lunchbox cooler. I sewed them in a very basic pillowcase style of cover so that I could easily remove them for washing.
So, my simple little sewing project using a vintage Singer turned out pretty okay and is probably one of the most practical things I have made. And with all the slippery snow we've had here lately, and my Aussie children still learning how to walk carefully in it, I'm sure the packs will get plenty of use!
Now, onto some Christmas sewing. It's getting so close.
I LOVE this! I can see why it is a hit with your sweetie! My beans would absolutely love this! And I bet it is just so soft...much softer than a bag of peas! Way to go on this one! Nicole
ReplyDeleteOh yes, a bag of peas - that was the other thing I used! Ha! Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment - you just made my day!! x
DeleteOh they are adorable. Not that I hope I ever have to use one.. but I want one in my medicine cupboard just because it is so darn cute.... you clever thing! xx
ReplyDeleteYou might need it after your trip to Dubai!! x
DeleteOh my! My little dare devil daughter will be getting this! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou're so welcome - my little one loves it and probably needed it today after a day of skiing but I left it at home!! Whoops. :)
DeleteHi Nikki, I love your idea, but since we don't have this rubbing alcohol here, I've got a good alternative. Every year I ask my family and friends to keep the cherry stones in cherry season. Then I sew little bags, fill them with the stones. You can both cool and heat them. When my little grandson had earache, I heated a small one in the microwave, but when he had a sting, we used the one from the fridge.
ReplyDeleteI don't sew, would you think about making and selling some to me?
ReplyDelete301-979-0519 if so. Thanks Tina