From neck wraps to eye packs, large back packs, to little hand warmers… These things are awesome. They’re portable, they’re natural, and they make great gifts!

I have been making aromatherapy packs for a long time, and they have always been a hit. The pack shell is made with 100% cotton material, and they are filled with rice which produces a moist heat. Or, place it in your freezer for a cold pack! The fun part is making them in different shapes and sizes, and choosing fun fabrics. I LOVE my Walmart fabric section. I always check out the clearance tables and can usually find some really good deals. One of my favorites is the chenille heart shaped heat pack. These are the easiest to make. Choose any cotton fabric and cut it in the shape that you like. I did rectangle tubes, which are good for your neck or back, and the heart shapes are fun and good for pretty much anything.

Sew around all but one small section where you’ll fill them with the rice. I like using Jasmine rice because it can be used alone or with scents. It’s a longer grain, and seems to hold heat pretty well. Once the sides are sewn up, use funnel to fill the pouch with rice. It needs to be full enough to have rice in all places, but not too full to where it won’t be flexible. You want it to bend around your neck/joints. Add whatever scents you prefer to use. I like to hand sew the small opening closed, but you can use your sewing machine if you’d like.

Heat them for 1 minute and if you need to heat it more, only heat it up in 30 second increments!

I’ve also created something I’m calling Huggables! It’s a stuffed animal with an aromatherapy pouch inside! The aromatherapy pouch is removable so you can heat it in the microwave. I made one with a special Sinus Relief Blend in the pouch which seems to be a perfect and safe alternative to decongestant medicines for little ones!

I have found more stuffed animals with pouches and pockets in them, and you can use those. If your stuffed animal does not have a pouch built into it, you can make one. I used a seam ripper to open up my teddy bear along the seam on it’s back. I opened up a small hole, and used fabric glue to prevent it from unraveling any more. I took some scrap fabric and made a pocket, sewing around 3 sides. I hand sewed this pouch into the opening on the bear. I then sewed some velcro onto either side of the opening. This would allow me to close up the pocket keeping the aromatherapy pouch inside.

The aromatherapy pouch that goes inside is super easy. Cut 2 beanbag sized squares out of scrap fabric. Sew up most of it, leaving a small opening for filling. Use a funnel to fill the pouch with rice, and any scents you want to use. Hand sew your pouch closed! That’s it!

To make the aromatherapy packs, all you have to do is add some of your favorite scents to the jasmine rice. I prefer to use the actual flowers/leaves, etc. I love using lavender flowers for relaxation, or mixing the eucalyptus and peppermint for when we have stuffy noses.

So far, I have used Lavender, Chamomile, Eucalyptus, Peppermint, and the Sinus Relief Blend.

Below are some of the packs I’ve made. The Teddy Bears are cute ideas for kid gifts… and I’ve made them with the pink scarf, or a blue one, depending on if it was for a boy or a girl…

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