Cold Feet Remedy

[liralen]

My massage therapist told me that the hot packs she uses to warm up the massage table were made from cotton and rice. She used jasmine rice. Washed it clean of dust and then dried it in a 200 degree oven for an hour, stirring occasionally to keep it from sticking.

I have been tired of cold feet and of a hot water bottle that I keep losing the stopper to. I decided to buy some on-sale all-cotton flannel ($3.99/yd of 44 inch wide flannel) and, today, made a 22 inch by 18 inch 'pillow', added eight baffles, and then filled them with washed, dried calrose, as it was on sale at our local grocery store. Ten pounds for six bucks and I probably used three pounds of it.

Jet had fun sewing it together with me, but he's definitely entered the "Why?" stage. He asks "Why" for EVERYTHING, especially the things that he doesn't want to do.

We put it all together, and then stuffed it into the microwave for two minutes (she nukes 'em for five minutes but hers are always too hot for me to touch, really) and out came a beautifully warm hot pad that lasted, in the open air, for a good half an hour. Two and a half might do for getting me to sleep with the insulation of the blankets. I'll have to try it tonight. I was able to drape it over my shoulders and neck, though, and it helped, a LOT with the muscles there that never loosen up. Yay! My jaw feels much better now. Mmm...

Anyway... so I spent about four bucks for a good-sized pad. The commercial versions are around $30-40, so I felt pretty good about this usage of my time. It was fun, too, to show Jet how to sew things, how to fill a bobbin, and how to thread the machine. I don't think he could do it after that, but he was intrigued.

Comments

[monkat.livejournal.com]

mmmmmm. Now I want one, too. I forgot to bring my boiled wool slippers with me to a friend's house, and ended up reagrivating my frostbite damaged toes just by running around my friend's house in socks! Ow. Ow. Ow. Good reminder not to forget my slippers next time!

[liralen.livejournal.com]

Ow! Ow! that sounds like it would hurt, indeed. It was very fun to make.

[monkat.livejournal.com]

Less fun if you don't own a sewing machine, but, it's not like I haven't hand-stitched pillows before. I'm sure I can hand-stitch this, too, with the idea of warm toes to spur me on. (Not that I don't also have boiled wool slippers, polarfleece and boiled wool shoes, polar fleece socks, and an electric blanket in the mix already. Stupid toes.)

How big of a mess does washing rice and then oven-drying it make?

Oh! Related to this topic, last year for my birthday, greenlion gave me a teddy bear full of herbs and buckwheat, specifically designed to be microwaved. I admit to pangs of guilt whenever I stuff Teddy in the microwave, but the end result is rather nice if somewhat lumpy due to the bearish shape. http://www.sootheze.com/toasbearprod.html

[greenlion.livejournal.com]

I cannot help but giggle at the very thought.

And you can come borrow my sewing machine.

[liralen.livejournal.com]

*many giggles* at the thought of stuffing Teddy in the Microwave...

I found that when I washed the rice until it was clean (i.e. the water ran clear of rice flour), there was just a *little* starch residue on my cookie sheet when I dried it. I had to make sure to stir it every 20 minutes to make sure that it didn't stick together too much, but it didn't seem to be too much of a mess.

[monkat.livejournal.com]

Obviously, you two are both sick sick sick!

(Yet I'm the one heartlessly nuking little bears despite their doleful expressions.)

Thanks for the rice cleaning tips.
:)

[archangelbeth]

Iolanthe never really asked Why much. Possibly because if she asked Why once, either of her pedantic parents would then talk about the reasons until she got bored...

[liralen.livejournal.com]

*beam*

What a great idea!