Thanks, Joanne, for a fantastic tutorial.  I love Ready, Set, Craft – it’s such a sunny place to hang out.  In case you didn’t see it, I posted a tutorial on how to make an over-sized tote on Joanne’s blog.  Check it out and get ready for summer!

I finally got around to trying Suzannah’s Rice Bag Tutorial!  Suzannah, from Adventures in Dressmaking, guest-posted on my blog some time ago.  I like that her rice bag has a little pillowcase – something that can be removed and washed!  We’ve enjoyed a neck warmer made from some type of hulls – corn or cherry – that has quite an odor.  I don’t mind it but the kids and my husband object to it.  Plus, there is no way to wash it.  Last night when I felt chilly and wanted to heat up my bed, I threw it in the microwave….just to realize it sat in a puddle of  spaghetti sauce!  (I wish the cook would clean up after herself!)

I dug around the craft room and found all the ingredients!  Instead of canvas, I thought I’d try my t-shirt scraps.  (The uses for my t-shirt scraps never stop!)  Plus, since it is soft and stretchy, it would conform to the neck nicely.  I also found some scrap flannel to make a pretty pillowcase.

Suzannah’s tutorial calls for a 1/4 yard of fabric.  I had a little more than 8″ so I thought that would do.  I turned the t-shirt inside out, serged along the cut end and turned it right side out.

I measured the 1/4, 1/2, and 3/4 marks and stitched a line at these points to create four chambers.

Next, I filled the chambers about half full with rice, pinned the top and used a stretchy zig zag stitch to finish the edge.  (I did not use a bias tape as mentioned in the tutorial.)

Finally, I made a nice pillowcase out of flannel, making sure that it was slightly wider than the bag.  I love that this rice bag has chambers because all the rice won’t flow to the end if you put it around your neck or over your shoulder.

Are you crafting up any excitement in anticipation of spring and summer?