DIY Aromatherapy Rice Bags (Natural Heating Pads)
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Whew, what a week! We FINALLY closed on our house, and after moving and unpacking for 3 days straight my muscles are sore and ready for some relief. Which is why these DIY aromatherapy rice bags really come in handy; they’re an all-natural way to relieve muscle tension and provide relaxation. Simply add a few drops of your favorite essential oils depending on your needs and you’ll be all “CALGON, TAKE ME AWAY!” minus the Calgon from ages of yore (I’m totes dating myself here, but a child of the 80s never forgets those commercials.)
So which oils have been in heavy rotation this week?
Deep Relief, Lavender, Peppermint, Pan Away, Stress Away, and AromaEase to name a few. Plus I’ve been putting Rosemary and Eucalyptus Globulus in my Epson Salt baths and sighhhhhhhhhh, perfection!
Anyways, these DIY aromatherapy rice bags are natural heating pads. You heat them in the microwave, add your oils, and ahhhhhh! No really, I almost wrote this post in just sighs and ahhhhhhs because that’s truly the best description of how these feel. Or you can toss them in the freezer for a cooling effect, which is equally as ahhhh inducing.
How to Make DIY Aromatherapy Rice Bags with Essential Oils
Materials:
Fat Quarter of 100% Cotton Material
6 cups rice (uncooked)
10-20 drops essential oil
Needle and thread (or sewing machine)
Directions:
1) Fold the material into thirds length wise (hot dog style). Cut along each fold to make three strips of material.
2) Cut each strip of material in half again. You should have 6 rectangles.
3) Line up two rectangles on top of each other with the pattern facing in. Sew three sides of the material, leaving one side. Turn the bag right side out.
4) Mix together uncooked rice and 10 drops of essential oils (more or less, depending on how strong you want the scent) and let sit for about 10 minutes so it absorbs. Scoop rice into the bag.
5) Fold the material of the open end inside itself for about inch long. Pinch the ends together and sew it closed.
6) To make the smaller rice pad fold one rectangle in half, but only sew 2 sides. Fill the bag with 1 cup of rice then sew shut.
7) Heat in the microwave for two minutes and check the temperature of the bag before laying it over your neck, shoulders, or other areas that could use relief. You can also freeze it for an aromatherapy ice pack. You can add more oils to the fabric as needed, too!
Enjoy! I’ll be laying these on THICK over the next week or so. 🙂
What are your favorite soothing oils after a long workout or marathon moving & unpacking session?
And if you’re ready to try more natural cleaning ingredients, click the image below to get a free ebook for the cleaning your home with vinegar.
Great tutorial. I also love that printed material, do you know where that is from?
Thanks!
Walmart
Do you put all 6 cups rice in one bag? Or how much in each? I couldn’t find it if it says, sorry.
You probably want to do 2/3 full.
Do you know how long the scent lasts before you need to add more essential oils to the bags?
You may need to add them each time once you’ve used it a few times. You can add it right to the fabric of the bag, just be sure to keep that part off of clothing and furniture as it may stain if it hasn’t had time to sink in yet.
Does the type of rice you use matter at all? Would long grain brown rice be ok?
I haven’t tried it with brown rice but it should still work the same. 🙂
HELP I’m actually planning on making some home heat pads with jasmine rice. My plan was to use dried lavender and rosemary. I saw oils and a fixative would help the scent last in the herbs. So, making a “perfume blend” with lavender as my strongest scent, then rosemary, and oakmoss absolute as my fixative. I was going to put the rosemary and lavender buds in separate bowls with the majority of the rice in the lavender but a smaller portion set with the rosemary…then add a few drops of the essential oils to the separate bowls (rosemary probably 4-6) (lavender 8-12). After they’ve dried I’d like to combine everything and add my oak moss absolute … I want 2-3 drops I just have no idea how to help that spread TBH but this IS my plan-really hoping if you have any advice or experience about my plans to please share before I ruin everything lol THANK YOU!
Does it matter what kind of rice you use?
I have made these and love them. I use the essential oils as well, but they still smell like rice. Have you noticed this with yours? If so, how do you get rid of it, or can you?
Stumbled across your site when I searched about rice bag heating pads. Thanks for the great content!
Aren’t essential oils
Flammable? Won’t they catch fire if heated in a microwave?
Not as long as you make the bags with 100% cotton – fabric and thread. Microwave for no longer than two minutes at a time. I make soup bowl cozies with 100% cotton and my family loves them. Been using them for a few years with no problem. The trick is to make sure you put food in them when you microwave. They can catch fire if you microwave without food or liquid.
I am not sure how’s everyone feel but it still smell a bit. Not really comfortable!
someone just gave me two huge bags of parboiled rice. would that be OK to use as I make rice bags.
Probably not if it’s already been cooked.
To use fabric remnants to make these. Do you know what the size of fabric for one heating pad would be?
Can instant rice be used?
I don’t think so, sorry.
This is a nice tutorial! It’s simple and easy to follow. For anyone looking for essential oils to use for this project or anything else, you can purchase them from both Walmart and Amazon. They carry many different brands that are very reasonably priced with huge selections of scents to choose from! You can also check out Etsy if you want to support small businesses while also finding some incredible homemade sents!