Featured Fabric: FreeSpirit Fabrics Polar Seas by Daughter Earth/Katy Tanis

Pattern Design by: Lindsay Conner

Sewn by: Lindsay Conner

Sew a relaxing lavender neck wrap and eye pillow! This DIY project makes a great self-care set and is an easy project for beginners to sew. If you can stitch a straight line, you can make this. The tutorial includes instructions for both a neck wrap and an eye pillow, and each one is made to show off two coordinating fabric prints. The soothing lavender eye pillow and heated neck wrap can go into the microwave for about 30 seconds (test it in your microwave first to avoid burning yourself), and they will hold a good amount of warmth to help you relieve stress and relax! Let’s get sewing!

Skills Learned: Machine sewing

Skill Level: Beginner

Finished Size:
Eye pillow: 4” x 10” (10.16cm x 25.40cm)
Neck wrap: 5” x 29” (12.70cm x 73.66cm)

Fabric Requirements/Cutting Directions:

½ yard (.46m) of 2 different prints. I used:

• Echo Dots – White PWKT031.XWHITE
• Harp Seals – Blue PWKT029.XBLUE

For the eye pillow, cut (1) 5” x 11” rectangle from 2 different fabrics.
For the neck wrap, cut (1) 6” x 30” from 2 different fabrics.

Materials:

Sewing machine
Binding clips or pins
Scissors, rotary cutter, ruler, and cutting mat
1 box or bag of rice
1-2 cups dried lavender

Prepare the Filling

1. Pull many stems of dried lavender from the garden. If you are pulling fresh lavender, hang it vertically for a few weeks until it is completely dry. (Using lavender that is not all the way dry can lead to mold.) Shake the leaves off into a bag, separating them from the stems; discard the stems.

2. Put the dried lavender into a bowl. Pour boxed dried rice (I used brown rice) into a separate mixing bowl. Mix together with a ratio of 3 parts rice to 1 part lavender. Set aside.

Sew the Project

3. For the eye pillow, place the (2) 5” x 11” fabric rectangles right sides together. Pin or clip in place. Stitch together around the perimeter ¼” from the edges, but leave one short end open for turning.

Repeat with the (2) 6” x 30” fabric rectangles for the neck wrap.

4. Turn the fabric right side out for both the eye pillow and neck wrap. Carefully poke out the corners with your finger or a dull pencil. Press.

5. Take the eye pillow and use sewing pins to mark the horizontal center (or just eyeball it). Starting at the short, closed end, stitch along the pinned center line all the way across the fabric to the short open end, stopping ½” before the raw edges. Backstitch at both ends. This will make two long pockets.

6. Repeat step 7 with the neck wrap pieces, except pin or mark two long lines in order to divide the fabric into three long sections. Starting at the short, closed end, stitch along the pinned lines. Stop when you get ½” before the raw edges. Backstitch at both ends. This will make three long rice pockets.

7. Use a spoon to fill the pockets of the eye pillow with the rice and lavender mixture until it is nearly full, but not overflowing. Repeat with the neck wrap. Because you want the neck wrap to remain flexible, you can fill it up about two-thirds of the way full.

8. Fold the raw edges to the inside of the eye pillow and pin or clip the opening closed. Stitch along the folded edge to secure.

Repeat with the neck wrap.

Wasn’t that fun and easy? As creative people, it’s fairly common to spend time sewing for others, but it’s really a treat to make something that we can use to help ourselves relax and take time for self-care! We hope you enjoyed this easy sewing tutorial for a lavender eye pillow and heated neck wrap. Wouldn’t these make a wonderful gift for teachers?

Heating Your Neck Pillow:
Because heating times for microwaves vary, microwave each of your heating packs on high for 30 seconds. Shake and flip, then reheat for another 30 seconds until you reach the desired temperature. Be careful not to over heat!

Fabric Details:

To view the complete FreeSpirit Fabrics Polar Seas by Daughter Earth/Katy Tanis click here.

To find a retailer near you click here.

Learn more about Lindsay here.