Rice Bag For Sore Muscles

I was talking with a friend last night and she was saying how her shoulder was just aching her.  It was keeping her up at night and it was well....a pain in the neck.  I had asked her if she had a rice bag for it and she looked at me like I was crazy.  Rice bags are awesome!  It is a cotton bag filled 1/2 way with rice and you heat it in the microwave.  

The heat is so good for 

• sore muscles
  
• breast feeding moms to help with engorgement
• arthritis
• fibromyalgia
  
• keeping your feet warm in bed
• relieving sinus pressure and pain

The wonderful thing is this is such a penny pinching project!!  Use a clean, hole-free tube sock and fill it 1/2 way with dry rice. Knot it or sew it shut and microwave it 1-2 minutes, depending on the size of the sock and the strength of your microwave.

Another project is to sew a square or rectangle with 1/4" seams.  Turn inside out and fill 1/2 way with dry rice.  Sew the fill hope shut and microwave as directed above.

Rice bags make wonderful gifts.  Use pretty fabric and add lavender oil or tea tree oil to the rice before you add it to the bag.  Once microwaved you will have the added benefits of the essential oils!

Here are some pictures of my 4 year old making a rice bag for my friend.  Yes, I allowed a 4 year old use a sewing machine.  I was right there talking her through the whole thing.  She even signed her work and I wrote the microwaving instructions on the bag so she would know exactly what to do.