Project 365 – #194
Summer is here in full force, and we have family coming in to visit. It’s hot enough for those of us who live here, so I know it’s going to be rather toasty for our visitors. After making a few neck coolers for D, Munchkin, and myself for the 4th of July weekend, I decided it would be nice to make some for the rest of our family during their vacation here.
This project is a great way to use up scrap material left over from other sewing projects.
Materials needed:
- Aqua Gems (polymer beads that absorb water)**
- Strips of material – 4 inches wide, minimum 36 inches long
- Thread
- Needle or sewing machine
Process:
- Cut out strips of material if not already done. You’ll want the 4 inch strips to be at least 36 inches long. We found that we preferred longer ties, so I made the strips longer.
- Fold the strip in half lengthwise with right sides of the material together. Sew a double-stitch seam the length of the material to create a tube.
- Turn the fabric tube right side out. Iron flat.
- Fold the material in half and measure 8.5 inches from the center. Stitch across the tube at this point. I recommend double stitching to avoid having any of the beads slipping through the stitching.
- Open up the tube and pour in 1 – 2 tsp of aqua beads. It depends on the brand and size of the beads once they are hydrated. You may need to play with this a little to figure out what works best for you and your beads. (It won’t look like much when the beads are dry.)
- From the center point of the fabric tube, measure out 8.5 inches the other direction to stitch up the pocket and seal the beads inside.
- Once the bead pocket is stitched shut, you’ll stitch shut the ends of the fabric tube. You can do this at an angle if you want.
- Soak to hydrate beads. Some beads will take longer to hydrate than others.
**You can use the beads inside diapers, but they will absorb odors more than the aqua beads. Plus, the aqua beads only cost me roughly a dollar with a coupon. We don’t have any diapers around the house, so for us, diapers would be more expensive. The one bag of aqua beads will make several neck coolers, so they really are cost effective.
FOrget the neck thing I LOVE that picture of Munchkin!!!! 🙂
I like it too. 🙂
very pretty both the neck cooler and the model 🙂
Thanks! 🙂
Can you find the aquabeads at a craft store (Michaels) or somewhere else? I was planning to go shopping for some neck coolers this weekend, but you make it seem easy enough to make my own.
You’ll find these beads with the floral arrangement supplies at various craft stores. You can also find them at places like Walmart and Target.
This looks great!
How long does the cooler last ?
They’ll stay hydrated for a long time, but you may want to wet them again to enhance the cooling aspect as they can warm up. The nice thing is once you are done with them for the season, you can allow them to completely dehydrated. They’ll then store very easily. Just pop them out when you’re ready to use them again.
It took one of the fully hydrated neck coolers about a week to completely dehydrate.
How long do I have to leave the beads in the water to completed hydrate it for use?
That’s going to depend on the beads. The first time you hydrate them it takes MUCH longer, so I tend to just put them in the cool water “bath” over night. After that, it doesn’t take much time. Some brands of beads seem to hydrate faster than others.
Does the bead leak water when it is no longer effective?
No, but they may pop if they’re left in way too long. (Munchkin did an experiment to see what would happen to the beads if they were left soaking in water for a few days. The two little beads were huge and finally popped.)
wow, thank you so much sharing this great craft and taking the time to answer my inquiries! :] I appreciate it! Thank you! :]
You are welcome!