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Living Well Mom

Simple, easy, and natural ways to care for your family.

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Easy No Sew DIY Rice Heating Pad

By Maura in Home

homemadeThis post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Jump to Recipe
gray sock with lavender essential oil and rice on brown spoon - diy heating pad
gray sock with lavender essential oil and rice on brown spoon - diy heating pad

This rice heating pad is one of my first lines of defense for aching muscles, stiff necks, and cramps.

Even better? This homemade heating pad is super inexpensive to make and takes just minutes to put to gether!

gray sock with lavender essential oil and rice on brown spoon - diy heating pad this idea now...

Uses for This Rice Heating Pad

When I was taking birthing classes several years ago, my doula gave me one of these rice heating pads. She told us moms in the class that a homemade heating pad could help sore, achy backs after a long day walking around with our growing bellies.

However, my fondness of the heating pad didn’t end with my pregnancies. I’ve used this homemade heating pad so many other ways throughout the years.

My chiropractor also recommended using heat on my aching shoulder muscles, and this DIY heating pad is the easiest way to do it. Additionally, I’ve reached for this rice heating pad anytime I’ve had cramps, stiff muscles, or just needed a little relaxation.

Additionally, these are great to heat up and put in our beds during winter. They keep your feet cozy and warm throughout the night. The possibilities are endless!

DIY rice heating pad with bottle of lavender oil

How to Make a Rice Heating Pad

Making one of your own DIY rice heating pads is easy. Plus, this is one of the most affordable DIY projects out there. In fact, you may already have all the ingredients at home!

Once you make this homemade heating pad it can be heated and reheated over and over again in your microwave.

Materials Needed To Make Your Own Rice Heating Pad:

  • 4-6 cups of uncooked rice
  • Long Sock (Buy men’s Big & Tall size for a longer heating pad to wrap around your shoulders.)
  • Lavender Essential Oil
  • Decorative ribbon (optional)

Supplies for a homemade heating pad with rice

How to Make a Heating Pad

This tutorial is quite simple. Take your sock and pour in the rice. Then, tie the sock closed and put a few drops of lavender oil on the outside if you like. That’s it!

How to Use the Homemade Heating Pad

DIY heating pad with a wooden spoon filled with rice and a bottle of lavender essential oil

To use the heating pad, all you need to do is add the filled sock into a microwave. Heat it for 2-3 minutes, and apply where you need heat.

I’ve had one DIY rice heating pad for a couple of years now that I have used over and over again.  The heated rice smells a bit like popcorn, (or lavender flavored popcorn in this case), but you can keep reheating it in these 2-3 minute intervals as long as you need to.

Tips for Making the Rice Heating Pad

I had both a “big and tall” sized men’s sock and an airplane sock, so I made 2 different size rice sock heating pads.

For purely aesthetic purposes, I tied a knot on the “toe” end of the men’s sock so that I could cut off the gray and help the heating pad look more uniform.  That step is completely optional.  It all depends if you don’t mind your heating pad looking like an old sock or not.  😉

Woman filling a sock with dry rice to create a diy heating pad

One of the easiest ways I have found to fill the sock with rice without it make a big mess (and seems to go faster than when using a funnel) is to stick a mason jar lid just at the top of the sock.

This will hold the form and keep the sock open so that when you pour in your rice (I suggest using a pourable measuring cup), you don’t make a huge mess.

Woman holding a sock stuffed with dried rice

The “big and tall” socks can hold about 6 cups of uncooked rice.  You will need to squeeze the rice down as you go, but 6 cups really will fit.

Sock stuffed with rice to make a homemade heating pad.

Tie off the other end when the sock is full – and you are done!

I also filled this gray sock that I believe was a sock from an airplane hospitality kit.  This one only held 4 cups of rice, and I only tied one end in a knot.  It is a bit smaller than the white sock, and it fits the size of my daughters’ shoulders perfectly.

I think it’s nice to have a few different sizes made. The smaller rice heating pads work well for children while I prefer the larger ones.

Woman putting lavender essential oil on a homemade heating pad

How to Scent the Heating Pad

I highly recommend adding a calming scented essential oil to the heating pad as well. All you need to do is choose your scent and add a few drops on the sock after you heat it up in the microwave.

I really like using lavender, but if you want to change it up you could try chamomile, bergamot, jasmine, or any other scent you like.

DIY rice heating pad made with rice and lavender essential oil

Gift This DIY

If you want to make this heating pad as a gift, then grab some ribbon and add a splash of color around the knot if you’d like.

These are wonderful for everyone to have—you never know when you’ll need one!  So go ahead and pamper yourself, enjoy a cup of warm tea, and be sure to warm your feet or shoulder/back muscles!

Sock stuffed with rice and lavender oil

Print

Easy No Sew DIY Rice Heating Pad

DIY rice heating pad with bottle of lavender oil
Print Recipe

This homemade heating pad is super inexpensive to make and takes just minutes to put together!

  • Author: Erika Bragdon

Ingredients

Scale
  • 4–6 cups of uncooked rice
  • Long Sock
  • Lavender Essential Oil
  • Decorative ribbon (optional)

Instructions

Fill the sock with uncooked rice using a funnel.

Squeeze the rice down as you go.

Tie off the other end when the sock is full – and you are done!

Add essential oil AFTER the heating pad is heated.

 

Looking for more ways to pamper yourself?  Check out these ideas:

  • Homemade Peppermint Sugar Scrub
  • Easy Homemade Crockpot Peppermint Lotion
  • DIY Natural Lavender Milk Bath
  • Homemade Foot Cream with Peppermint

Pin the image below to save the recipe for later.

collection of photos easy homemade rice heating pad

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    Filed Under: Home, Natural Homemade Ideas, Natural Living, Tips and Hacks Tagged With: homemadePublished on June 5, 2020

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    About Maura

    Maura, her husband and 2 daughters live in upstate NY. She is a former high school biology teacher turned into a work at home mom. She loves to have fun and find a great deal. As well as writing for Living Well Mom, she shares her frugal tips and DIY projects on happydealhappyday.com.

    Comments

    1. Neve says

      February 1, 2018 at 8:31 am

      I love how easy this is. Been wanting to make one for some time but held off because I’m terrible at sewing (as in there is a fair chance I’d stitch my fingers to the sock). I’m gonna do your version for sure.

      A quick tip… Bergamot is a pregnancy safe oil which helps with circulation and eliminates bad odor (which, come on now ladies, is a bit of a bonus during the sweaty end-stages of pregnancy!)

      Reply
      • Erika says

        February 7, 2018 at 6:46 pm

        I’m the same way, Neve. Glad you like this! 🙂

        Reply
    2. Jennifer says

      April 5, 2018 at 8:04 am

      Thank you for this. This months been a bad one, period wise, and I needed something. This is gonna help so much!

      Reply
    3. Martinez says

      May 19, 2018 at 11:36 pm

      Thank you for you post .It’s me period and Not known information
      Will help you find out. This is gonna help Very much!!

      Reply
    4. Lexie says

      December 23, 2018 at 10:56 pm

      My rice is giving off a horrible odor. It is sticking up the house. I’m pretty sure it’s not the sock, but it could be I’m not 100% sure. I put essential oils on it, it looked out the smell some but I microwaved it and the smell came back. What should I do to prevent this?

      Reply
      • Erika says

        January 2, 2019 at 1:08 pm

        How old is it? I wonder if the rice has some moisture in it? That would probably make it smell badly. I would discard it and start again with a different sock and batch of rice.

        Reply
    5. Liz says

      May 17, 2019 at 1:23 am

      Made one in desperation tonight for pain and took me 5min and that includes the 3min in the Microwave!
      I pulled a second sock over the knot and tucked in on other side so its neat and round on both sides. Thank you soooooo much! I also only had lentils but its awsome!

      Reply

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