A Great DIY Teacher Gift... Heart-shaped Hand Warmers

So this is my daughter's first year of Pre-School.  Being a teacher myself, I knew I wanted to get her teachers something special and unique that didn't break the bank (especially since she has a zillion random teachers!).  I saw this super cute idea for hand warmers made from fleece and rice on Pinterest and after some image searching I finally found the original post from The Inbetween Girls for DIY Hand warmers. Since I know how chilly recess can be, I was sold.  I changed it up a bit, so here is what we (big sis got to help!) did...

From JoAnn's, I picked up a roll of fleece from the remnants bin (there are a ton of super cute fleece prints and solids this time of year), embrodery thread found by the needlepoint section, some needles that could handle the thick embroidery thred, and some cute white favor bags from the wedding section to carry them in.  In all my bill was about $10.  I also used white rice and a funnel from our pantry, a heart cookie cutter for the shape, and a fabric pen for tracing.

I laid out the fleece and traced my hearts on, four hearts for each gift.  I traced 32 hearts for the 8 teacher gifts I needed to make.

Next I cut them all out and one by one began stitching two together at a time.  I decided to use a simple hand stitch instead of the sewing machine for a few reasons... 1. I like the way the chunky thread gives an antiquey feel (plus you can tie the two ends to make cute bows this way!) 2. It seems easier to fill with rice and continue to make those last few stitches 3. It really doesn't take much longer by hand anyway.

When sewing around the edges leave about an inch to use the funnel and fill with rice.  I found I needed less than 2' of thread for each one and between 1/4 and 1/3 cup of rice.

Big sis was great help filling the hearts with rice... that was her part.  Little sis tried to help too... by chewing on the funnel!

Once they were filled with rice, I finished stitching, tied it off with a knot, then tied a cute bow with the two thread ends.

And since I am addicted to chalkboard word creations (just check out my Printables page, lol!) I made a cute little poem and gift tag to tie onto the wedding favor bags.  They are 4X6 and can just be printed onto index cards.  I printed mine on the front and back, cutting them apart to get two tags per index card.  Click below to get the free printable file!

She is taking in her little gifts tomorrow... I hope her teachers enjoy them!

 

What is your favorite handmade gift?  I'd love to hear and see about your creations this year! 

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