DIY Spring Scented Coasters - Homemade Gift Series

DIY Spring Scented Coasters

These simple scented hot pad coasters are the perfect gift for any coffee or tea lover in your life, including yourself!

NOTE: The rice needs to sit for about 24 hours to absorb the scents properly before you put the hot pad together, so plan ahead when doing this project!

Here’s what you need for this project:

·         5″ x 12″ piece of pretty fabric for the outside of the coaster (I used 100% cotton in a fun pattern)

·         two 4.5″ squares of plain muslin

·         plain, uncooked rice

·         100% essential oil in your favorite scent

·         Zip seal bag

·         Needle and thread or sewing machine

Steps:

1.      Prepare the rice. Put about one cup of rice into a zip seal bag and add 6-7 drops of your favorite essential oil. Seal up the bag, shake the rice around so the oil is mixed in, and set the bag aside in a cool, dry place for 24 hours so the rice can soak up the scent.

2.      Once your rice is nice and scented, it’s time to make the coaster. First you’re going to make an envelope style cover for the outside.

3.      Fold over half an inch of fabric at one short end of the rectangle of outer fabric, and hem the end by sewing along the fold with about a 1/4″ seam allowance. Repeat on the other short end.

4.      Fold the long strip of fabric, right side in, so that both ends overlap each other about an inch or so. You want the final dimensions of the cover to be 4.5″ long, so adjust accordingly.

                               

5.      Sew along the open edges, leaving a 1/2″ seam allowance. Clip the corners and turn the envelope cover right side out.

6.      Then pin the two muslin squares on top of each other and sew around all four edges with a 1/4″ seam allowance, leaving a small hole on one edge to add the rice.

7.      Use a funnel to pour the scented rice into the muslin pouch. The fuller the pouch, the more stable the coaster will be, so fill it as full as you can! Then sew the small opening closed.

8.      Put the small muslin pouch inside your envelope cover, and you have your very own scented hot pad coaster! Warm up a mug of tea or coffee and test it out!

The reason I made this coaster in two pieces rather than just making a pouch of the pretty outer fabric is because it’s easily replaceable this way. If the rice loses its scent, just make a new inner muslin pouch with a new batch of rice, and you don’t have to get rid of the pretty cover! Or just use a seam ripper to pull open a corner of the muslin pouch and switch the rice out with freshly scented rice.

You could also switch up scents if you want to! If you have three or four favorite scents (maybe one for each season?!), make a muslin bag full of rice for each scent, and just switch them out into your favorite cover and you have a “new” hot pad each time! You should store your scented hot pad coaster in a plastic baggie when you’re not using it to keep the scent fresh and strong!