Has anyone made their own wheat bag?

[LaBelleDameSansPatience]

I want to make a wheat bag to put in the microwave for my mother, who has arthritis in her hands. Could I fill it with rice/bird seed? Does the fabric have to be fleece?

Mine is not fleece, it's thick cotton, and it's filled with cherry stones. It's also machine washable.

Do you collect your own cherry stones? Or do you buy them? Being machine washable would be good ... I spent ages unpicking, emptying, washing and restuffing DD's Bagpus ...

I used barley because it was easy to get hold of. I made an inner bag for the barley and then a removable cover that could be washed. I used brushed cotton/flannel/wynciette (whatever you want to call it) for the covers.

It does smell of toasted barley the first few times you heat it but I like the smell.

Leaning towards birdseed or corn from the chickens ...

I get my wheat from here for quick ones I chop off the legs from old jeans and just sew up the ends.

I used Flax seed in mine. And left over cotton material for the fabric. They can't be washed though.

I'm intrigued about the cherry stones.

Corn & rice can "pop" or burn when heated, so I would avoid those as they are the least safe

I use barley too, made loads with different fillings & I find this works best - add a few drops of aromatherapy oils, if you don't like the smell - wheat smells too

You must use natural fabric though, cotton is the best, so denim, cord, etc - anything synthetic risks melting

Aha, so now I know why I cant use bird seed ... will look into wheat or barley ... still want to know about cherry stones (genuinely, but probably too late for this year).

You can buy cherry stones - here for example but shop around, you might find cheaper as these look pricey compared to barley

good luck