Here are the instructions for how to make eye pillows with soothing lavender. We used fabric decorated with glue batik art, but you could do this with any fabric. These eye pillows make great handmade gifts!
As you know, we love doing glue batik and love the finished look. Well recently, we made some lavender eye pillows with the glue batik art both as a Mother’s Day gift for the grandmas as well as for a preschool fundraiser.
Here’s how we did it…
How to Make Eye Pillows with Lavender and Glue Batik Fabric
- White or natural cotton or muslin fabric, about 5 x 8 inches, decorated with glue batik art
- Soft fabric of the same size for the bottom of the eye pillows*
- Sewing machine or needle and thread
- Rice
- Dried lavender flowers (1/4 cup per 1 cup of rice)
*Glue batik can stiffen fabric a bit so it’s best for just the top side of the eye pillow. You’ll want something softer for the side against your face. We used a knit from an upcycled T-shirt for some (which was perfect) and a cotton print for some.
How to Cut and Sew the Eye Pillows
1. Cut the bottom fabric to the same size as the glue batik decorated top fabric.
2. Line up the top and bottom fabric pieces, with the right sides facing each other. You can pin them together to hold them in place if you like. Sew along three sides, leaving one of the short sides open. Trim the two bottom corners by cutting off a small triangle of fabric, being careful to not get too close to the stitches.
3. Turn right side out. Use a chopstick or the end of a paintbrush to get the corners.
(Optional) You can iron them at this point.
How to Make the Lavender Mixture
Mix rice and dried lavender in a bowl at a ratio of 1/4 cup lavender to 1 cup rice.
Now use a funnel, pour spout, or spoon to fill the eye pillow about two-thirds full.
Sew your new eye pillows closed
Turn the unfinished edges in 1/8 to 1/4 inch and sew up the final edge.
You’re ready to use or gift your new lavender eye pillow!
Note: We like to keep ours in the freezer so it’s nice and cool whenever we want to stretch out on the sofa or bed and lay it over our tired eyes.
Lavender Eye Pillow Variations
- You can use any fabric decorating technique, not just glue batik. Some other ideas include Sharpie tie dye, leaf prints, or found object prints. Here’s a whole slew of fabric decorating techniques if you want more ideas.
- Use printed fabric that you find at the fabric store if you want to skip the fabric decorating part altogether.
- Add dried chamomile blossoms as well if desired for their calming properties.
- Use this same technique to make a larger comfort pillow (about 8″ x 8″ is a good size) or a long one that can be used as a neck pillow (about 8″ x 24″ would work).
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