When you organize your sock drawer, you are bound to find a pair or two that need to go. Why not turn them into cute winter hand warmers?

I am offering this idea with a caveat. When I asked my facebook group the other day what they wanted more of, the second most popular request was more ways to repurpose items. Now, this little craft is a cute idea, but to be honest, it was a huge drain on time. It took over an hour, maybe closer to two hours, if I’m honest. (Remember, I stop every 5 minutes to take pictures of the process, so you may get done with yours faster.) But here’s the thing…if your place is cluttered and disorderly, turning all of your old socks into hand warmers is probably NOT the best use of your organizing energy. I would first recommend that you actually organize the sock drawer, and you can get info on that here. Rather, if you have already organized the sock drawer and gotten the most use you can out of some really lovely socks, and want to repurpose them into something else, this might be a fun and practical way to keep that lovely yarn in circulation just a bit longer. Most socks, however, can simply be used for rags or donated for fabric recycling.

Step 1. Wear out your socks.

Step 2. Trim the foot part of the sock off at the heel.

Step 3. Turn the ankle part inside out, pin the cut edge.

Step 4. Sew seam with a running stitch. I had a little help on this one, so I created a “runway of sorts by pinning a little lane that she could aim to stay within.

Step 5. Turn inside out and fill about 1/2 to 3/4 full with uncooked rice. Do not overfill. About 3/4 of a cup should do it.

Step 6. Sew the finished edge shut. If you can manage a hidden stitch, also known as a blind stitch, you can neatly close the finished edge that used to be your cuff.

Step 7. Find the center of the thin end, and sew straight lines diagonally on each side to form ear triangles.

Step 8. Sew a pink nose (upside down triangle) and a mouth (a W) underneath the nose, on the top half of your little rice bag. Sew three long whiskers on each side of the nose; these are just very long stitches.  Then sew little eyes using your choice of colors. I tried to make mine cat eye-shaped, but it didn’t quite happen. Perhaps you will do better. Embroidery thread works great for this part of the project.

Step 9. Now do the same to your little kitty’s mate. My little guy looks quite rakish. I sewed him with the cuff-side up, just to show how they look a little different.

Step 10. You can warm your little kitties in the microwave for just a few seconds to get them warm. Stash in pockets on a cold day. Add a drop of lavender essential oil to pretend it’s summer.