Finished projects feel good. Finished projects you can give feel even better. Aunt Em’s Quick Win Rice Bag is a beginner-friendly project you can sew in one afternoon, with an exchangeable cover that makes every gift personal. Gather a friend, a grandchild, or your Saturday sewing group, raid your scrap bin, and make something warm to give this holiday season.
What is Aunt Em’s Quick Win Rice Bag?
Is a pattern to make a small, 6″ x 6″ rice filled bag made in two parts: a simple inner bag filled with rice, and a removable cover that slips over it. Warm it in the microwave, slide it into the cover, and you have a cozy little heat pack. It’s perfect for cold hands, a sore neck, a chilly bed, or a coat pocket on a winter walk.
The rice bag is a beginner friendly project that can be done in an hour or two, depending on your choice of block. For the inner bag be sure to use 100% cotton and thread. Then for the cover the sky’s the limit. Choose a fun novelty print, maybe the person’s favorite sports team. Or use an orphan block that has been looking for a good home. Another option is one of the blocks from my Sampler booklets.
Why the exchangeable cover is the clever part
- Easy to clean: Wash the cover whenever it needs it. The inner bag stays put.
- More fabric choices: A cotton cover can go in the microwave right along with the bag. But if you want a skin-soft fabric like minky or silk, you have the option of heating the bag on its own and slipping it into the cover afterward. The cover never has to see the microwave, so you get the cozy, luxurious feel without the risk.
- Endless variety: Swap covers for the seasons, holidays, or the person you’re gifting. One inner bag can wear many looks.
- Small and quick: At 6″ x 6″, it uses very little fabric, which makes it ideal for scraps, fat quarter leftovers, and a single quilt block.
Choose Your Cover Adventure
Choose a favorite print. Novelty prints are perfect! For the sports fan choose a fabric with their favorite team’s logo or mascot. If your making it for a hobbyist or child choose a print that correlates with their favorite thing.
Got a bunch of orphan blocks that need a good home? The Quick Win Rice bag works with any 6″ finished quilt block. Add instructions right on the bag with embroidery. 
New to sewing or looking for another block? Try any of the small block in my Sampler booklets.
The Perfect Project for Learning/Teaching Sewing
The Quick Win Rice Bag is a wonderful first project for a new sewist, and a satisfying one to teach. At just 6″ x 6″, it’s small enough to finish in one sitting, so beginners get that “I made this!” moment before their attention wanders. Along the way, they practice the skills every sewist needs. Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, auntie, or friend, sewing side by side is a chance to pass along a skill, share some stories, and build a memory. And the best part is that the finished project is something the new sewist can give away with pride.
Aunt Em’s Quick Win Rice Bag is more than a fast project. It’s a chance to pass along a skill, share your scraps, and make something warm to give from the heart. This season, invite a friend, a grandchild, or your sewing group to sit down and sew together. Handmade gifts mean a little more when you’ve shared the making. Find the pattern and Aunt Em’s Sampler booklets at your local quilt shop. Quilt shops can purchase Quick Win patterns directly from me or through Checker and EE Schenck. Be sure to share your finished bags tag me @auntemsquilts on Instagram and use #AuntEmsQuickWin.
Looking for a fun Night Creating and Connection
No experience? Perfect. Come learn to sew in a laid-back, no-pressure space with good people, good music, and scraps. You’ll leave with a handmade gift (and a new skill) you made yourself. Bring a friend, a roommate, or come solo and meet other makers.
Only 15 spots.
When: Dec. 3, 7:00 pm
Where: Salvaged and Sewn 551 W Porter Ln N, West Bountiful, UT
Cost: $10 You’ll get everything to make the bag or two.
Click here to grab your spot
