To make your own cooling bandanna (I’ve seen them in stores for as much as $20!) you’ll need:

• a piece of tightly-woven cotton fabric (quilting cotton is perfect for this)
• a couple of teaspoons of silica gel crystals (it’s sold in gardening supply stores as watering gel for plants, or in craft stores as “cracked ice”
• your normal sewing machine supplies: thread, scissors, a ruler etc

Cut a rectangle of fabric 5 inches long by 24 – 26 inches long:

Now fold it in half lengthwise & press with an iron:

Open it up again and fold up one long edge 3/8 inch and press:

Fold the fabric along the centre seam again and press up 3/8 inch on the other side of the fabric.   You should now have a tube of fabric with no raw edges on the long edges.  Now you need to fold down one short edge 3/8 inch as well.  Make sure all the edges are folded towards the wrong side of the fabric!  The bandanna has tapered ends – we need to form one end now.  Fold the unstitched side of the tube in to the inside – like this:

Repeat on the other side and press.  Pin the tapered edge – it should look like this:

All the edges are matching and we can now go ahead and pin up the long side of the bandanna.  Measure 5 inches from the tip and place a pin there:

You can now stitch around the bandanna, stopping 5 inches from the other end.  Stitch across the bandanna where you marked it with a pin:

You should have a stitch tube, with one tapered end.  Measure out 2 teaspoons of the silica gel crystals (that’s all it takes!) and carefully fill the bandanna with it.  Shake all the crystals down to the end.

Fold & press the open end, just like you pressed the first one, to create a tapered end.  Mark 5 inches from the end and pin it.  Make sure there aren’t any stray crystals in the end that you’re sewing closed – sewing machine needles don’t like them!

Stitch the end closed and sew across at the 5 inch mark again.  Trim all your loose threads.  Let the bandanna soak for an hour in cold water & you’re good to go!

Keep your bandanna in the fridge overnight for extra cooling power.  Let the bandanna dry out completely if you’re not going to use it – it can mildew if you leave it damp for extended periods of time, especially if it’s left in a plastic bag.

Post from: Blisstree

tutorial – make a cooling bandanna