For the past 3 years I have made Cool Ties to send to pen pals in Iraq.  All of my pen pals have raved over them.

The instructions can be found at http://www.seworganized.com/sewsimple/cooltie.html  They are very simple to make.  I highly suggest that you order the polymer they recommend in the article.  The cheap stuff from the garden department doesn't work.

Please mail wrapped in zip lock bags.  If they get wet during transit the box will split open.  Also print and send instructions: do not wash with soap, rinse only with water, put your name on it NOW, etc. 

 

Thanks for posting that info.  I copied it off in the middle of the summer last year and promptly misplaced it, so never got the materials ordered in time to make them before the end of hot weather, so now I have a new chance to do it this year.  I am hoping my worn-out sewing machine will cooperate!

Gran

I will be sending a scrapbooding box for the ladies.  I have all my creative memories ladies donate something and I took nature pics just incase they don't have many pics to put in.  I also went to my local scrap store and they donated some scrapin magazines.  my friend and I will also be sending a birthday box, with cards, bags, tissue and small gifts.  they can celebarate birthdays.

I have a question - what kind of fabric do you use?  Camo prints, tan - what is acceptable to wear with uniforms?  I'd like to make some but I'm not sure of what fabric to buy.

Thanks, Pat

OH YAY !!!  My Watersorb crystals came yesterday in just two days after ordering !!!  I'm ready to go now - no excuses.  Is there a preferred fabric to use other than just cotton.  I'm wondering what type of weave is best, and colors, etc.  Is there a restriction on what they can use?  Does it need to be sand or in the brown family for Iraq or close to that color?  I would rather not send something they can't use outside their quarters.  I don't think black would be a good color since it actually absorbs heat.  I was thinking the lighter shades even though they would show dirt more quickly.  Anyone with experience have any suggestions?

Gran

I've made them with unbleached muslin. I bought a bolt at Joann Fabrics with the 40% off coupon. The garden crystals have worked for me. I use 1/4 tsp in each section. I read that they can be washed in mild soap. This is not so? I sent off my first 100 a couple of weeks ago. I can't wait for the guys to tell me how they like them. (I have regular contact with some of the ones I sent out to)

momof6 

Thanks for mentioning unbleached muslin.  The instructions that I read mentioned that they should only be rinsed in plain water, no soap.  I won't be doing so many this year due to chronic back problems flaring up.

Gran

These seem like something that would be great to send given the hot weather and also something I might be able to get my sons involved in.   However, I can't drive a sewing machine to save my life.  Do you have any idea how fusable tape would work instead of sewing?  Would the tape hold up?

I would not trust fusable tape to hold a seam.  But I bet this is the perfect project to learn how to "drive" your sewing machine. 

 I have a question- I guess I'm a skeptic- do they really work?  The idea of it makes me feel hotter for some reason.  Has anyone actually used one of these?

I'd like to make some if I believed in them really working...

I have one I use while gardening - yes, it really helps!  I originally bought mine at the suggestion of my neurologist to help with my migraines, but decided one day that, since I had it anyway, I would try it while I was outside. 

I have never tried a cool tie myself because humidity in Arkansas is so high that we don't need anything else *wet*.  My guess is that it only works in very hot and dry conditions like the desert southwest of the US or other similar places like maybe Iraq desert.

Gran

I'm glad to see others are making coolties for the troops! 

As for climate, they serve their function - cooling - regardless of humidity.    My friend and I have worn them here in Oklahoma for several years, and I swear they take 20 degrees off of the ambient temperature.  Additionally, we've had enthusiastic responses from soldiers in the Phillipines, where the humidity is 90%+.

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Wow!  Now that sounds great!  Thanks for the info!

I am the original poster of the Cool Ties thread and have some additional suggestions for everyone....

If you live in or close to a large city, check out the local Blue Star Moms or Marine Moms groups.  The local chapter in north Houston meets occassionally at a quilt shop to make cool ties.  Non-sew-ers are welcome as there is lots to do!  Most of the work is: wash, iron, measure, cut, flip, sew, turn inside out, iron again, measure, pin, sew, etc.  If your hand fits an iron or ruler it is welcomed!

If you buy the fabric, polymer, thread, etc. you may be able to find someone to sew for you.  The sewing is quite simple, its all of the ironing, measuring, etc. that is time consuming.  Try checking with a Girl Scout troop or 4-H group or even the Home Ec teacher at a local school.  They can get not only sewing credit but community service credit.

I buy material in bulk when I find it in the color and style I want.  REMEMBER it is better to pay a little more for the good fabric to insure the quality than to have a scratchy cool tie.  When I am "on a roll" I will have dozens of cool ties in various states of completion: just started, half way done, almost finished.  That way I don't bounce bank and forth between the sewing maching and the iron/measure.  On nights when there is nothing to do (or on TV) I sew all the cool ties to the next step.  When its a "good TV night" I set the ironing board in front of the TV and iron and measure dozens to the next step.

If you are lucky, like me, you have at least one other friend that has a sewing machine and a few others that like to help.  Set up a Saturday, two machines, two ironing boards, scissors, pins, etc., and a covered dish lunch.  You can either finish or get an excellent start on almost 100 in 8 hours.

I found one shortcut to making the coolties.  I started with good quality 100% cotton quilt fabric in a pattern sand/beige color that is very close to the desert camoflage color and instead of all the cutting with the wheel (my daughter-in-law has my large cutting board for my cutting wheel), I just carefully measured and clipped and slowly tore the fabric.  That really saves time and the body, and if you are not wild about the tearing, it doesn't end up being messy.

Gran