Lavender is known to promote sleep.
Commercial products, such as lotions, incorporate lavender into their ingredients for its fragrance. The herb also acts as a mild sedative, calming nerves and promoting sleep. A lavender sleep sachet placed under your pillow is a form of aromatherapy. The fragrance of lavender soothes the mind and body, allowing you to fully relax. Use dried lavender flowers for your sleep sachet. You may also want to add a few drops of lavender oil to increase the potency of the herbal aromatherapy.
Instructions
1. Select a breathable, lightweight fabric such as cotton, linen or muslin for your sachet. Cut the fabric into two 6-inch squares.
2. Place the squares together with right sides facing each other. Sew three of the sides together, leaving a 1/4-inch seam.
3. Turn the fabric pocket right side out. Use your fingers to push the bottom corners out so the seams are even and the fabric pocket is squared.
4. Press the fabric pocket with a warm iron to smooth out the seams. Turn the pocket inside out and turn back each of the raw edges 1/4 inch and pin them to create a hem on each edge.
5. Sew each of the turned edges, taking care not to sew the pocket closed. Press with a warm iron and turn right side out. Press the hemmed edges again to smooth if needed. Set the pocket aside.
6. Measure approximately 1 cup of lavender flowers into a cup with a small spout. Hold the fabric pocket by one of the hemmed edges and gently shake the dried lavender flowers into the pocket.
7. Fill the fabric pocket until the herbs reach the stitch line of the hemmed edges. Do not overfill. The dried flowers should be loose, not packed.
8. Hand-stitch the two hemmed edges together to close the fabric pocket. Gently knead the sachet to equally distribute the dried flowers. Place the sachet under your pillow.
9. Use a ribbon to close the sachet as an alternative. For this method of closure, fill the fabric pocket approximately two-thirds full with dried lavender flowers. Gently shake the dried material down and bunch the hemmed edges together. Tie the bundled sachet with a ribbon, ensuring the knot is tight enough to secure the opening.
10. Reopen the sachet to replenish the herb. Dried herbs lose their potency over time and need to be replaced. To replace the dried lavender leaves with new ones, untie the ribbon, empty the herbs and refill with new dried flowers. If the sachet was sewn shut, simply clip the hand stitching to open and sew shut again when the new herbs have been added.
Tags: fabric pocket, hemmed edges, dried lavender, lavender flowers, dried flowers, dried lavender flowers, edges together