Polymer Crystals

Does anyone know if Watersorb or any other kind of polymer crystals are available anywhere for sale in Canada. Tried to order from the US but they do not ship to Canada. Said our government has issues' with them.
Barb

I'm sure Walmart sells polymer crystal cat litter. It would be much more cheaper to buy in this quanity.

Buy a box of diapers and rip em open maybe?

I am planting a dozen window boxes which tend to really dry out quickly so I thought these crystals would be the answer. Do you think the cat liter crystals are the same thing? Never thought of them, actually have some on hand. Wonder why we cannot purchase the jars of crystals at garden centers. Goggled them and cannot find anything untowards about them. I have heard of gardeners using the baby diapers, if I cannot find the crystals might give them a go. Cheers
Barb

Not sure if we are speaking of the same, but I purchase bags of them to do the sweatbands .. purchase them at Michaels...

Thank Bettypauze, a new Michaels store just opened here. Gives me an excuse to go and check it out.
Barb

are they the little crystals that you put 1 tsp. and they make 10 times their size... if so, yes they are at Michaels in the Floral Dept. I use them in my neckbands..when the weather is extremely hot, I soak the neckbands that have the crystals in them in cold water, the neckband enlarges and really cools you down for 5 or 6 hours, then I simply put it back in cold water and off I go again...when not needed I simply leave them out in the sun and they go back to their natural state..best think I've ever had to cool myself down..

I bought some through Lee Valley tools.
http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.aspx?c=1&p=51561&cat=2,51603&ap=2

Ann

Was looking for more, think they are cheaper at lee valley and I'm only 3 blocks away...good excuse for a visit...do want to make some neck water coolers...thanks for the info

Thank ViolaAnn........exactly what I was looking for. Bettypauze, great idea for the neck water coolers. I really can't handle the summer heat and contstantly have a small spray bottle of cool water on hand to cool me off. The neck water coolers sound like a much better and much more effective way to stay cool.
Barb

Barb have you ever seen them, if not I could take dimensions and tell you how to make them..it keep you cool almost the entire day with one soaking in cold water...

(jumping in here)

I would love to hear how to make them Betty!!!
I'm finding the heat harder to take myself the older I get.

Me too! Me too!

Will post tonight..think I have the pattern I made up after purchasing one at a Lakefront Bazzar..was so hot that day, she was sold out in 1hr...easy as 1-2-3-...just might get a piece of paper and cut to size here to entertain myself at work and post...be back in a few..

UGGGGG, just typed it up, incoming message came in and froze computer...yuk don't you just hate it..so now I'm off to 'windows' you'd think I'd learn to type it and then just copy on here...so shortly I'll have your info 'once again' lol

Neck Bank Coolant Bandana


Remember girls this is from memory..lol


Materials Required:

5 inches wide by approx. 36 to 40 inches long (depends on neck size) I enjoy using nice bright colors

2 to 3 level tablespoons of ‘crystals’


Folding your material width sides together you’ll see that you are creating a tube
That once sewn with a ½” seam allowance will be 4 ½” by the length
-good sides facing inwards


I found as not to have neck bulk I now press this piece so that the seam allowance is
Placed in the center and ironed…still you have the piece with good sides inwards

I now fold the piece in half, iron it and re-open it..this gives me a true center…

Now I sew from ½” away from the center down, reverse and sew ½” from the
Other side…you will now have a 1” center opening just large enough to allow you to
Insert your crystals when it’s time…because of the amount of use this bandana
Will get, I re-enforce the seams 2 or 3 times..

To make the bandana more attractive at the ends, I sew on an angle from the end
in to about 4” on each end piece…to crisp these ends I snip a bit of the seam
allowance off and insert a sharp object such as knitting needle into the end to create
a sharp point…

Now I turn it inside out – good side now facing you…at about 5 or 6” from the width
end almost where your angle comes to – maybe a few inches further in sew going in
from the width side 2 or 3 times to re-enforce…this stops the crystals from floating
into the ends of the bandana…

Now you can add your crystal and slip stitch the 1” opening that was left for inserting
Crystals..
On a hot day I put the bandana in the zinc with cold water and let the crystals
expand..you can almost get a full day out of one soaking, when I feel there is no
more coldness to it I just turn it on my neck and like magic, you are cool again..

Hope you can figure this out, if not..let me know I’ll I’ll make one step by step…

Enjoy, great little give away gifts…

Thanks Betty! This is going to be wonderful when I'm working out in the hot sun this year.

Excellent instructions, thankyou, Betty, I bought a jar of these from Lee Valley 2 years ago, not realising it was going to be about a ten-year supply! So this is a great use for some of them.

Thanks for the instructions Betty, now if I can talk my DH into making me one I will be all set. Have never sewn anything in my life, at 60 I can't imagine starting now unless I can use that sewing glue that I use for everything LOL
Barb

Come on Barb, these are exactly what you should be learning on..simply straight line sewing and not many seams...I'm challenging you...that's a girl, get some material out..gotta see a finished product...

I will get all the supplies, the polymer crystals, the material, the thread, the needles and the instructions ready for DH when he gets back from Afghanistan next week. We have a Singer sewing machine I bought 20 years ago that was used twice, wonder does it still work. Probably all dried up. DH will think I've lost it but he sees how much the heat bothers me.....it was 43 degrees C in Kandahar yesterday. I don't know how anyone functions in that kind of heat. We don't have that problem here, still raining and cold. Tulips are still waiting for a sunny day to open.
Barb

This is a 'just in case' reply to this thread. Someone mentioned cat litter as a possible source for polymer crystals ? Just in case someone wanted to try that, well, the litter is very different from the crystals you find at Michaels and Lee Valley. Litter crystals do absorb liquid, but they stick together like glue once wet and dry into a hard mass. They also don't swell up much, if at all. I got some once to try and while the cat didn't mind it, I didn't like it at all. Now I use compostable/ flushable litter made from corn cobs.

Fwiw, I have sometimes found those water absorbing crystals in dollar stores, usually in little plastic packets in the bridal or craft section. Instructions, if there are any, sometimes mention it looks like ice when wet, or that you can colour it with food colouring. The dollar store packets I've seen are pretty small, one of them might, possibly, make one bandana.

Threegardeners....let me know how you like the bandana's..lol...it's here I saw you post your interest and when I got your name in the 'swap' thought OMG there could be one of the items..

I like them!!
DH wore his around his neck yesterday afternoon while mowing the lawn, he always picks the hottest part of the day to do that task...

Well don't leave them in water until they are so tubular and heavy, hard on the neck..if you have, then simply leave in the sun and they'll start to shrink..

I bought 5 pounds of crystals from a gal in Texas (Tammy, a DGer) for about $40 including shipping. She sent me half large (which swell to about 1.5") and half small (about the size of a peanut). They are great in my deck boxes, and at the cottage when I can only be there to water on weekends.

I made one of the neck coolers a couple of years ago during Chamber Fest - the Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival. Most of the concerts are held in hot churches. I found one of the Lee Valley packets was enough but I found I needed to rewet it from time to time to keep the cooling effect.

Ann

Can anyone post pictures of these neck bandana's please...Im kinda challenged in this department but would love to see one and perhaps I could figure it out then.

Hope this helps..just finished about 20 of them...must get them mailed out..lol

Thanks Betty, looking forward to getting mine..lol