Not sure how many sewing folks are out there, but I was rather disappointed by the expense and look of the cooling vests out there so I decided to make my own. I used and underbust corset pattern (butterick 6114) but any similar style would work. Left an opening in the back between the lining and the outer fabric, and did the same on the two front sides. And then simply used the clay ice packs cut down to size and resealed with a vacuum sealer as my cooling packs. Will update after I finish experimenting with homemade clay packs that seem to be a ratio of natural clay and mineral oil (going to try sand too to see if it’s lighter and will still hold the cooling effect as long and remain as mealiable)

All told it cost $20 for the ice packs, $1.00 for the pattern since Joann’s had a $1 butterick pattern sale and $2 for the light fleece material also on sale at Joann’s and you only need 3/4 a yard for lining and outer pieces. It’s worn under the cloths and is close fitting enough that no one will even know and took only about an hour to make start to finish. Definitely going to be making lots more of them 😊.

Anyways thought I would share since the cheapest cooling vest I’ve found to date was a bulky one with hard ice packs that lasts about 2 hours and was still over $50. Sure it takes the sales to make it for $23 ($20 in just the ice packs) but even without the sales prices I could make it for under $30. And if I really wanted to be frugal I could have made my own pattern and gone for more of belt type style and used a goodwill sweatshirt or large flannel shirt. So if you can sew or have family or friends that know their way around a machine, it’s a great alternative.