One thing I have learned from living with a cat for awhile…or specifically Charlie is that he loves warmth despite that thick fur coat of his. In Winter when I drop by Mum’s place, my brother, Charlie and me would be fighting to be near the heater and with reasonable size of cat mass (6-7 kilo cat) and sharp claws, you can imagine who wins at that game…bro and I had no chance. So one day, my uncle thought this sibling fighting needed to end and he bought Charlie a wheatpack for Christmas. Yes, Charlie does get Christmas presents from the family. It goes to show how much he is loved by all…grrr not all the time! I had never heard of a wheatpack until Charlie got one from my uncle for Christmas.
So what do you normally do with a wheatpack? You heat it up in the microwave (2 minutes and NO MORE as it is combustible) or leave it on top of a heater to warm up. It’s like a hot water bottle except what’s in it is not hot water but wheat instead so when you sit on it or hold it, its nice and warm. It’s a great accessory for Winter. So that’s Charlie’s wheatpack and it’s something he sleeps with on cold Winter’s nights. It’s like a security blanket for him when its his bedtime. It is not a total substitute for the heater but good enough.
OK, so
what about me? I stumbled across a little beautiful little store via Instagram called Pikkie, based in Melbourne. The creator behind Pikkie is Susan Llewelyn who makes a range of quality homewares, fashion accessories and gifts and with Pikkie’s vast range of colours, you can mix and match to decorate your home with some eye pleasing, lovely items.
I noticed Pikkie had a wheatpack in a lovely pastel French style fabric called the ‘French Journal Wheatpack’ ($24.95) and immediately what came to mind is my cat would like that. But hang on a minute, he’s already got one and spoiled enough already, plus he wouldn’t like it scented. So I decided to try Pikkie’s wheatpack. After all if Charlie likes it, it must be good.
Pikkie’s wheatpack is unique and made with care by hand using 100% cotton designer fabric, filled with Australian Premium Wheat and scented with a touch of locally sourced lavender. It arrived beautifully packaged and tied with natural twine (as shown above).You don’t see these in stores often (maybe only in pet stores!) and it comes in a range of designs to decorate your home.
I was a little apprehensive in putting it in the microwave given my recent disaster with chestnuts exploding in my oven (but that’s because I didn’t cut the skin of the chestnuts) but tried it on 1.5 min on high and that was enough to give you a warm comfort cushion for you to lean on in your chair on a cold day. It was perfect and the lavender smells divine. I have weekly dance training and it’s great to relieve aching muscles.
Traditionally Pikkie products have included colourful fabric based items like aprons, doorstops, wheatpacks, showercaps, draughtstoppers, cushions and headbands. Today the range has expanded to include quality women’s handbags, hair accessories and a full range of spa and beauty products such as luxurious and natural body lotions, soaps, soy candles, bubble bath for kids and adults.
Pikkies products are predominantly designed and made by hand by Susan and her team of local sewers and creative artists, whom combined, ensure that a Pikkie product is always something special.
Check out her aprons too – they look like dresses which would make great gifts, particularly with Christmas not too far off!
These make absolutely delightful gifts and Pikkie can deliver anywhere in Australia, another bonus.
Website
www.pikkie.com.au
