It's that time of year again! The weather outside is frightful--and your hands are freezing while you're perusing through Dicken's Christmas Carol. What to do?

There are several ways you can remedy this issue: gloves, heating pads, etc. Gloves are thick and make it awkward to turn pages. Some heating pads are too big to carry around with you, others require you to reheat them (taking up your precious time).

This is a project I made for my engineering class with the help of my dad. Through trial and error, I created a book cover that provides heat. This book cover allows free movement of the fingers and is simple to make. All you have to do is attach it to a power outlet, relax, and enjoy reading with warm hands.

⚠️️SAFETY⚠️️

Take precautions when working with electricity and wiring.

Step 1: Procure Materials

Power plug
Wires for the plug
Power switch
Heat plate
Cloth (thick, I just used an old blanket)
Thread and needle
Binder clips OR glue

Step 2: Design Book Cover and "mitts"

Cut out the cloth to the shape of the book. Make sure to leave space to make the cover. For this project, I cut it to include a 1-inch border, but any size is fine. Near the area where the book's spine is, trim some more cloth. The leftover cloths that you just trimmed should have the length up to the spine and the width the spine length. With the cloth, fold it around the book so that the cloth becomes a book cover.

The mitts are where your hands will go when you hold the book.
Depending on your hand size, cut out four identical pieces of cloth that match that size. Personally, I cut out cloth measuring 5-1/2" x 4-1/2" x (13.97cm x 11.43). Then I shaped into the shape of an oven mitt, but without the thumb. Then sew the shapes together so you have two "mitts." Save these too.

Don't attach them together yet!

Step 3: Design the Heat Source

Place the wire under the heat plate and secure it with tape. Secure it with tape. Connect the wire to the power switch and the plug.

Step 4: Place Heat Source Under Mitts

Determine where you want to place the mitts. When you have done so, place the heat sources under them.

Step 5: Finalize Cover

Attach the mitts to your cover, depending on what you want. I just clipped it on with binder clips and secured the heat sources with tape due to time.

Finally, secure the cover onto the book. Again, I used binder clips.

Enjoy reading with warm hands!