I have a thing for headbands. They are a great way to keep little flyaways out of my face, and also a nice way to accessorize. Unfortunately, good headbands seem really hard to come by. The plastic ones always pinch behind my ears and give me a headache, and most of the elastic ones end up sliding right off my head. Not terribly helpful. So I decided to make my own.
A few years back, my buddy Emily’s mom had made me a fabric one that I liked quite a bit, aside from 2 problems: 1) It didn’t stay put (see above), and 2) the fabric part was really wide, so it didn’t lie flat against my head-it sort of poofed up in the back, which wasn’t terribly flattering. So I decided to sort of go with her basic idea, and create a better fitting headband. Sadly, I no longer have said headband as a guide, but I remember it pretty well nonetheless.
Reversible Fabric Headbands
Materials:
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Cardstock (to make a template)
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2 coordinating fabrics (or you can choose to use just one)
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1/2 inch elastic
The first thing I did was create a template to help make sure that my headband would be symmetrical. To do this, I folded a piece of cardstock in half length-wise. I knew I wanted my finished headband to be a bit less than 2 inches wide at the wides point, so at the top of the piece of cardstock, I measured 1 inch out from the fold.
I wanted the fabric of the headband to be long enough that it would extend behind my ears on both sides, so I measured the top of my head from ear to ear, which was about 16 inches. So I then measured 8 inches down from the top of the cardstock (we’re going to cut on the fold of the fabric, so we only need to do half the length!).
Finally, down at my 8 inch length mark, I measured out about 1/2 inch out from the fold, because I knew I wanted my headband to taper to about 1 inch where it meets the elastic. Using a flexible ruler as a guide, I traced a slightly curved line from the 1 inch mark at the top of the cardstock to the 1/2 inch mark 8 inches down. Then, with the cardstock still folded, I cut along the line, so that when I opened up the cardstock, I had a finished, symmetrical and even template.
Now it was time to cut out my fabric. Because this was an experiment, I decided to use a fabric I’m not particularly fond of, so that I wouldn’t be upset if it didn’t work out. (Funnily enough, Ben absolutely loves this fabric. I was wearing my new headband when he got home from work and one of the first things out of his mouth was “I really like that headband!”)
I folded my fabric in half, and placed the template along the fold. I used a water soluble marker to trace around the template-I cut two pieces. I also cut a 6 inch length of elastic.
Next, I placed the fabric pieces on top of one another, right sides facing, and stitched down the long ends with a 1/8 inch seam allowance, as I didn’t want to lose too much width. Afterwards, I turned the fabric right side out and pressed it flat.
One either end, the raw edges were sticking out, so I folded them inside and pressed to make nice, neat openings.
Now, it was time to attach the elastic to the fabric. I did this by sliding one end of the elastic into the opening at one end of the fabric sandwich. I only put about 1/4 inch in, and stitched it down very close to the edge. I did the same thing on the other side.
Lastly, to give the headband a nice, finished look, I topstitched all the way around about 1/8 of an inch from the edge.
I’m pleased to report that this headband is a definite success. It stays in place, does not pinch, and lies flat against my head, the way it should. I can’t wait to make lots more to match all my outfits!
