Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Athletic Headbands {DIY}

Remember a girl who recently fell in love with a certain headband company? I was smitten, ready to order one in every single design. They were everything I wanted in a headband and oh so affordable...
so I thought.

If you have spent any amount of time around me you would know 2 things about me.

1. Saving money is not only important to me, it is necessary.

2. If I can make something myself, I'll do it. I am all about the DIY.

So I got creative.


Supplies needed:
Knit fabric that stretches approximately 4" wide by 18" long
Scissors
Pin
Needle and thread or a sewing machine.

First off let's talk fabric. What you are looking for is a knit fabric that stretches. You can find this at just about any fabric store. You want to pay attention to the feel of the material. Some feel cotton like, you don't want those. You are looking for a slick, polyester type material that HAS stretch.
I bought about 5" to make sure I had plenty to work with.

Fabric in hand your ready to start!

You want to cut the material in a rectangle approximately 4.5" wide and about 18" long. Try and keep it as square as you can. I discovered a few things making bands, these bands are very forgiving and some fabrics roll A LOT leaving them nearly impossible to lay out to cut. Just do the best you can and hopefully you end up with something like this.


Take that piece and fold it in half length wise with the right sides facing each others.


Fold that in half width wise.


Fold it in half one last time, width wise and secure the raw edges with a pin.

It should now look like this.




Get out the sewing machine and sew across this part of the band leaving about 1/4" seam


I usually sew back and forth a few times. It doesn't end up looking pretty but the good news is, it doesn't matter! You won't see this part of the band.


Flip right side out and your seam will now look like this.

Project complete. If it doesn't fit tight enough that is easy to fix with another seam.


Project cost: 

 I made 8 bands for less than the price of buying one. I don't even need to put a calculator to those numbers to know how much more affordable DIY'ing is.

Note: some materials look fine on their own with their raw edge, others may want to roll a bit but you can easily tuck the edge under a bit if the fabric wants to try and do that. You can also scrunch them up or fold them in half if your just looking for a cute accessory!


Now I am left with only one question.

How many headbands is to many?

post signature


6 comments:

  1. Wow! That is super easy, and what a great stocking stuffer for a girl! I'd love for you to share this project with my readers at Motivation Monday. http://www.alifeinbalance.net/motivation-monday-linky-party-117/

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  2. Love this! Such a perfect DIY and a great little "thinking of you" gift for all the runner friends in your life for Christmas!

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  3. As someone who doesn't own a sewing machine, this seems easy enough. But I'll leave it up to the professionals... YOU!

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    1. Haha, professional! Yeah right, such a flattering comment though!

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  4. Love that band! And, I totally admire your ability to see something you like, and then go and make it yourself. I'm all, sewing machine? Yikes. Pass. My mom is a big time sewer, though. Maybe I can see if she'd be willing to help assist in this little DIY.

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  5. I love these! They look like a great idea for bad hair days! :)

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