Headband Tutorial with Woven Fabric

I have been seeing these headbands all over Pinterest for weeks now! I love them, they're super cute, and they look pretty simple to make. Problem is, almost all the tutorials I've seen are using stretchy knit fabrics, and well, I had a great woven fabric I want to give this a whirl with.

Love these!

Being a firefighter's wife, I could not resist this silky print (with all those fiery colors) on one of my trips to the local Joann's. It was begging to come home with me. So it did! Well, like most of the fabric in my stash, I did not have solid plans for it when I got it, but I've made a lovely kimono-like robe out of a big portion of it since. It's gorgeous, if I do say so. Since I had some leftovers, and I've been itching to make these headbands, I decided to combine the two. My solution for the lack of stretch? A simple hair-tie. Like the ones you get at pretty much any store in a 50-pack for $5. I'm sure there's a few lying around in every home. So, let's get this tutorial started!

Supplies:

Fabric (two 8" x 24" rectangles)

Thread

Hair Tie

Sewing Machine/Serger

Pins

Ruler

Scissors/Rotary Cutter

First things first, cut those 8" x 24" rectangles out of your main fabric. Yes, it does look a little long, but don't worry, that'll be fixed later. Better to have extra fabric than not enough. I had to use my rotary cutter and mat for this, because my fabric is super slippery, but scissors are more than enough for less shifty fabrics.

One of my rectangles

Fold the rectangles in half lengthwise, right sides together, and pin along the edge. Separately, of course.

Even the wrong sides look fiery

Sew or serge along the side you just pinned. It doesn't have to be a very big seam. And if you're worried about your fabric fraying, serging is the way to go. Unless you don't have a serger. Then just clip the raw edge with pinking shears (those zig-zagged scissors) to avoid the worst of the fraying. We'll be hiding this seam later, anyway.

Seams serged for neatness

Turn the tubes right side out!

Now we get to see the pretty side

Once both tubes are turned out, make sure the seam is in the middle and press those puppies down! You don't have to press them, of course, but at least make sure the seam will stay flat in the middle, ok?

You can barely tell where the seam is with this print

Now lay the two tubes across one another in an "X" shape. The seam of the bottom tube should face up, and the seam of the top tube should face down. You'll see why in a second.

Line them up at the middle

Fold the bottom tube over the top tube, so the open edges meet. The seam is now hidden inside.

Bottom folded in half

Now fold the top tube in half as well, and pin the ends together as well.

Now it's starting to look like something... finally!

We've got that wonderful knot/twist/whatever it is in the middle now. Just like on Pinterest. Lovely.

Close-up of the knot

The edges should be pinned and then sewn across now.

Three pins is plenty

Now we get to the measuring portion! Measure around your head where you want to headband to lie. Take this number and subtract 1 inch. This is to give a little space to the hair-tie that we'll be inserting later. Note: If you do not have a serger and plan to fold the fabric ends twice to hide all the raw edges when finishing, leave yourself enough of a "hemming" allowance! Make sure both sides are even (or not, if you want the knot off to the side later) and pin the ends together again to mark your new edges.

I have a narrow head, so yours might well be longer than 19"

Sew across the new "end" you just pinned with the longest straight stitch setting you have. Gather the fabric together nice and tight.

Gathering

Once the end is gathered, you can cut off the excess fabric on the end. I didn't because I planned to serge the edge to make it neat, and my serger will cut the fabric for me. Sergers are clearly designed for lazy people like me.

All gathered up

Finish the edge either with a serger or by folding it over once in a very narrow hem. If you are folding it, yes, do it only once right now. You'll make the second fold over the hair tie in a minute.

It's almost done!

Take one end of the headband and fold it over the hair tie. Pin in place, and sew it down (leave just enough of a tube for the hair tie to still shift a bit though). Using a zipper foot on your sewing machine might make it easier to get close to the hair tie's edge. I wouldn't know, I just forced my machine to put up with my demands. Hehe. Repeat with the other side of the headband and same hair tie, making sure not to twist the headband around (and sewing it down upside down). You want the outsides to match at the hair tie.

Attaching headband to the hair tie

And there you are! A spectacular new headband for any occasion! Dress it up or down, add beads, etc. Or go back to Pinterest and find one of those other cool knots to try making with woven fabrics. A Celtic knot would look so neat!

Still loving that fabric's print

Sorry I didn't get a picture of the headband on my head, but I am not having a good hair day... must be the humidity. I still have a good chunk of this fabric left, so you may see it again sometime in the future. Hint, hint. Let me know how your headband turns out, and if you have any other questions, write it in the comments section!


Happy Sewing,
Lea