::Best Band Ever::
June 12, 2007
Headband that is. (I’m still working on the Bagsket tutorial…that thing is a beast. So here’s a quick something to tide you over.)
I’m seeing more and more headbands pop up so I decided to take a swing at it myself. I went through at least 20 prototypes before I finally nailed it. These fit perfectly! There’s a WIDE and a NARROW version. The WIDE version has an extreme taper so that you get the full pattern blast at the crown of your head, but it still fits comfortably behind your ears. The NARROW version is simple and easy to make and tapers nicely too.
Want to make your own? Read the full post for the tutorial.
Headband Tutorial
Materials:
- Templates: Headband Tutorial Template Cut out the one (wide or narrow) you want
- 4 inch piece of braided elastic (it’s better than the woven elastic)
- 2 x [4" x 20"] strips of fabric that you love. Use different fabrics so you have a reversible headband
- 1 x [4" x 20"] strip of moderately stiff single-sided fusible interfacing (I tried Timtex - it was too heavy)
- Pins, Iron, Sewing Machine, Coordinating Thread, Blah blah blah
Notes:
- These headbands fit most women’s heads. If you have a smaller head, use 1 inch less elastic.
- Templates include the necessary seam allowances
- I used 100% cotton on my bands, but you could use any ironable fabric you like. I would LOVE to see what you make.
- Stitching the elastic in can be a bit of a bear if your feed dogs don’t catch. Just use the tip of your seam ripper or something pointy and firm to help “guide” the ends under the needle.
- The interfacing is optional. It adds a nice stiffness and shape to the headband, but I made a few without any interfacing and they worked perfectly too.
- I am not a seamstress by any means. My “templates” are pretty amateurish but they work for me and I’ve used them at least 10 times now so I think they’re solid. But consider yourself warned.
Step 1: Gather your materials kids!
Step 2: Following the manufacturer’s instructions, fuse one strip of fabric (wrong side facing) to the interfacing
Step 3: Fold your strips lengthwise and align the “fold” end of the template on the fold of the strip. Trace and cut or pin and cut both strips. The templates include the necessary seam allowance.
Step 4: Fold down each end of both fabric strips (along the “crease” line on the template) and iron.
Step 5: With right sides facing, pin the strips together and sew along each LONG side using a 1/4″ seam allowance. Do not sew the short ends together. Make sure to reinforce at the beginning and end of each side and take care when you turn the curve when using the wide template. I find keeping the interfaced fabric on top makes the sewing go easier. 
Step 6: To reduce bulk, pink along each side taking care not to cut into your seam. Pink up to but not along the short ends. Alternatively, you can can trim the seam allowance to 1/8 inch (don’t cut into the seam itself).
Step 7: Turn your tube inside out and iron flat. The turning is the hardest part of the whole thing. Use a large safety pin to catch the end of the interfaced fabric (don’t go through both layers). Use that pin to help turn the tube rightside out. Take your time…it’s worth it.
Step 8: Stitch along the side of the headband using a 1/8″ seam allowance (or whatever you think looks pretty). When you reach one short end, tuck one end of the elastic about 1/2″ up into one end of the tube. As close to the end of the tube as possible, sew along the end to secure the elastic. Backstitch and then forward stitch to reinforce this join. Continue down the other side of the headband.
Step 9: When you reach the other end, tuck the other end of the elastic into the end of the headband and sew as you did on the other end. Make sure you didn’t “twist” your headband and that the elastic and headband form a nice smooth continuous circle. Reinforce the elastic join at this end too.
Ta-da! A completely reversible, comfortable and secure headband.
Let me know if anything is unclear or if you run into any issues. Cheers! -Suzanne
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1.
Amy | June 12, 2007 at 6:08 pm
Awsome, now I can go make a ton more of these. I’m wearing the prototype one I snagged from you last Wed right now and it rocks.
2.
Diana | June 12, 2007 at 7:01 pm
I work mine yesterday all day
Great work!
3.
l3ahkn1ts | June 12, 2007 at 8:57 pm
Can I be the tester/ guinea pig?! That would be perfect for summer instead of the Calorimetries. or heck, i’ll just buy one from you. can you bring one to try tomorrow?
4.
Andrea | June 26, 2007 at 6:44 pm
Great tutorial. It’s just what I was looking for and I’m going to try this out now.
5.
stephen trick | June 27, 2007 at 6:58 pm
i’m interestd in buying a few headbands do you know of any places on line that sell these.many thanks stephen
6.
eliza | June 28, 2007 at 11:26 pm
awesome — my roommate asked for headbands and i am definitely going to use your pattern! thanks for sharing.
7.
fireflylane | July 6, 2007 at 3:43 am
thank you so much i can’t wait to try this out
Julie
8.
Sew? « Earthwhisper&hellip | July 6, 2007 at 10:33 pm
[...] bags to line. I have a pocket to fix on Tony’s shorts. I might even see if I can make one of these or these or [...]
9.
Susan Pettit | August 31, 2007 at 7:48 pm
I am trying to use your template for the headband. And when I cut my fabric you said cut 20 inches long. which I did but when I use your emplate and I fold my fabiric it’s to short. Should I enlage your template to make my headband longer
10.
Giabella Designs | September 27, 2007 at 11:56 am
I tried you tutorial last night. It didn’t turn out bad but it didn’t look quite like your. What did I do wrong. It took me a whol hour to turn my fabric. Should I have put lining on both pieces?
11.
Starbody » Blog Arc&hellip | November 18, 2007 at 8:59 pm
[...] speaking of the friend. She is a master crafter and has really nice instructions for making a lovely little headband that seems like a nice Sunday project. I’ll be after her for help with my elusive [...]
12.
Sew,Mama,Sew! Blog »&hellip | November 22, 2007 at 3:08 pm
[...] Band Ever Suzanne’s Best Band Ever Tutorial on her blog, foofanagle, has two versions and a template to [...]
13.
Jenny | November 27, 2007 at 6:49 pm
Trying this out and it’s turning out great! What width of elastic did you use? That’s the only measurement I can’t seem to find… Thanks, I’ll post a photo when it’s all done!
Jenny
14.
santa’s crafty litt&hellip | November 27, 2007 at 10:02 pm
[...] headbands and ribbon headbands -cause my head is bigger than average and I will have to make my own to size so I can actually wear them with out a super-headache [...]
15.
Kristie | November 28, 2007 at 4:58 pm
Suzanne, I LOVE the headbands! I made a fewe for Christmas gifts and when I asked my daughters to try them on for size, they wouldn’t give them back
Guess I’ll have to make more. I’ll send pictures when I get a chance — they’re super cute (and cheap, and easy). Thanks so much for the tutorial!
16.
Kristie | November 28, 2007 at 5:00 pm
That’s “few”. I do know how to spell!
17.
Christiana | November 29, 2007 at 7:32 am
I just made approx. 20 of this for little gifts for my daughters’ friends both the narrow and wide. They look great! One trick my seamtress mom taught me years ago when making a tube is to sew a piece of string or yarn inbetween the right sides (you have to sew one end shut with the string and then leave it hanging out the other end then just open the sewn end with a ripper once right sides are out) then you just pull on the string helping it turn. Thanks for posting this pattern! Great fun! I loved the fabrics you used!
18.
Jennifer | December 14, 2007 at 5:59 pm
Can’t wait to make these tonight for stocking stuffers, and what a great tip from Christiana!
19.
I want a headband! «&hellip | February 23, 2008 at 12:56 am
[...] for the 3rd week in a row, as I always do. So before I embark on anything else, I am going to make this headband from a tutorial which, like the pincushion, I read about on sewmamasew’s Handmade Holidays. Why do I keep [...]
20.
carrotflowers » Blo&hellip | March 3, 2008 at 5:31 pm
[...] for the 3rd week in a row, as I always do. So before I embark on anything else, I am going to make this headband from a tutorial which, like the pincushion, I read about on sewmamasew’s Handmade Holidays. Why do I keep [...]
21.
Fabric Band at eager litt&hellip | March 16, 2008 at 6:34 pm
[...] I’ve mentioned before that I have an abnormally large head for a woman. Really. I do. Especially since I’m only 5′3″. I have a really difficult time finding women’s hats that fit, and even in men’s hats I have to get a large or extra large size. With my recent disaster of a haircut I wanted to get a few thick headbands to wear as it grows out. But since my head is big they are usually too small and pinch and give me headaches. So I decided to make a few fabric bands. Last night I took some of my scrap fabric and tried out foofanagle’s best band ever tutorial. [...]
22.
Tori | March 21, 2008 at 1:27 pm
I did this tut today and it was totally easy. I’m so excited about these, I’m going to make a lot for my daughter and some of her friends. Thanks for a wonderful tutorial!!
23.
» Blog Archive &raq&hellip | April 6, 2008 at 3:18 pm
[...] would like to make these head bands for my girls. Since I have lots of scraps from skirts and things that I’ve made, I think [...]
24.
janice | April 8, 2008 at 11:59 pm
I can not wait to use these!! wowo I am so glad i found your blog! you ROCK!!
25.
stine | April 13, 2008 at 1:44 pm
fantastic, thanks so much for sharing! i just tried it and it works perfectly. it’s really fast, too. needed only about 20 minutes to make one. now i know how to use all those slim, long fabric leftovers…
26.
Throwback Thursday: Headb&hellip | May 15, 2008 at 7:28 pm
[...] June, Foofanangle featured a great headband tutorial. (You might have seen this on Sew, Mama, Sew during Handmade Holidays [...]