Knock It Off! Store Inspired Tutorial: Wired Fabric Headband

For the next installment of my Knock It Off: Store-Inspired Tutorials, I thought I'd take on a must-have summer accessory, the Wired Fabric Headband.  When days are hot, and hair is not cooperative, headbands are a lifesaver.  And they make the perfect accent to an outfit. Fabric styles feel best (I hate the pinchy plastic ones!), but they do tend to slip around, so a wired one is the ideal solution.  You can shape it in lots of ways and it'll stay in place without the usual headband headache.

ModCloth has some super cute wired headbands in their usual fun & funky prints, but at $14 each, that's a little pricey for just a strip of fabric and bit of wire.  My version is easy to make and for about the same price you can make a week's worth of headbands in all your favorite fabrics!

Materials Needed:

- 1/8yd of fabric
- Floral Cloth Wire
- Sewing Notions: rotary cutter/shears, iron, pins, fabric marking pen, yardstick

How To Do It:

Cut a strip of fabric that is 34 inches by 4 1/2 inches and press nice & flat.

Fold in half lengthwise, with wrong sides facing out.  Mark on an angle or do an upside down "V" or "U" shape on either short end.

Stitch all the way around the open sides with a 1/4 inch seam allowance, leaving a 1-2 inch gap on the longest side.  Trim down the ends.

Turn the headband right side out, using the marking pen or a knitting needle to carefully pull the ends out fully.  Press flat.

Now comes the wire.  Personally, I prefer to use cloth floral wire you can find in the floral crafts section.  It's thin, easily bendable wire with a thing cloth covering, so it doesn't feel quite as hard as the plain metal.  The one I found came in a package of 12 that were each 18 inches long.

I double knotted four wires together to make a circle.  Wrapping the ends around the main wire for extra reinforcement and so nothing pops through the fabric:

Then placing one end over my yardstick, I slipped it into the headband opening and into place.  The yardstick keeps the wire from bending or getting stuck while trying to snake it down.

I also did a couple of tack stitches near either end of the headband, just under the looped end of the wire.  This will keep the wire from slipping down or bunching in one spot (a common complain in the reviews on the ModCloth ones).

Topstitch around the edge with a 1/4 inch seam allowance.  

A sweet & sassy headband is now done!  Wear it tied at the back for a traditional look:

Up with the ends up top for a retro style:

The wire makes it easy to press the ends down or have them perked up at a jaunty angle.  You can even just tie it around a hairband to accent a ponytail.  And since you can use whatever fabric you want, have fun trying your favorite prints or vibrant colors for a totally unique or custom matched look.  

Total Knock Off Savings:  $35-40

Enough wire to make all 3 headbands shown was under $2.  I used leftover fabric remnants from past projects, but 1/8yd cuts would be about $1.50 or less depending on the fabric chosen.  Each takes less than 15 minutes to make so it's time & money well spent!

I'm also sharing this project with my FAVE LINK PARTIES.

Click HERE to check them out!