Bow Tie Headband Hack

ok you guys... I think I forgot I had a blog. Ready for the first post in a long, long time? I'm going to start things out right with an awesome project idea that I have had for years. And that, of course, is Bow Tie Headbands, or to be more appropriate for 2014:

go ahead and pin it

I originally got the inspiration when I saw a picture of this bow tie:

It's a pretty awesome looking bow tie, and all I could think of looking at it was how cute it would be as a hair bow. And then of course I had my A-HA moment where I decided I could totally make that.

Fast forward a few years later and here I am, having decided it would be a great craft day project for my friend, Jessica, and me.

The supplies are simple. You will need the following:

° hot glue gun and glue sticks

° finger guards

° scissors

° plain headbands

° pre-formed bow ties

The reason I chose these specific bow ties is because not only are they inexpensive and come in a pack of 5, but also because they are "fake" and pre-formed. This means that you not only don't have to tie your own perfect bow, but also the fabric that would normally go around a person's neck when wearing the bow tie (I'm going to call that the strap) has already been sewn into a tube and therefore makes this project SUPER easy and fast. This is the set of bow ties that I chose:

Cause they're super cute and I really like the rainbow and the stars...they reminded me the most of the heart bow tie that gave me the inspiration for this project.

So this entire project maybe took 30 minutes. Seriously. And I think this could easily be done with kids, provided that they have help with the hot glue gun. 

So here are the steps:

1) After unpacking your bow ties, cut the metal clasp off of one end of the strap (to be honest, you can cut both clasps off, just be sure to not cut too much fabric off of the strap...I waited to cut the other end to make sure the bow tie was long enough to cover my headband).

2) Slide the bow off of the strap (another good reason to use "fake" pre-formed bow ties).

it's hard to see the black clasp, but here is the strap sliding out from the bow

 here's the underside of the bow without the strap

3) Slide your plain craft headband into the strap's open end until it's fully covered by the material. (A note about the headbands. In my supply list, I link to whimseybox's store for your convenience. However, when I created this project I used plain headbands that I bought from a drugstore, they came 6 to a pack and were inexpensive but comfortable. I got those because I wanted to try some on in-person as I like a loose fitting headband. You can get any kind you'd like, any will work with this project though I wouldn't go for something really thin or super thick (circa style in 1992). You can see in the pictures the thickness that I used.)

slide the headband into the cut end of the strap

 

work the strap around the headband until the headband is fully covered

how your headband should look so far

4) Using a hot glue gun and finger guards (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) put a small dab of hot glue inside the open end of the strap so that it glues closed around the end of the headband. Using finger guards on your thumb and forefinger, pinch the end to flatten the glue. Don't worry if the glue seeps out, you can trim that in a later step.

hot glue the end so the fabric stays put
(the headband is farther along in this image but the process is the same)

 [with your finger guards on] pinch the glued end to flatten the glue

5) Pull the fabric taut and then trim the strap on the other end of the headband. (The side that still has a clasp.) Then repeat step 4 for this side of the strap.

6) Let the glue cool and harden (I started other headbands while I waited), then use scissors to trim the ends of the headband cover into a rounded shape (for comfort). Make sure to trim any hardened glue that seeped out.

cut the excess glue off

 use this step to make comfortable rounded edges

7) You should now have a covered headband and a loose bow. Slip the bow onto the headband, keeping it off-centered to one side. I kept my bow unattached so that I can change the position should I ever want to. It doesn't slide around so I find no need to attach it. (Optional: Once positioned where you like, secure bow with hot glue onto covered headband.) 

slip the headband back in through the bow

 slide the bow in place (gluing is optional)

There you go. That's it! Super easy and quick and produces an inexpensive cute headband with endless possibilities.

they are so quick and easy that we made all these in about 30 minutes

me trying out my brand new headband :)

Jessica modeling her super cute polka dot headband

Just remember that nothing is what it seems, just because something was invented for one thing doesn't mean it has to stay that way. Enjoy this bow tie headband hack. Thanks for reading, and special thanks to my good friend Jessica for the help and the fun craft day.

° victoria °