Headbands-A-Plenty

Happy Mother's Day!

I was surfing the web of my favorite websites and blogs for some inspiration and I found some on P.S.-I Made This.  Today's project idea came from the braided headband all the way down the bottom of the page.

It is making headbands with covered elastic hair ties, scraps of fabric and odds and ends.  I not only braided some headbands but also made some from a bag of old neck ties I bought at a yard sale for a buck.

My odds and ends

Here is my collection of odds and ends: it includes neck ties, ribbon, yarn, lace and strips of fabric.  Yes, there is some feather boa in there, but it ended up being a bit too elaborate for a headband this time around.  I know, I'm no fun!

Good ol' Goody

First, I did the neck tie headbands first.  I used the skinny portion of the tie and cut a length that fit my head.

Making use of ugly neck ties

I knew these ties would come in handy!  I sewed one end around the elastic and pinned the other end to the elastic so I could fit it to my head perfectly.  I have a small head, so many elastic headbands slip off because they are too big.

Half done already

Once I got it where it fit the best, I sewed that end down.  Viola!  I'm done!

Ugly ties = chic headband

I made a few neck tie headbands, because they took no time to whip up.  I then made a few braided ones.  For the first one, I took a strip of denim, a green and white polka dot ribbon and a strip of black lace.  I sewed them around the elastic like I did the ties.

Neon is back!  Really!

That one had a very retro 80's feeling to it.  Very Debbie Gibson.  The second braided one, I took some brown chenille yarn, navy blue nylon cord and baby blue cotton yarn.

Skinny headbands are cool, too

That one is very skinny.  The chenille gives it texture that holds to your hair a bit.  The blue and brown together reminds me of Holly Hobby with her brown field boots and blue bonnet.

Love Holly Hobby! <3

So, all-in-all I made six headbands in the course of about an hour.  This was an easy project and you really don't even need a sewing machine.  You can just needle and thread the neck tie ones and then knot the braided ones.

Busy bee, I was

Show me some blog love and send me some pics or comments to let me know what your thinking!  I would love to see your WIPs or finished projects!

T-Shirt Skirts

I had leftover material from my 5K Shrug from a few weeks ago that I was going to throw away if I could not make something useful from it.  I figured it might make a cute skirt that I could use as a bathing suit cover-up or hanging around the house skirt.

Leftover 5K Shrug Material (T-shirt Bottom)

Here is what I had to work with.  It's not much, that's why I think it would be a good pool skirt.  I evened off the top raw edge with my rotary cutter.

Nice and Even

I always have elastic lengths in my sewing kit, so I measured some out and use the width of it to determine how thick my elastic casing needs to be.

Casing for the Elastic

I measured an inch and did not bother to iron the fold nor did I do a double-fold.  It's a hanging-around skirt, so I'm not too concerned with being exact and perfect.  I marked an area with purple chalk on the casing, to leave open so I can feed the elastic through.  You can't see the chalk markings, but they are between the cutting ruler and my second ruler on the right. 

Feeding the Elastic Through

I have a handy-dandy threader that I use in cases such as this, but if you do not have one, then a large safety pin works well too.

Once the elastic was in, I sewed the elastic ends to each other and then sewed the casing closed.  I made sure the elastic was flat and not twisted.  Then I fixed the runching so it was evenly distributed around the waist.  I sewed a tacking stitch or two on each side to anchor the elastic to the casing so it will not twist when I wash and wear it.

Very Plain

The skirt is very plain, but functional.  I would wear it with my tank top or shirt over the waistband.  Otherwise, it came out fine.  I'll have to bedazzle it or something (later, though)!

It's Comfy!

I have a second t-shirt that I wanted to chop up.  This one is an XL t-shirt that our bowling friend gave me.  He always gets promo stuff because he works for a liquor distributor company.  The t-shirt has the Malibu Black logo on it.  I love the original coconut-flavored Malibu rum, but I have not tried the Black yet.

This Will Make a Good Skirt

I cut the top part off, right below the armpits.  This t-shirt was really big, so I had to cut some width off too, or this would have looked like a sack on me.

Sewed Along the White Chalk Line

I did not want to have an elastic on this one though.  I decided to cut two strips from the leftover fabric and make this a side-tie skirt.

Side Ties

 I sewed these strips horizontally along the side of the top raw edge of the skirt. 

Sewed Only the One End Down

I tried it on and tied it.  Not too bad...I like it!

Side Tie Action

Here it is again:

Another Pool Skirt

This one is a bit more form-fitting, but I still like it.  I've lost a few pounds so I'm feeling pretty confident. 

Watch out pool...here I come!  (Saturday was really warm, like 80's, but today its back down to the high 50's...brrr!).  I will put these two away until the end of April.  It's never too early to prepare for warm weather!

Fix It - Turban Hair Wrap

This is something that I have been meaning to do for-ev-a.  I have two microfiber turban-style hair wraps.  You would use these rather than a towel to dry your hair from the shower.

Hair Wraps A Go-Go

The top part has a button on the outside and the bottom, skinnier part has an elastic loop.  You use this by flipping your head over with your hair hanging down, place the turban with the button end by the nape of your neck.  Take the body of the wrap and gather it around your hair and twist.  Then lift your head and bring the twisted part with your hair in it to the back of your head and secure in place with the elastic loop around the button.  Ingenious!  My friend, Nicole in Mass, has these and I used them for the first time at her place.  When I got home I searched for them and bought these through Avon.  Unfortunately, Avon does not sell them anymore, but I have seen them at drugstores and other places.  I have not seen another microfiber one, only terry material.  I'm partial to the microfiber.

Anyway, since I use these all the time, the elastic loops have stretched out and they are barely holding on.  I have a ton of extra elastic hair ties...so here goes.

No Elastic Left

Here is a close-up of how stretched out they are:

Streeeeetched Out

The hair elastics I chose to use are too small and I don't use because they do not go around my hair enough times.  For example, they can't go around 3 times, but 2 times is too loose.  So, these would be perfect to use and are just waiting to be repurposed.

Putting Them To Good Use

I cut off the old elastic loops and took a needle and thread and went to work.  I used lime green thread rather than black.  I did not want the thread to be seen from the outside of the turban.  Not like it really matters, but I had the green, so why not use it?  I pretty much sewed the elastic loops on the turban like I did when I made the camera cozy.  I just looped the thread around the elastic, not sewn through the elastic, like how it was originally. (It was sewn into the seam).

Wrapping The Thread

That was pretty much it.  I did this to both turban hair wraps and they are done.  I love easy projects!

I Am So Done!

I will model one of the turbans from behind:

Fabulous!

I imagine that one could make a hair turban wrap out of an old beach towel or bath towel.  All you need is the towel, a button and an elastic hair tie.  I've even seen them where the button is, there is a smaller elastic and the twisted end just goes through the elastic.  Maybe I'll try making one out of a towel someday.  Hmmmm.....