Friday Night Tutorials! - Trim Headband

When you deal with fabric as much as we do suffice it to say it gets the ol' creative juices flowing. I was in the drugstore not too long ago and saw these elastic and lace headbands for sale for 7 bucks. Insane. Making these types of headbands are so easy and so inexpensive I am sort of embarrassed to post this tutorial. The hardest part of this project is picking out the trim you want to use. You can use any sort of trim for this project. Lace, gimp, rope, strips of fabric (like the ones in Jellyrolls or what have you), ric rack, sequins...the options are endless.

They work up really quick and you can make a headband to match any outfit. You could even make headbands for your bridesmaids or even for a children's party. It is that easy and the results are beautiful.



What you need -

- Trim of your choice. I used some of our kitty trim, floral trim and rhinestone trim. You could actually use any trim for this.
- Sewing machine or needle and thread if hand sewing.
- 1/2" Elastic
- Scissors
- Tape measure (Couldn't be there for the photo, the cat was trying to eat it.)

Instructions -

Measure your head in the way a normal headband would lay. Remember that number.

Cut piece of trim so it runs from the bottom of one ear, over the top of your head and then the bottom of the other ear. I find that this is best since you get the most trim coverage.

Measure that trim piece and subtract that from the whole measurement of your head. That's how much elastic you need. Then again I winged it and I am sure you can too. If you want the headband tighter then make the elastic less, looser use more elastic.

Thread a needle and lets get sewing!

With the floral trim I simply overlapped the trim and the elastic and zigzagged across a few times one both sides. This is easily hand-sewed.




With the kitty trim the trim end is larger than the elastic. So I just folded into a nice point, placed the elastic underneath and sewed across. If you are hand sewing you can iron the point so it stays while you sew.



It was a little more difficult with the rhinestone trim. I wanted to make a double headband, sort of a Grecian look. I love my machine too much to subject it to hard little rhinestones and plastic so I hand-sewed this one.

- First sew the 2 strands together.



Then start to sew them on the elastic. Repeat for other side.



And voila! You have awesome headbands that cost mere pennies. We all have random trim hanging around so this is not only great for using your remnants but also wonderful as a first sewing project.

I hope you liked this tutorial. Check out our Etsy and Artfire shops for all sorts of interesting trim! We also have a great sale going on so get clicking. Check back next Friday for a new tutorial.

Halloween Fun - Toga, Toga, Toga!

We have a vintage mannequin in store that we call Midge. Midge is usally kicking around in a sequin tube dress (Which we sell by the way.) but since Halloween is coming up, I thought it would be nice to help her get into the spirit and dress her up accordingly.
The other day she was in the mood for toga. She was feeling very Helen of Troy so we decided to deck her out in the best of Roman finery and it couldn't have been easier.
Here is what I did....

- Take 2-3 yards of opaque fabric with a nice drape. I used a heavy ribbed taffeta. Reminds me of a big version of grosgrain ribbon. All opaque fabric with a drape would work for this. Slinky fabrics like rayon might just be too slinky and will slide.
- Place over shoulder of your choice and let the fabric hang even at the bottom front and back.

- Take the front part of the hanging fabric and put it around your waist and use a safety pin to secure it at the base of you back. Let the back part drape. You can then take some more safety pins and secure it down the back or over your tush. If you know how to sew, pin down the back and make a simple seam.
- Adjust the front fabric over your bust. Might be a good idea to wear a bathing suit or leotard underneath.

- If you wish you can stitch the bottom hem and the back drape with your machine or by hand. I used a blind stitch.

- Take a a cool piece of trim or belt and tie around your waist. The trim I used was white with a silver Roman Key design.

- Make sure all raw edges are folded into the drapes.

- Accessorize with your favorite gladiator sandals, earrings or even a laurel wreath and you are done!

So simple and so much fun. Such a better quality then the stuff you can buy at stores. Also, it doesn't have to be just a toga. You can use this costume to be Cleopatra or even add a corset for a witch's costume and so on.
Here are some other looks Midge tried on! The first photo features a vintage bugle bead, embroidered belt I call the "Lady Gaga Belt". Makes it feel sort of Egyptian. The second photo has a more elaborate vintage belt that has a velcro back perfect for the look. Both belts sell at $10 at our store!


So if you are interested in any of the fabric, trim or belts featured here in this post, please do not hesitate to contact us by phone, store or our Etsy shop. Those belts are just too cool and you can not beat the price!

So have fun and stay tuned for more easy to make Halloween costumes. :)