How to Sew Ribbon Headbands with Velcro

There are so many fun ways to make headbands with easy to find materials.

 

Last week I showed you simple ribbon and FOE (fold over elastic) headbands that need just a bit of sewing.

 

 The week before that we made FOE headbands and ponytail holders that didn’t require sewing at all.

Now we are going to make these beautiful headbands with a little bow… and guess what. They have a secret ingredient that makes them stay in place… velcro! Yup. If headbands slip out of your little girl’s silky smooth hair (or your own), then these are the headbands for you.

To make one headband, you will need:

• 17″ of ribbon that is 7/8″ to 1″ wide. My beautiful ribbon came from {Renaissance Ribbons – I adore it}.
• 16″ of 3/4″ velcro tape – the scratchy (hook) side only. I buy mine in bulk from cleanerssupply.com {here}. Note that that link is a listing for the hook (scratchy side) only. I really like being able to buy the two sides separately.
• 6″ of FOE. The Fabric Fairy has lots of colors available {here}.

The bow takes lightweight to quilting weight cotton. You’ll need:

• one piece 5″x10″
• and one piece 3″x4″

Start with the bow. You’ll sew both fabric pieces in the same way. Fold in half with the long edges right sides together and stitch with a 1/2″ seam allowance. Turn both tubes right side out. I don’t press, but if you want a flat bow you may. Let’s call the side with a seam the ‘wrong side’ and the side without a seam the ‘right side.’

Take one piece and sew the short ends, right sides together. You’ll be sewing through all 4 layers here. Repeat with the other bow piece.

Arrange the larger piece so that the short seam is in the middle and back of the bow. Sew gathering stitches down the center, either by hand or by machine. Since this bow was made with very light weight cotton, I sewed my gathering stitches by machine. Pull threads to gather the center of the bow a bit, and tie to secure.Then slip the other little loop over the bow to cover the gathering stitches. 

This bow was made with quilting weight cotton, so I sewed my gathering stitches by hand using strong thread.

Set your bow aside while you make the headband part.

Fold one end of the ribbon under by 1/2″ and lay it on top of the hook tape. The ribbon side is up and the hook side is down. You may pin or simply hold it together. Backstitch and sew along one side 1/8″ from the edge. 

When you get to the end, fold the ribbon edge under 1/2″ inch and stitch to the very end. Backstitch. Now sew the other side of the ribbon in the same way. Hint: sew in the same direction to avoid rippling.

Insert one end of your FOE piece into the space between the ribbon and hook tape. Use a pin to help you push it in if necessary, and then topstitch across the end of the ribbon.

Slip the bow onto the headband now (if you made a bow). Repeat the previous step with the remaining ribbon/hook tape and FOE ends.

Once you have the bow in the right spot, sew the two bow parts together with a few hand stitches on the underside.

Done!

I loved this non-slip headband design so much, that I made myself one with more beautiful designer ribbon from Renaissance Ribbons. Without a bow, of course. 🙂

And there you go! How many headbands have you made? We have a whole drawerful. The other day my Cadie had another 3 year old over for a play date and they ‘did hair’ with the new headbands for an hour!

Happy sewing!