The Crafting Diaries: The T-Shirt Headband
Author: Anna Ravenelle
Each week on “The Crafting Diaries” Anna Ravenelle scours Pinterest looking for exciting projects that claim the average crafter (and/or college student) should be able to accomplish and then sets out to prove them wrong. Usually failing in her crafting efforts, Anna works to flesh out the instructions of complicated projects so that you (yes, you!) can avoid failure where she did not.
The inspiration for this week’s project came from two equally important places. First, I have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to ways to upcycle t-shirts in DIY projects, and I finally got a t-shirt I wouldn’t mind cutting up. It came from an event I volunteered at over the summer and the yellow is so bright, I would never wear it again. So, that’s one reason.
Second, I have long been on a quest for a good headband to work out in; they’re always too tight, or slip, or don’t hold my hair, so I had hope when I came across this headband on Pinterest.
It had potential, I had the t-shirt, so why not! The problem was that I was mostly on my own: I was following an infographic, rather than written instructions.
1. Start with a t-shirt–any of the thousands we get free at Cornell will work–and cut off the bottom hem, and then cut five strips from the t-shirt’s body. They should each be around 1 inch in width but if they’re thinner, that’s okay (any thicker and they won’t curl as well). You should end up with 5 loops, which you should then cut in half to create 5 long strips.
2. Once you have your five strips, pull on the ends so the strips roll in on themselves completely.
3. Next, tape the five strands together at one end, leaving a few inches (2-3) extra at the top so you can finish the headband at the end. Separate and lay out the strands and mentally label them 1 through 5. Any time the strips, in later steps, cross other strands, the numbers change accordingly, i.e., the strip to the far left should always be “1”, no matter where it was the step before.
This is tricky. Essentially, you need to braid the five strands together, but following the diagram I was using got really confusing really fast. It was all well and good until the strands began to cross each other and…well, let’s just say the final product was not my first (or second or third) attempt at this weaving. So…
4. Cross strand 1 over strand 2 and strand 3 over (the new) strand 2. Cross 5 over 4, then 3 over 4. Repeat this until the band is long enough to fit your head.
Just kidding. That’s confusing enough to do once, let alone until the whole headband is completed. Trust me, it’ll likely end up in a giant knot. So, on my second attempt at making this, I figured out a much easier way to think about it.
5. After you do step 4 once, put strand 1 over 2 and under 3 (making 1 the new 3), then take strand 5 and put it over 4 and under 3 (making 5 the new three). Over, under, over, under. Repeat this step ad infinitum, or at least until it fits around the circumference of your head where you’d wear it. Keep in mind you’ll be adding an inch or two with final knots.
6. Cut off the excess t-shirt strings, leaving 2-3 inches left at the end. Then, take off all the tape off the start headband, and tie the strands from the beginning and end together individually. That is, one strand of excess from the start and one strand of excess from the end. Double knot them if you’d like.
7. Finally, cut off the excess from each knot (not too close or you risk them coming undone) and, if you want, tuck them into the rest of the head band’s weave.
There you go! Now, next time you head to Noyes, gym class, or Libe Slope (how does the freshmen fifteen happen again?) this headband will keep the hair off your face. Overall, this project came in at a 8/10 for ease and how well it actually works!
