First off, measure out your lace ribbon for the size you want. I made several headbands before my little girl was born so I used this chart to determine sizing.
I marked where I needed to sew it together to get it the correct size.
With a needle and thread just sew the two end pieces together in a tight formation so the seam will lay fairly flat and you will have a full circle headband.
Trim off any of the ends, and it should look something like this. You don’t have to be an excellent seamstress just make sure that the headband will be secure.
Next up, trim off the shabby flowers. They come with some tulle edging that you need to trim around.
Now, you’ll just need to layout your flowers how you want them to look and cut some felt to adhere them to use a backing. I use a rounded shape so that it contours with the flowers and doesn’t show. I also cut out two pieces of felt: One the flowers will be glued on, the other you will glue on after you add the lace ribbon inside.(kind of like sandwiching in the band so that the baby only feels the soft felt) Once you have your felt piece at the right size you can hot glue the flowers onto the first felt piece.
Now, center your ribbon so the seam will be hidden and the right side of the lace will be showing when its worn(Some ribbons don’t have right sides). Hot glue the lace ribbon down and then add more glue on the felt and glue down the extra felt piece. (Be sure not to let the hot glue have too many lumps, this could cause the headband to be a little hard and uncomfortable for baby!)
Now it’s time to embellish. I knew I wanted to add a little something but the button I had initially chosen was just too much so I went to my stash and found some pearl beads.
Hot glue them on and you’re finished!
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Oh how darling! I know a few sweet peas that would look so cute. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks so much! They are quite fun to make. 🙂
Goodness, it cost me money after coming to your blog! LOL I clicked on your source for supplies and that was all she wrote for me! Love that beautiful baby and her headbands.
I’m the same way! When I found those fabulous supplies I went to town. Good news is I have a whole tote full of anything and everything I can coordinate to any outfit…and lots of baby gifts to make. 🙂
These are precious! I can’t wait to make them for our first grand daughter!!!
They are so fun to customize too Kimberly!
This is a great tutorial! I’ve been looking for one like this. Thank you very much for sharing!!
You’re totally welcome!
These are soooo adorable! I love DIYs and am definitely going to do this. I have already spent too much for my baby’s headbands and I still need more! Thanks for sharing. 🙂 Your baby is beautiful.
Thanks so much Jessica, I was in the same boat and thats why I decided to make my own and save me money!
Could you tell me if you used the one or two inch ribbon for the headband? Yours are just as pretty as the $10 ones at the store! Thank you
Hi Linda, I used the 1″ ribbon, the 2″ just seemed way to thick and bulky on a babies head! Good luck!
Hey! What size flowers did you use? 🙂 Awesome by the way!! 🙂
Thanks so much, I the lavender flowers were the 2.5″ size and the aqua was the mini size. Hope that helps!
Thanks for the instructions. Seems easy and straight forward. Looking to have this as a weekend craft over the next 20 months.
Have you or did you try using Velcro so you could swap out flower combinations? Was thinking it might make them more versatile or if it would add unnecessary weight.
Thanks!
You can delete my comments, I figured it out and now I’m super giddy and probably going to spend way too much money.
I hear ya! I bought so many but they are just too fun!
Thanks so much for the inspiration. I am a grandmother & am currently working on getting my crochet items & other creations on Etsy. I am very new to online sales & such. Many thanks!
Hi, Marie! I love your tutorial! I was wondering, though, if you had any trouble finding beads or rhinestones that are lead free? I’m having a hard time finding them, but regular rhinestones/crystals are not recommended for babies or young children because of the lead content. Just curious, because I’d like to add some (safe) bling to my headbands! 🙂
Hi Terri, to be honest I am not sure. Have you looked at etsy?
When you glue you felt to the headband do you stretch it out or just leave it? Looks super small to glue stuff if its not stretched. Love your headbands!!
For this type of headband I didn’t stretch it when I glued it on, mainly because it was such a small headband for a newborn. So the flowers were a large part of the headband. You could pull it tighter to get the size you want, however I wanted the headband to fit without being tight. I like a snug fit so I use my guide as a gauge for sizing but it will all depend on each individual head.
For the size is the inches the full length of the ribbon used? For example if u cut a ribbon to 11″ it will be 5.5 inches long when sew together. Sorry trying to get these done before my niece comes.
Hi Mae, yes that is the basic idea. It will be 11″ in diameter after you sew it together.
I’m so GLAD I can across your site! I, too, was looking for newborn headbands for when my sweet girl comes , but found them to quickly add up = expensive!
I found some ribbon at my local fabric store, but they aren’t stretchy. I want the headband to go around her entire head (laying and going across forehead). What would you recommend for size? Any other backing materials you have found successful as the ribbon is very thin and delicate.
Thank you!!!
Hi Suz, sizing is tricky because baby head sizes really vary! I would go off my sizing chart in the post as a basic guide. I found that the stretchy lace looks cute across the forhead and adds some interest but it is wide and on tiny infants looks a little large so I would buy the smallest width. For most of my little girls headbands I started using the 1/8 thick stretch elastic from the sunshine shoppe. Not overly lovely but I like that it is super stretchy and wasn’t tight at all to fit on her head, but it stayed in place and wasn’t too distracting leaving the focus on the flowers. It is very thin (I can send you a pic if you’re interested) They have it in different colors and I really like it. I’m actually working on a new post using this elastic so I’ll be debuting them soon. Feel free to reach out with more questions and I’ll try and help!