A DIY Christmas: How to Make a Scrunchie

A DIY Christmas: How to Make a Scrunchie

Scrunchies are everywhere at the moment aren't they? A throwback to another decade, these outfit additions have sprung up and boomed on the markets, online, small businesses and high street alike. 

For a small piece of fabric and some elastic, they sure can look extremely different and unique. We see them with pom-poms attached, long scarf-like flowing ends, lighting up, so many people have found ways to make their scrunchies unique and I'm here for it.

Hair accessories also make a great gift, as I mentioned with how unique they can be, there's got to be something out there for everyone. But what if you had a perfect step-by-step plan to make one for your bestie this Christmas? 

 

First Step

Gather up your materials!

- A piece of fabric, roughly 50cm by 12cm, a good starter fabric is cotton or something lightweight and easy to sew through

- Roughly 5 Inches of elastic, I use thin flat elastic ( Pop me a message if you want a link to exactly what I find works well!)

- A sewing machine or a needle and thread ( My tutorial will be on the machine, but can also be done handsewn )

- An iron and board 

- A safety pin

 

Second Step

Get started!

iron fabric and measure up lines for scrunchies
Iron the fabric flat to avoid any wonky lines.
Measure roughly 50cm along the side of the fabric and mark it, then 12cm the other way, I find it easiest to start in a corner so you already have 2 lines essentially cut. Draw the lines to create a box that is 50cm in length, and 12cm wide.
cut out fabric for scrunchie tutorial
Cut out the shape neatly and check the measurements to ensure you have a nice even shape, this makes it much easier to sew straight if the edges match up when folded.
iron the edge of the fabric flat
Iron the whole piece of fabric flat again to make sure there aren't any folds or wrinkles, then on your 12cm edge on one side, fold over about 1cm and iron it flat. The photo shows what I mean, the whole piece of fabric lying with the wrong side facing upwards, so the little folded over bit shows the right side of the fabric.
fold the fabric in half and iron again
now turn the fabric over so the right side is facing upwards, then fold it in half so it is one long strip. The only bit of the right side you should now be able to see is the little 1cm strip we just ironed on the top. Iron the edge of the now-folded fabric down so it stays in place.
sewing the strip of fabric on a machine for a make your own scrunchie
Sew along the edge of the folded fabrics to secure it into a tunnel. This part can also be done with handsewing, just make sure the stitches are close together and tight to ensure the side of your scrunchie will not come apart.
closeup of stitching when creating a DIY scrunchie
This is what your ironed folded end will look like. Now it needs to be turned inside out, which can be a little fiddly with how small it is, but should only take a minute or so.
Iron the fabric flat on the board to create a scrunchie
Once turned inside out, this is what it now looks like and you can see the purpose of that little fold on the 12cm side right at the beginning. We know have a neat edge at the end of our strip.
Turn fabric inside out and iron for next step in creating your own diy scrunchie
I now attach my piece of elastic to a safety pin, this is about 5 inches of elastic, knowing that I like to do scrunchies with around 2-3 twists around my hair in them, and also knowing this elastic has quite a lot of stretch in it,
Nearing the end of making a diy scrunchie

Using the safety pin to help you navigate through the tunnel, gather the fabric up onto the elastic until you have both ends of the elastic in your hands, with all the fabric bunched up on the elastic between. Now tie the elastic together in a tight, secure knot. We should now basically have a scrunchie, except it has an opening where the two ends of the fabric have come around to meet.

 

stitch up the diy scrunchie

 

Now, we put one end of the fabric inside the other, again this is where we put our neat 12cm fold at the start to good use, because that neat ironed edge hides the other edge of the fabric inside it. Then add a little line of stitching down it, this secures the scrunchie and hides the elastic, completely your project. 

I used to worry at this stage that sewing through the two layers of fabric and the elastic on this last step would effect its ability to tie or something, but it doesn't, and actually I found handstitching the seam, while I could hide the stitches more, actually did not last as well over time as these solid ones, which get hidden in the scrunch of the final product anyway.

Finished diy scrunchie

 

So there we have it! This is one of probably a dozen ways to make a scrunchie, but my favourite way to get the job done. Some alterations that can be made if you want something a little different can be playing around with the measurements. If you want a wider scrunchie, do more than 12cm. If you want more scrunch to your scrunchie, increase the 50cm to more, and so on.

I'd love to see the finished result if anyone decides to make them this year!

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