How to Decorate a Plastic or Elastic Hair Band with Buttons

Little girls like to make things and play dress up, fixing their hair in many different ways. With a few simple tools and items such as buttons, you and your daughter can spend some quality time together, crafting hair bands that she can wear to school, church or just for play. This craft is also a great way to start teaching your young daughter how to sew.

Items Needed to Make Decorative Hair Bands

-Several plastic or elastic hair bands (or one-inch wide natural cotton elastic)
-Buttons (assorted sizes and colors)
-Tapestry needle (size 16) (or a size that will go through the buttonholes)
-Spool of quilting thread (color should match elastic hair band)
-Scissors
-Craft glue
-Dressmaker's tape measure
-Marker
-Glitter and small paintbrush (optional)

If this is your daughter's first experience with sewing, let her practice by inserting the needle through the buttonholes without thread. Explain to her the different parts of the items like the eye of the needle and show her how to put the needle through the buttonhole and pull it out the other side. Once she has mastered this technique, she can move on to doing the real craft.

Instructions for Decorating Elastic Hair Bands

Let your daughter decide which buttons she wants to put on the hair band. If you are using the cotton elastic, measure it around your daughter's head and trim, leaving a one-inch overlap. Either thread the needle for her or show her how it is done and then sew one button in the center of the hair band. The hardest part for your daughter may be trying to hold the button in place while sewing it on the hair band, so she may need a little extra help here. Show her how to tie a double knot when she has finished looping the thread through the buttonholes. After you have the first button secured in place, position the next button and sew it in place. Continue doing this until all buttons are sewn on to the hair band. For added security, place a small drop of craft glue under each button. Sew the two ends together and snip off any access elastic.

Instructions for Decorating Plastic Hair Bands

Plastic hair bands may be easier for your daughter to create because they do not involve sewing. Let your daughter pick out several buttons of the same size, then have her pick out the same number of buttons only these should be a little smaller and preferably a different color. Using the dressmaker's tape measure, find the center of the hair band and put a small dot there. Have your daughter glue one of the larger buttons of the dot using a small amount of glue. Once this dries, have her glue a smaller one on top of the larger one. Continue adding buttons, larger on bottom and smaller on top until there are buttons all the way along the hair band. Be sure to let glue on the buttons dry completely before moving on to the next one.

NOTE: To ensure comfort, do not put buttons on the sides or back of the plastic or elastic hair bands.

VARIATION: Paint a light amount of glue on the buttons and hair band and have your daughter sprinkle on some glitter. Sake off access and now she has a sparkly, fancy hair band.

Sources: Personal Experience, Simplicity