Keep Shampoo Out of Kids' Eyes with This Easy Craft

Some children love baths and some kids hate it - usually because it means shampoo and/or water will get in their eyes. Seems like no matter how careful you are while washing your child's hair shampoo or water always get in the eyes. All it takes is shampoo in the eyes one time and the child will likely scream and cry every time it's bath time. Prevent that horrid ordeal by making a simple craft that will keep water and shampoo from ever reaching the eyes - even if the child squirms!

A simple headband will get you started. The headband should be the hard plastic type - or metallic - and can be wide or narrow. Do not try the headbands which are cardboard wrapped in fabric. Also, don't purchase the tiny headbands meant for babies, unless you'll be using it for children under one year old. Use the adult size headband for all other children.

A piece of foam is needed to wrap the headband. The foam should be between a quarter of an inch and a half-inch thick. There are several different ways to wrap the headband with the foam. Allow enough length of foam to cover the entire headband. After wrapping the headband completely in foam, use rubber bands to hold the foam in place, or glue it. Hot glue is not adequate for this project, so use spray adhesive or another glue that's suitable for foam. You can use clothespins to hold the foam in place until it's dry.

When it's bath time simply place the wrapped headband on the child's head, but not in the typical fashion. Instead, lower the headband until it is on the forehead, just below the hairline. As water is poured over the head, it runs off to the sides, with excess being soaked up by the foam piece. After the bath, just squeeze excess water out of the foam and hang the headband up to dry. It'll dry quickly and be ready for the next night's bath.

If you don't have a headband to use for this project, don't worry, you can use a piece of wire instead. Clip a section from a coat hanger or use a somewhat heavy crafting wire. Bend the wire to the shape of a headband, then cover it with the foam. After you've wrapped the wire or headband in foam you can also use fabric to cover it and make it look a little more attractive.

There are other things you can use to cover the wire, or headband, that will still keep water or shampoo from running into the eyes. Long strands of fabric can be cut and wrapped round and round the headband. You can also use just rubber bands. Wrap rubber bands - lots and lots of them - around the headband until it's cushioned and completely covered. You can even use bubble wrap to cover the headband - although it may not hold up quite as long as the foam or cloth ones. That's okay, though, since bubble wrap is generally plentiful and cheap enough to toss when needed.

You'll find a huge selection of headbands at most discount department stores but try to avoid ones that are wrapped in ribbon, ones with decorations like flowers or novelties glued on, and any headbands that have bows, beads or faux jewels.

Bath time will be much more fun, and much less stressful, when you take a couple of minutes to do this quick craft. The use of it doesn't have to be limited to just children, either. Adults can easily slip the headband on whenever they take a bath, too. It will keep water and shampoo out of children's eyes - and yours - making bath time much more enjoyable.