Tutorial: Shamrock Pin for a Headband… and more

 


Here’s how to make my shamrock pin:
You will need:

• A small piece of green felt and a small piece of lighter green felt (mine is chartreuse).
• A 1/2″ button
• Freezer paper
• Hot glue or craft glue

Yes, I’m using my freezer paper- again.  Trace your patterns onto the paper side of your freezer paper.  I’ve used a darker felt for the large shamrock and a chartreuse green for the smaller shamrock.  All my felt is from scraps of course.  Just an FYI, some quilt shops will sell wool felt scraps by weight.
Cut out the template from the freezer paper and iron it on to your piece of felt.  Make sure the waxy side is down when ironing.  The freezer paper will stick to the felt.
Carefully cut out your shamrock along the template.  After it’s cut out, peel away your freezer paper.  It leaves no mark on your wool.  Pretty cool huh.

Cut a small rectangle 1/2″ x 1″ out of the darker green felt.
Place the rectangle onto the back of your shamrock.  I placed my smaller shamrock over the top to make sure it was going to cover my stitching completely once done.

Once the strip is well placed, stitch into place on both sides using a tight zigzag stitch.  Leave the top and bottom open to allow it to slip onto the headband.

Next center your button into your chartreuse shamrock.  Stitch into place by hand or on your machine if you have a button mode.  I used a 1/2″ crystal looking button purchased from JoAnn’s.

Using hot glue (if you’re impatient like me) or craft glue, glue the bottom shamrock to the top chartreuse shamrock.

And now it’s ready to slip onto the headband.  Why make it removeable?  So that my cute little headband can be worn all year round of course!  I can even make a flower pin out of felt or ribbon to slip onto the headband…
It also makes my shamrock flexible too.  I can slip it onto a hair clip.  Or put a safety pin on the back and wear it as a pin.
I love the flexibility.

Making a fabric headband cover is easier than you think.  It all starts with inexpensive thin headbands from the grocery store.
For this project you will need a small piece of fabric…. mine was 15 1/4″ x 1 1/2″ and your cheap headband.  Oh, and a sewing machine.
The first step is to measure your headband with a fabric measuring tape.

Next step is to cut your fabric.  Since my headband measured 14 1/2″ x 1/4″.  I cut my fabric 15 1/4″ x 1 1/2″.  I came up with my totals by adding 1/4″ to the length (for safety sake) and (2) 1/4″ seam allowances.  For the width, I decide that 1/2″ wide would look nice.  Again that allowed for (2) 1/4″ seam allowances.  You can use that same formula to figure out your headband… since they are all slightly different.

Carefully fold your strip in half and press.

Press in your 1/4 inseams on both sides.   (You are making what is essentially like a binding.)

Now fold in half and press well.

Press a fold in on each end.  I like to press the edges in at a slight angle so they don’t stick out once it’s stitched.

I hoped this view would show the angle I was talking about.  As you can see, this headband is pressed and ready to stitch.

Now stitch all the way around the headband.  I’ve moved my needle position as far as it will go to the right, for my Pfaff it is “6″.  And I am stitching about 1 millimeter from the edge of the fabric.
Now I know what you might be thinking.  If I’ve stitched all the way around… how the heck am I going to get the headband into the inside?
By cheating.  That’s how:

I’m using a seam ripper to open a little hole about 1/2″ from my bottom seam on the back.  As they say, there is more than one way to skin a cat…. if you wanted to be fancy, you could make button hole before stitching the whole thing together…. you might even leave one end open and try to fold in the seam and shut it with the headband inside.  For me this was the easiest, fastest way… and since it’s in the inside, it will never show.  For longevity sake, you might want to treat the raw seam with fray check.

Now slip your headband on in.  You may need to stretch the fabric just a bit to get the end of the headband in all the way.

Now on goes the shamrock and pinchers beware!  They will get ten back in return when you are wearing this sweet little headband.
For other days, I think I’ll make some fun flowers to go with this darling headband.