Zipper Rosette Headband Tutorial *Part 2*

Now it is on to the actual assembling of the headband. You do have some options as far as the headband base. At a craft store you can find "blank" headbands in all sorts of widths. I like these thin metal ones that I found at a grocery store of all places. The nice part about these is that you can leave them plain so the band blends in more so the headband looks like one of those little hats. Here is the basics of what you need: 

For this particular headband I used some wide ribbon and folded it in 1/2. I then stitched up the side of the ribbon to form a pocket.

I slid the headband into the pocket. To finish off the ends I wrapped embroidery floss around the bottom very tightly.

All that is left is to glue the flowers on the headband using a little hot glue. There are no hard or fast rules on this! 

As far as toppings go, use anything you have stashed away. On this headband I used a typerwritte key. Here are some other items that work well:

On the original headband, I used thin ribbon and I wrapped it around in a spiral. I put a dot of glue periodically to help the ribbon stay in place.

Here is an example of a teal and brown headband I made using buttons and trim. I left the headband plain except for some alcohol ink to turn it brown.

I think this is becoming an addiction! I did get my supplies organized last night. The sight of this just makes me smile!

As always any questions, shoot me a comment!

Zipper Rosette Headband Tutorial *Part 1*

As promised in this post, I have made a few zipper rosettes and taken a ton of pictures. This post will explain how to make the individual flowers, and my next post will tell you how to out it all together to make a headband. I saw an adorable rendition of this headband by Taza, and I was inspired! I just so happen to have a ton of zippers from my Nana, many vintage.

When shopping for zippers for the rosette you should go with various lengths. You should also look for zippers made out as natural of fibers as possible. The ones with real twill sides definitely work the best but we can work with anything. I also had some with exposed metal teeth and these come out with so much texture. Anyways after you have selected your zipper it is time to deconstruct.

You have 2 choices, cut off the bottom of the sipper or remove this little metal piece with pliers. I typically try to do this because it makes for a more finished end and gives you more length to work with.

 Now you have your zipper in 3 pieces. (I am saving the little metal doo-dads for another project)

Next you plan out which end of the zipper is going to be the middle of your flower. I like to use the end that has the prettiest metal piece as the center of the flower. Tie a know at the end of your thread, I like to double up my thread for this type of stuff. Start at the end that will be on the outside and do a running stitch (up down up down) until you reach what will be the center of the flower. Keep the stitches pretty close to the non teeth edge. These stitches do not have to be perfect!

When you get to the end that will be the center do just one stitch towards the zipper part. This will help the flower look more finished.

Next, pull the thread and push the zipper down towards the knot. This is where practice helps. You don't want to have the zipper completely curly but at the same time you don't want it too straight. The more slack you have the flatter your flower will sit. The tighter the thread the more funky the flower will look but it will be harder to put together.After you get the tension you want, tie a know but do not cut your thread.

If you are using a shorter zipper (less than 10 inches or so) just hold the center and wind your flower up the way you want it to look. Make sure your needle is on the bottom side, then make a few stitches that span the whole radius of the rosette and pick up a piece of each layer. I would do this two or three times in different directions.

If you are using a longer zipper you just start at the center and go around one layer at a time. As you go around make a stitch here or there that tacks the new layer in place on the old layer. With longer zippers, it is important that you push the zipper material up towards where you are working, or you will get to the last 3 inches of the zipper and it will be a super curly mess. you want the ruffles to be as evenly spaced as possible.

Play around with both tension and irregularity. I think they look better the less round they are.

If you have any questions just shoot me a comment!

Taking a Break

Ugh I needed to take a break from pretending to be a serious artist. I can only think deep and put so much expression into an object before my head explodes. So I made this:


I have been coveting headbands like this with the little zipper rosettes for awhile. I just so happen to have a HUGE bag of vintage zippers that were given to me out of my Nana's stash. I think I got my stash addiction from my Nana. I have fond memories of falling to sleep with her sewing in the same room. Anyways, here is a picture of the details.


On an exciting note... My hubby bought me a new Motorola Droid! I have been hinting that I really want one for the past few months. It should come in the mail in the next day or two. Yippie