VIDEO: How to make a SCRUNCHIE

**Download the FREE SCRUNCHIE TIE PATTERN here**

When you say SCRUNCHIE….
I say HOW HIGH??
Oh my gosh you guys, this project has been years in the making!
I’m so happy to finally share it with you!

I know, I know.  It’s the classic old scrunchie. It’s been DIY’d around the block and back.
But have you made them this way??
I promise, this is the easiest method (and I’ve tried a lot of methods)…and I’ve got fun scrunchie story to share, and a free tie pattern piece to go on your scrunchie. Cause that’s fun. We’re all about fun.

Last summer

Lucy (13 at the time) wanted to learn to make scrunchies (which are fabric hair bands that work for a ponytail, bun, a bracelet? sure) Little did she know that when I was her age, I also learned to make scrunchies! So I brushed up my 13-year-old sewing knowledge and we tried a few different methods till we came up with an easy, but professional method.
Then she and her friend Savannah ran with it, making scrunchies, scrunchies, and more scrunchies. At one point they posted a list on the studio door, making them for whoever wanted one. Looks like Clara signed up for a spris one? (surprise?) I love it.

Lucy spent a couple weeks sewing them, and after a while had a nice pile going…so she decided to sell them! She had signed up for an awesome 8th grade trip to Washington D.C. (which would have happened in June, but due to Coronavirus was put on hold. Fingers crossed it happens in 2021). We said that she needed to earn half of the money for the trip, so she spent last summer babysitting, cutting fabric for a friend (that was a sweet job), and selling scrunchies!

It was really cool to see her figuring out the process, realizing how much time goes into homemade items, and then coming up with a price point. She landed on 1 for $3, or 2 for $5. Such a great learning experience for her (and for me…offering bits of input and aspects to consider, while trying not to helicopter and letting her wiggle through the details).

THEN REWIND 30 YEARS

The whole thing came full circle…when I told Lucy that when I was 13, I sold scrunchies too!
Whaaaa? Yep. That’s me below, squinting in sun, in a shirt two sizes too big, scrunchie in my hair, and looking a bit like Lucy (though I always think my kids look so much cuter today then I looked at their age. Like they’ve already figured out “styles” more than I had? Haah. But who knows…they’ll probably feel like me one day).

So, when I was in 7th grade, my best friend Christi and I (pictured above in a funny car for theater class. Pretty sure we both had perms)….well Christi lived across the street and she and I started a scrunchie-making business. We had so much fun making them and figuring out the best fabrics. We sold them for $1 each. AND, we totally made a little swatch book! Before I even knew what a swatch book was, and back when dot handwriting was awesome. Oh my gosh, it’s so funny to look at this little book (I’m dying that our ESPRIT shirts match the paper colors of the book. Haha) We had categories for “solid” fabrics and something called “design material”. If I could only look to the future and imagine designing fabric one day!

OK. READY TO SEW SCRUNCHIES???

– Watch my detailed video below or HERE ON MY CHANNEL.
– Download the free TIE PATTERN PIECE HERE.
– And for future reference, here’s a short list of instructions:

HOW TO MAKE A SCRUNCHIE:

• CUT 1 piece of fabric – 3.5″ x 24″ (9 x 61 cm)
• CUT 1 piece (3/8″ wide) elastic – 6.5″ (16.5 cm)
• Press the last two inches of each side, of each end, under 1/4 inch (see video) I know that sounds confusing, but it’s not if you watch the video. Basically you’re prepping the seam allowance area for a later step.
• With right sides of fabric together, sew into a long tube using 1/4″ seam allowance (do NOT sew the pressed areas).
• Turn right-side out.
• Bring pressed areas0–with right sides of the fabric together–and sew.
• String elastic through using safety pins.
• Sew ends of the elastic together with zigzag stitch.
• Sew opening closed using a straight stitch, very close to the edge of the fabric.
DONE!

ADD A TIE:

• CUT 2 pieces from the pattern.
• Sew them with right sides together, leaving a 1.5 inch opening.
• Turn right side out, and sew the opening closed with a top stitch.
TIE IT ONTO YOUR SCRUNCHIE!

HOW TO MAKE A SCRUNCHIE VIDEO:

Hit the play button below (or watch it on my channel here):

Sewing machine recommends

Many people have learned to sew these last few months–with the necessity of wearing face masks in public–and it makes me so happy! You guys have asked for a good entry level sewing machine recommendation. So in this video, I intentionally used a fantastic machine called JOY, so you can see it in action.
The JOY machine is part of the Baby Lock Genuine series, which are all great machines to start with (I also have the Brilliant machine and have worked with Baby Lock for years, as you know from my videos). Typically Baby Locks are sold in retail shops, but you can buy online on this site and read reviews, which is helpful (affiliate link).

Okay. Happy scrunchie sewing!….and sewing, and sewing.
I predict a little handmade business in your future.