How to Crochet a Headband / Hair-tie

I get a lot of yarn secondhand and wind up with a lot of odd balls that don't really fit into my other projects. I also have a lot of hair that falls in my face when i don't want it to. This is my go-to pattern for using up interesting odd balls and keeping my hair out of my face.

Stitches will be in US terms otherwise general crochet knowledge is assumed.

ch - Chain

sc - Single crochet

dc - Double crochet

Being a fairly adjustable pattern you can really use any yarn to do it, you just need to use an appropriate hook for the yarn you've selected. The suggested hook size on the yarn label is a good place to start but with thicker yarns you might want to go up a hook size so the finished piece isn't too stiff.

For the yarn I usually go with DK (8ply) or Worsted (10ply) weights and use a 4.5mm hook but i've also made it with bulky (12ply) yarn and a 6.5mm hook. As this is an odd ball project i can't give you accurate yardages but for the weights i use I can advise that if your ball is less than 60yards you might need a second.

The only other things you'll need are a yarn needle (or tapestry needle) and a pair of scissors for finishing.

Optional - Yarn for fringed ends

-Start off by chaining an even number to begin (in the suggested yarn size 10-14 stitches make good hair ties 16-22 make good headwraps).

-Chain one and single crochet back across the starting chain.

At this point you may realise that it's too wide/thin for your purposes, rip it out now and add/subtract to your starting chain it'll be less annoying to do it now than later.

Now double check that you still have an even number of stitches and you're ready to go on to the next step.

1st row - ch2 and dc in the first sc, *ch1 skip sc, dc in next* repeat until last stitch, dc, ch2 and turn to begin next row

2nd row - dc in first stitch, *ch1 skip dc, dc in ch space* repeat until last stitch, dc, ch2 and turn to begin next row

Repeat the second row until it's either long enough to tie around your head or you're close to running out of yarn.

When you are ready to finish simply do one row of sc (you should have the same number of sc as you did in the beginning) and tie off.

Grab your yarn needle and quickly weave the ends in the use your scissors to cut off any remnants.

Tie it on and hit the streets with your sexy new handmade look.

Optional Extra: Tassels - If you have any remnants from the yarn used you could tie some tassels onto the ends of your work or if you've used up all the yarn then grab something from your scrap bin.

I usually give my finished pieces a soak in some wool wash before i'm done. I recommend it, but it's not a requirement.