Hair in the Time of Social Distancing

In the greater scheme of things the state of one's hair is extremely far down the list of current worries. Still, it's another small thing that adds to the malaise of 2020, so here's how I've been coping with that -- headbands.

I was last in a hair salon a few days before lockdown and closings.  I decided to get a new style -- a not quite pixie, but very short cut.  Good planning? Well, no. This was the sort of style that looks good when it's well maintained and trimmed frequently. The sort of style that often grows out -- oddly. 

No sense crying over something that temporarily can't be fixed, so let's go to a backup plan -- cover that mess! I considered a full-on turban, but then decided to ease into the style with a turban-like headband.  You can, of course, purchase a million different kinds online, but makers gotta make.

I have quite a lot of knit scraps that I fully intend to turn into - something? - in the future, so here was a good chance to get rid of a few. I looked at several tutorials, and ended up using the one from Dina's Daughter.  That link will take you to a measurement chart, and a further link to her YouTube tutorial. I used some leftover Art Gallery jersey and ended up with this:

Very comfortable to wear, and that particular fabric has plenty of "snap back".  Luckily it's also my favorite fabric for cotton tees, so plenty of scraps to choose from.

















Recently however I ran across a pattern for a woven fabric headband and decided to give it a try.  The tutorial is from Sew DIY - sorry, no direct link as Blogger takes me to the home page instead of to the tutorial despite typing the loooong address of the tutorial - which is sewdiy.com/blog/ulalouise.com/2013/07/diy-tutorial-turban-headband - but if all else fails - Google? It is apparently a knock off of an Anthropologie headband - the tutorial is from 2013, but the headbands are still being sold (if that matters to anyone). I can't say the tutorial is very clearly written, but it suffices - and my version looks like this:

Hmmm, I seem to like navy/white stripes, don't I?

Overall, I much prefer the knit version.  Because a headband needs to stretch, and woven fabric doesn't (much) any woven band will need to have elastic added to provide the stretch - and elastic will need to be covered by slightly gathered fabric. This adds an extra 'lump' to the back of your head, especially if your hair, like mine, is not luxuriously long - even if your fabric is quite thin.  So, while I love the fabric, and it looks good from the front - I can really live without that extra head lump! 

So, for now, my growing out hair will continue to be 'styled' with bands. Although in our locale the salons are re-opened, I won't be rushing off until things are more settled. Given the Metro area prices we pay I'd really like to not have my stylist working around required face masks when she's doing her precision cutting. Just me -- your mileage may vary.