CRAFT: Pom Pom Hair Accessories for Children

Now that I have two daughters it is about time I improve my hairstyling skills because I'm useless. Since having Isabella I have taught myself how to do a French plait, but other than that my 'skills' are beyond basic. But I have a secret....hair accessories. Bows, hair clips and hair bands are all perfect at transforming an otherwise below average hair style into a much prettier one. Recently I had a go at making a few pom pom hair accessories, after I was given a pom pom making kit for Christmas. 

Firstly, get yourself a pom pom making kit because they will change your crafting life. Not only are they easy to use, they are quick and you can even get the children involved. Isabella loves helping to wind the wool around each side and then seeing a pom pom being created. The colours, styles and combinations for these hair accessories are almost endless and they are really affordable to make too. I picked up the knitting yarn from Poundland (3 for £2), hair clips from Flying Tiger (£2), pom pom maker from eBay and the Scissors from Rex London (£2.95). I made one pom pom per hair clip using the smallest pom pom maker, which worked really well for the size of hair clips I picked up. 

What you'll need:

Hair Clips

Hair Bands

Scissors

Wool

Pom Pom Maker

Glue gun (for hair band)

Felt (for hair band)

What to do:

1) Open up the smallest pom pom maker.

2) Start winding the wool from one end of half the pom pom maker to the other. Go backwards and forwards winding the wool until the wool has filled up the one side. 

3) Take the wool over to the other half of the pom pom maker and repeat on the otherside. Close the maker to create a circle again. Using sharp scisssors cut through the wool around the whole circle, following the grove. 

4) Make sure that every piece of wool has been cut through completely and you should be left with something like this. 

5) Cut off a length of wool around 30 cm. Lay it in the grove all the way around the pom pom maker. 

6) Tie a knot in the wool and pull it tight. Then tie another knot and pull it tight again. This will keep all the pieces of wool together, so it needs to be very secure. 

7) Open the two sides of the pom pom maker.

8) Pull apart the two sides to reveal your pom pom. 

9) Cut away any strands of wool that are longer to create a neat sphere. 

10) The two longer pieces of wool are going to be tied around the hair clip, which allows you to make these clips without any glue. Firstly, thread the two pieces through the middle section of the open clip. 

11) Take one and pull it to one side of the lengthways middle section of the clip and the other piece of wool goes on the other side. 

12) Tie quite a few knots to securely attach the pom pom to the hair clip. 

13) There you have it - a pom pom hair clip made in around 5 minutes! 

To make a pom pom hair band then you'll need to follow the above steps to make a small pom pom, as well as these steps:

1) Cut out a small square or circle of felt, just enough to cover where you will tie the pom pom onto the hair band. 

2) Using the two longer pieces of string tie the pom pom to the hair band multiple times. Use a glue gun to attach the piece of felt over the area to give a more professional look. 

Have you ever tried making your own hair accessories?

Feel free to leave a comment - I love reading every single one :)

Helen x