Embellishment Guide
Congrats on getting your headband kit! Can’t wait to see what designs you come up with. You could “free-hand” embellish as you go, or you could sketch out your design before, or reference a design from your headband kit by Yunotme designer Gloria Yu on yunotme.com. Feel free to also lightly mark your headband with pencil or fabric marker on where beads should go should you feel like it.
Either way, here are some helpful techniques that would make sure whatever your design is, beads don’t fall out as you wear your unique Yunotme by You piece about town!
Tools
Tools you’ll need aside from the ones provided in the kit:
- Scissors
- Pencil / fabric marker (optional)
Tying the first knot
Before starting to attach beads with thread on to the headband:
- Cut out a length of thread – around 50cm, and if the thread hasn’t been put through the eye of the needle already, thread your needle.
- Put the needle through from the side of the headband (A) out through the spot you want your first bead to be (B). As you pull the needle and thread through, leave around 4cm of thread sticking out from point A.
- Use your needle to pick out a tiny bit of fabric close to point B.
- As you pull your needle and thread through, follow the diagram to tie a knot around the tiny bit of fabric picked. You have your knot now and your thread secured around the first beading spot.
Beading
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With your first knot secured, put your bead through the needle and hold it with your fingers at the root of the thread at point B.
You could then go to step 2 OR 3
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Secure but slower. Super secure your bead - use this step for bigger beads (larger than 5mm in diameter), or if you want to be extra safe!
Repeat steps 3-4 from “Tying the first knot”. If it’s a big bead, you can stick the needle in at the bead’s diameter length away from point B, if it’s smaller, near point B is fine. Make sure the thread holding your bead is nicely tensed as you tie your new knot. If it’s a spherical bead you can make sure the holes are facing the sides instead of up (just looks nicer!) After it’s done, put your needle in near where the new knot is, and come out where you want the next bead to be at. - Less secure but faster. Stick your needle in near point B for a small bead, and the bead’s diameter length away from point B for a bigger bead, and come out where you want the next bead to be at.
- Attach the next bead and the next one and the next one going back to Step 1 in this section
Finishing Knot
You should be tying your finishing knot and starting with a new thread when you have length of thread equalling not less than 1.5 needle’s length (not including the part of thread sticking out from the other end of the needle’s)
- You should be securing your final beading right before you tie your final knot. Put that bead through the needle and hold it with your fingers at the root of the thread on the surface of the headband. Use your needle to pick out a tiny bit of fabric close to where the thread last came out for a small bead, and at the bead’s diameter length away from where the thread last came out for a larger bead.
- Tense the thread so the bead is secured, then pick a bit of fabric with your needle again close to where the thread last came out.
- As you pull your needle and thread through, follow the diagram to tie a knot around the tiny bit of fabric picked. Make sure the thread holding your last bead is still nicely tensed as you tie your new knot. After it’s done, put your needle in near where the new knot is, and let it come out on the side of the headband.
Cutting all the extra threads
You could do this step at the very end or whenever during your process of embellishment.
There should be bits of thread sticking out from the side of your headband from tying all the beginning and end knots. Cut these threads very close, almost at the surface of the headband’s side (taking care not to snip the fabric itself). Once you do that, jiggle the headband fabric a bit and the bit of extra thread would be hidden underneath the fabric.
And that’s it!!
Once you finished your headband, we would love to see what you’ve come up with! Tag us at @yunotme_ on instagram with hashtags #yunotme #yunotmebyyou, or send a photo to us at hello@yunotme.com. We hope you have the best adventures with your new unique headband <3