⚡ Quick Answer: How to Sew a Fabric Scrunchie
Cut one strip of lightweight cotton about 4 in wide and 18 in long, fold it right sides together and sew the long edge with a 1/4 in seam to make a tube, then turn it right side out through the open ends. Thread 1/4 in elastic through the tube, cut it 2 in shorter than fits comfortably around your hair, overlap the ends by 1/2 in and zigzag them together. Pull the fabric back over the elastic, tuck the raw ends inside each other and ladder stitch the gap closed. One fat quarter makes two scrunchies and the whole thing takes under twenty minutes.
A scrunchie is the cheapest useful thing you can sew, and it is also the project that teaches the two skills every small sewing job needs: sewing a straight tube, and turning and closing it invisibly. There is no pattern, no interfacing and no fitting.
It is also the rare sewing project that genuinely costs nothing, because a worn out shirt or a pair of pyjama legs cut into strips makes two or three scrunchies and keeps the fabric out of the bin. A scrunchie looks generous because the fabric is gathered, not because the strip is wide, and the gather only works if the elastic is short enough to pull it in.
Everything below is the version that survives the wash, using the numbers below rather than guesswork. If the machine is new to you, how to use a sewing machine covers the basics, and how to hand sew covers the ladder stitch that finishes the gap.
What You Need for One Scrunchie
- One strip of lightweight woven cotton, 4 in wide by 18 in long for an adult size
- 1/4 in wide elastic, about 9 in
- Matching all purpose thread
- A large safety pin or a bodkin for turning and threading
- Small shears, a sewing machine, and an iron
A scrunchie that slips is a measurement problem, never a fabric problem. Nine inches of elastic in an eighteen inch strip is the whole ratio.
Buy elastic by the metre rather than by the pack. A metre is three or four scrunchies, and 1/4 in is the width that gathers nicely without feeling like a cable tie in your hair. Anything wider than 1/2 in makes a scrunchie that slips.
The fabric is the forgiving half of this project. The elastic is the half that decides whether the scrunchie stays in your hair, so measure it rather than guessing.
Choose the Fabric and Get the Sizes Right
Lightweight woven cotton, cotton lawn, a soft linen blend or a cotton voile all gather properly. Quilting cotton is the easiest starting point because it holds a crease, and an old cotton shirt is the same fabric for free. What you want to avoid is anything stiff or heavy: canvas, upholstery fabric, denim and thick knits sew into a scrunchie that stands up on its own and never gathers.
Slippery fabrics work but need care. Satin and silk slide under the presser foot, so pin more than you think you need and sew slowly, and use a finer needle so the weave does not pull.
The numbers that matter, all for 1/4 in elastic:
| Size | Fabric strip | Elastic |
|---|---|---|
| Child, small gather | 3 in by 14 in | 6 to 7 in |
| Adult, standard | 4 in by 18 in | 8 to 9 in |
| Oversized, big ruffle | 5 in by 22 in | 8 to 9 in, unchanged |
The elastic does not change when the fabric grows. An oversized scrunchie gets its volume from a longer, wider strip, not from looser elastic, which is the mistake that turns a big scrunchie into one that drops out.
Step 1: Cut One Strip, Straight and Square
Measure 4 in from a selvedge and cut the full width of the fabric, then cut that length down to 18 in. Cutting across the width of the fabric means the strip has a little give along its length, which helps it gather evenly.
Square the ends with the ruler rather than eyeballing them. A strip cut at an angle turns into a tube with a twisted seam, and the twist shows once the elastic pulls the fabric in.
If the fabric frays badly, pink the long edges with pinking shears before you sew, or run a line of fray check along them. Inside the finished tube the seam allowance is enclosed, so ordinary cotton needs nothing at all, but a loose weave or a linen blend will shed threads while you handle it and pinking saves the mess.
Press the strip flat before you sew and press a 1/4 in fold into one short end and then unfold it. That crease is your turning guide later, and pressing it now is easier than finding the edge once the tube is sewn.
Step 2: Sew the Tube and Turn It Right Side Out
Fold the strip in half lengthwise with right sides together and pin along the long edge. Sew that edge with a 1/4 in seam and backstitch at both ends, because the ends take all the strain when you turn the tube.
Do not sew the short ends closed. You need both ends open: one for turning, one for threading the elastic. This is the step where beginners copy a pillowcase and sew themselves into a sealed tube.
Trim the seam allowance to 1/8 in, then turn the tube right side out. A safety pin pinned through one end of the fabric, dropped inside the tube and worked along is the fastest way; a chopstick pushed from the outside is the slow way. Press the tube flat with the seam on one edge.
Step 3: Measure the Elastic Against Your Own Hair
Wrap the elastic around the thickness of hair you intend to hold, comfortably but not stretched, then add 1 in and cut. For most adult hair that lands between 8 and 9 in, for fine hair 7 in, and for a child 6 in. For very thick hair go to 10 in.
A bought hair tie works in place of loose elastic, but plain elastic is easier because you choose the exact length; a ready made tie is fixed and often shorter than you would cut for thick hair. Too short is easy to fix by cutting a new piece; too long means a scrunchie that slides out by lunchtime.
Thread the elastic through the tube. Attach a safety pin to one end, feed it through and work it all the way out the other end. Keep hold of both ends so the elastic does not disappear inside the fabric, which it will.
Step 4: Join the Elastic Ends Properly
Overlap the two ends of the elastic by 1/2 in, hold them flat, and zigzag across the overlap a few times, going back and forth. A straight stitch alone cuts through the elastic under tension; a zigzag spreads the load and holds.
Give the join a firm tug before you go further. If it slips now, you have lost nothing. If it slips in three weeks, the scrunchie is in the bin.
Then pull the fabric back over the elastic so the raw ends of the tube meet. The elastic is now hidden inside and the tube is bunched, which is the scrunchie starting to look like itself.
Step 5: Close the Gap With a Ladder Stitch
Turn the raw ends of the tube to the inside by about 1/2 in, using the crease you pressed in Step 1 as a guide, and line the two folded edges up so they butt together. Pin or clip them.
Thread a needle with a single strand of matching thread and work a ladder stitch: small horizontal stitches along one folded edge, then across to the other, alternating, and pull gently every few stitches. The two edges close like a zip and the thread disappears inside the fold.
Take two anchoring stitches at the end, then run the needle inside the seam and out through the fabric before cutting, so the tail is hidden. Give the scrunchie a stretch and a twist to check the join holds.
Variations That Are Worth the Extra Twenty Minutes
A patchwork scrunchie is the best use of a scrap bag. Sew 3 in wide offcuts end to end until you have an 18 in strip, press the seams open, then treat the result as a single strip and follow the same steps. Pressing matters more here, because every seam adds bulk to the gathered edge.
An oversized version just changes the strip to 5 in by 22 in. Keep the elastic the same, and the extra fabric becomes a bigger ruffle.
A narrow version uses 3 in by 16 in and reads as a hair tie rather than a scrunchie. It is the version to make from a precious small scrap.
A bow scrunchie takes a second small rectangle, about 6 in by 3 in, gathered in the middle and stitched to the outside over the seam; do it after the gap is closed, so the bow covers the hand sewing. Embellishment is the cheapest way to make four scrunchies from one metre look like four different projects, and none of it changes the construction: a scrap of lace trim stitched along one long edge before the tube is sewn, narrow ribbon tied round the finished seam, a button or a few seed beads sewn over the join, or a contrast thread in a visible zigzag. Add anything hard, like beads or buttons, after the elastic is in, so it sits on a finished surface rather than fighting the gather.
Where a Scrunchie Goes Wrong
| What you see | What caused it | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| Slips out of the hair | Elastic cut too long, or wider than 1/2 in | Cut the elastic 2 in shorter than the loop |
| Barely gathered, looks flat | Stiff or heavy fabric | Lightweight woven cotton only |
| Elastic snapped after weeks | Straight stitch on the join | Overlap 1/2 in and zigzag twice |
| Lumpy, twisted seam | Strip cut off square | Square both ends with a ruler |
The one non-negotiable row is the second. Fabric that will not gather cannot be rescued by a shorter elastic, because there is simply not enough give in the weave.
For a first project that uses the same turn-and-close skills with a flatter result, how to sew on a button is worth ten minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much fabric do I need for a scrunchie?
One strip 4 in by 18 in for an adult standard size, which is one fat quarter cut lengthwise. A fat quarter makes two scrunchies, and a half yard makes five or six.
What width elastic goes in a scrunchie?
Quarter inch is the standard. It gathers well, does not feel like a cable tie, and threads easily through a 4 in wide tube. Anything wider than half an inch tends to slip out of the hair.
How long should scrunchie elastic be?
Cut it to the thickness of hair you want to hold, plus 1 in. Most adults land between 8 and 9 in, fine hair 7 in, a child 6 in, and very thick hair 10 in.
Can you make a scrunchie without a sewing machine?
A backstitched seam by hand works for a scrunchie and takes about thirty minutes. Use a short backstitch on the long seam and press the seam open before turning.
What fabric is best for scrunchies?
Lightweight woven cotton, cotton lawn, cotton voile or a soft linen blend. Avoid canvas, upholstery fabric and thick knits because they do not gather, and handle satin carefully because it slides under the needle.
How do you wash a fabric scrunchie?
Machine wash cold in a mesh bag and air dry. The elastic degrades in a hot dryer, which is the main reason a scrunchie loses its grip after a few months.
How do I stop scrunchie fabric from fraying?
Pink the long edges with pinking shears before sewing, or run fray check along them. Once the tube is turned the seam allowance is enclosed, so the fraying risk is only during handling, and lightweight cotton barely frays at all.
Why did my scrunchie turn out too big?
Usually too much fabric rather than too little elastic. An 18 in strip with 8 to 9 in of elastic gives a standard scrunchie; a 22 in strip gives the oversized look, and neither should use more than 9 in of elastic.
Conclusion
A scrunchie is an 18 in strip, a quarter inch seam, 9 in of elastic and a ladder stitch, and the two numbers that decide whether it works are the width of the strip and the length of the elastic. Everything else is the choice of fabric, and lightweight woven cotton will beat anything expensive and stiff.
Cut four strips at once and make them assembly line fashion: sew all four long seams, turn them all, thread all the elastic, then close all four gaps while watching something. It takes barely longer than making one.
What is the scrap in your bag that is too small for anything else and too nice to throw away?
About This Guide
This guide was written by Mithu, who sewed the samples shown here from a fat quarter of quilting cotton and a metre of quarter inch elastic and wore each one through a wash cycle before photographing it. The sizes given are measured finished sizes, not estimates.
All images in this article were created using AI.