DIY Magnetic Wristband | My Altered State
Necessity can be cruel.
She can make you do things that you had never imagined yourself doing.
Things that will call into question your strength of character, your endurance, and your will to survive. Yes my friends, she can make you sew.
S-e-w. With a sewing machine.
She can make you do things that you had never imagined yourself doing.
Things that will call into question your strength of character, your endurance, and your will to survive. Yes my friends, she can make you sew.
S-e-w. With a sewing machine.
Not only is there all of these scary and intricate attachments, but there are thread patterns! MULTIPLE thread patterns! There’s also thread tension, stitch length, and all those different needle numbers/sizes.
First, let me show you just how tiny these magnets are:
Next, I spaced out the magnets.
Next…. you gotta keep a straight face, cause I kinda made this up: I used painters tape to keep the magnets from “migrating” towards each other once they are inside the fabric. (I know! I could’ve used epoxy or something, to keep them in place, but I wanted a layer of some kind over the top of them. Hence, the tape.
Next, it was time for the fabric. I measured just over double the width I wanted, deciding to just fold it over so I wouldn’t have to sew on both edges.
After I did the length and one end, I turned it right side-out and attached one side of the velcro. I stapled it to secure it, then removed staples after. (I’ve had a few bad experiences with straight pins. Hence, the stapler.)
Next, I flipped it over and proceeded to sew it with black thread. Great. Just great. (forehead slap)
After I did all this work with black thread, I noticed I was, in fact, using black thread on gray fabric. Then I went ahead and changed it out and continued on my way using gray. I zig-zagged my line in a shameful, non-perfect way.
Here’s a shot of me picking out the black, after I was finished getting the velco attached.
Then, I marked placement for the rivets. (They hold the magnetic pieces in place, and keep them from sliding side to side.)
Next, I used a leather hole punch to make the hole along the edge of the metal inside…
…then, I set the rivet.
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Comments
Join the conversation
2 of 13 comments
-
So, my daughter (7) and I came across this tutorial while looking for Christmas projects she could make for family. Her uncle is a finish carpenter and she wanted to make something that would keep him from putting nails in his mouth, because that's "yucky and dangerous". I love how you wrote this tutorial, and even though I do sew, I totally wing it and have never figured out all those extra doodads my machine came with. I let my daughter paint a design on the fabric for the wristband. She did the sewing and everything. I basically supervised and made sure no electronics were around when she was seeing how close she could get to metal before the tiny magnets flew form her hand. Thank you for this tutorial. It helped my daughter make a useful gift for someone hard to buy or make for!
![]()
-
I had to make mine with a small pocket because I keep knocking the screws, nuts, bolts OFF! What a klutz!For all of you other klutzes - just add another layer of folded fabric (folded side toward upper arm) 1/2 way up right side, then sew as usual.Now you can tuck most of the length of those small items under the fold so, as you sweep over them they won't go to the floor!
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?