Vinyl LP Record Headband

This recycled LP vinyl record project is a great recycled crafts project. It is created by manipulating the melted/soft plastic of the record after it has been heated in an oven. Records can be bought from op shops, thrift stores or garage sales. If you don't want to destroy the classics look for damaged or cracked albums.

Firstly, always wear oven mitts as the plastic is hot. Never leave it unattended in the oven and work in a ventilated area in case there are fumes or any type. Start by heating your oven to it's highest setting around 250 Degrees Celsius or 480 Fahrenheit. Place a sheet of aluminum on the bottom of your oven purely as a precaution in case it melts beyond rescue to avoid a massive clean up job.

Take your record and place it onto the oven tray and slide it into the hot oven. It will only take a few minutes for the record to become soft and flexible. Using your oven mitts take the record out as soon as it looks soft. It will start to droop and deform when it is becoming soft, that is when it is ready to work with.

For the headband you will need to cut the record in half, you will do this when it is soft, either with a blade or scissors. You will need to work quickly as it will begin to re-harden, you can place it back into the oven to soften again at any time.

Once you have cut the album in half, place it back into the oven and soften it again. This time you will cut a wide band around 2 inch wide for the width of the headband.

Once you are happy with the width place it back into the oven to soften the edges. Do not let it get too soft or you may loose the flat shape.

Once it has softened the edges you need to take it out and cut the ends to remove any sharp edges. A rounded finish works best. You may need to pop it back into the oven several times to get the desired shape you want. Remember don't let it melt too much at this point or you will loose your creation.

Once you are happy with the general shape, place it back into the oven to soften slightly pull it out and once it is cool enough to touch place it around your head and press firmly. This will custom shape the headband to your head so that it sits comfortably.

Next take a hot knitting needle or metal skewer and piece a hole at either end. This is for your elastic. If you have any sharp edges you can use a fine sandpaper or emery board to smooth over the edges once it is set. Tie your elastic into either hole,the length of your elastic will depend on your head size.

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