Pollen has started to fall, the little flowers that sprinkle the ground are sprouting and afternoon thunderstorms are beginning to roll in. It’s early spring, and with the cold weather rolling out, it’s time to roll in the bright color palettes that make up a spring wardrobe. With Target, Kitsch, Urban Outfitters and hundreds of other shops that sell clips, beads and scarves for your hair that are a little expensive for a simple hair accessory, it can be frustrating to stay on trend when working with a high school budget. However, save on shipping and transform clips from your local Walmart with fabric from around the house or Goodwill by following these simple tutorials.  

Beaded bobby pins

To make your own beaded bobby pins, start out with a simple package of the hair clips. Grab a hot glue gun or some super glue, a protected surface, and the beads of your choice. To keep the bobby pins from being glued together, slide them onto a piece of paper before you glue the top of it. Glue the beads on, using tweezers or pliers to hold them in place, saving your fingertips from burns or glue stains. This accessory leaves great freedom for individualization and variation when it comes to styling, and can be used in many different ways. 

Fabric covered flip clips

Flip clips are some of the fastest ways to pull your hair back and add a little drop of color as well. To create fabric covered flip clips, start with an old item of clothing that’s unwearable (tie, skirt, denim, literally any fabric you wish) and cut a square large enough to cover the entire clip. Add a line of hot glue on top of the clip for thicker fabrics to make it look like quilted, if you wish. Then, cut a hole in the center of the square where the sides need to be wrapped, and use a thin liquid glue to secure the fabric around the back of the clip. Cut a piece of parchment paper and add a heavy book to the back side of the open clip to weigh the fabric down while the glue dries.

Bejeweled braids

Using wide set hair pins, jewels of your choice (from a craft store or even a broken earring), and hot glue, find a protected surface to begin. Once the glue is heated, simply glue the beads to the end of the hair pin, and place in an updo. 

Customized word clips

Whether rhinestoned or colorful, word clips are stepping into the fashion scene. Depending on the thickness of your hair, use a bobby pin or hair clip, and gather letter beads or larger individual letters from a craft store to glue on. In this tutorial, I used foam letter stickers and stuck newspaper to the back of them so that they wouldn’t get stuck in hair. Place the letters of the beads without glue onto the clip or the pin, then mark where they should be glued with chalk, and glue on your letters. Make sure the letters are facing the way you want your hair pin to go, and voila! Make a statement or a joke with your newfound form of communication.

photos by m. debenport