I wanted to monitor my heart rate throughout the day to help manage my anaemia. I was gifted a Fitbit for it, but I had one problem: the holes in the original silicone band would make it too tight or too loose.
Options for genuine replacement bands for the Charge 5 were limited. (They also had negative reviews about their durability.) I sought to buy just the band clip component, but they weren’t sold separately. Eventually I gave some unbranded bands a try, but while they clicked into the Fitbit, they turned out to be rough and uncomfortable.
So I decided to make my own watch band, in scrunchie style.
Materials
Not much was needed to convert a watch band into a scrunchie. I used:
- 2 band clips (recycled from an unwanted fitbit charge 5 watch band)
- 22cm x 6cm of fabric (I had a scrap piece of double gauze cotton)
- 11cm of elastic (12mm wide, leftover from another project)
Crafting the scrunchie watch band
Isolating the clips
I started by cutting the band off the unwanted watch band, to isolate and reuse the plastic band clips that clip onto my Fitbit.
Sewing the fabric into a tube
I aimed for a final band width just under 2cm so that it would fit through the clip. So I sewed along the long edge of the fabric, approximately 2cm from the folded edge.
After sewing, I trimmed off any excess fabric, leaving a seam of around 2mm. Then, I turned the fabric tube inside out.
Adding elastic
I cut a piece of elastic to about 11cm in length. Inserting one end of the elastic through the fabric tube, I guided it until it reached about 3cm away from the end of the tube (ie. where I want to fold over and sew the clip in place).
Attaching the clip
With one band clip inserted, I folded the fabric tube end inward to enclose the raw seam. Then, I folded the fabric over the clip and sewed the end closed.
Securing the elastic
At this stage, the elastic and elastic guide was mid-way inside the loop. To complete the scrunchie band, I pulled the elastic out from the other side and reinserted it approximately 3cm inward. I sewed the elastic in place.
Attaching the second clip
Just like the first one, I inserted the other end of the band clip, folded the fabric over it, and enclosed the raw seam inside. Then, I sewed along the end, over the elastic, to secure the elastic and clip in place.
Just as a quick validation of the final length, I compared it against the original band that was adjusted to fit my wrist. Looking good so far – it’s time to attach it to the Fitbit and try it on!
Checking the band length
I tried on my scrunchie band attached to the Fitbit. Thankfully, the length was perfect, and the band fit comfortably.
Reinforcing the Stitches
Lastly, I decided to reinforce the stitches by sewing a second line next to the original two stitches that keeps the clips in place.
This extra step would add strength and durability to the band. Although, according to some Amazon reviews, these band clips may become loose and fall off the Fitbit in a few months time.
But it’s OK – they came in a set of three 😂
(Update: 12 months later, they’re still doing well; so I can call this a success 😊)
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