Tutorial: How To Make Foam Falls (Hole Punch and Ties)
Posted by Sarah on Nov 13th 2008
The below method is best suited for adding foam as an accent to another hairpiece, or for making foam extensions.
If you're in the US, you can find sheets of craft foam at craft stores like Michaels and Jo-Ann Fabrics. The 2mm thickness is the most common, and is also the thickness used here.
Materials
- Sheets of 2mm foam
- A sharp blade (we like using box cutters, but a smooth kitchen knife will work too if you don't have anything else)
- A straightedge/ruler
- A thick piece of cardboard, or a couple thin pieces stacked up
- A hole punch
- Zip ties, rexlace, or ribbon
- Tape or grommets (to reinforce the foam)
Instructions
1. First, cut your strips of foam. Lay a sheet of foam flat on the
cardboard and cut it, using the straightedge as a guide. Make sure the
strips are 1" wide or less, but also take care not to cut them so narrow
that you can't punch a hole in them. Use the straightedge to ensure
that you're cutting uniform, even pieces.
2. Once you've got your foam strips, decide on how you want the ends to look and cut them accordingly. There are also a few different options for finishing the ends of your foam: leave it straight, cut it to a point, or cut it diagonally. The way you cut your foam is a matter of personal preference, though the point and the diagonal cut tend to look better than leaving the ends straight in most cases.
Straight ends, pointed ends, and diagonal ends.
3. If you're using tape, wrap the tip of the foam in it and use the hole punch to punch a hole through both the tape and the foam. If you're using grommets, punch the hole, then add the grommet according to the instructions on the package.
4. Thread your zip tie, rexlace, or ribbon through the hole.
Once you've threaded your foam, you can either tie it onto an elastic or
a stripe of lace, or you can braid your real hair down the ribbon or
rexlace to add the foam into your hair as an extension.
Here's our finished piece. We've added cyberlox and smooth tubing and mounted the falls on lace.