3 Easy Headscarf Hacks to Prevent Slipping + Fabric Recommendations

Tools and materials:

• Under-hat
• Velvet headband
• Bobby pins
• Scarf

1. Under-hat

I’m going to use a lovely vintage silk scarf that is very slippery. From my experience, this style has to be adjusted all the time as it falls down easily.

To prevent this type of scarf from falling down, you can wear an under-hat underneath it.

The under-hat allows you to hide all of your hair beneath it.

Then tie the scarf on top of it.

Now it feels more secure. I was able to wear this style without any adjustment for about three hours.

How long the scarf and under-hat stay on for you can depend on your hair type, head shape, and the way to choose to style the scarf.

2. Velvet headband

I love velvet headbands because you can easily adjust their size so that they are tight yet still comfortable.

When putting it on, you need to make sure that you position it in the right way. The directional pile should sweep toward your face.

That way, the scarf sits on the rougher side, which creates friction and helps the scarf to stay on your head.

It is not easy to pull down the silk headscarf with the velvet headband on. I can feel the resistance of the velvet.

Depending on how tight you tie your scarf and how thick the scarf is, you might be able to see the line of the headband underneath it.

Personally, I'm okay with this.

3. Bobby pins

The last technique is using bobby pins. The secret of how to really secure your headscarf with bobby pins is to cross the two pins over one another.

I place two crossed pins on each side and also put a cross behind the neck.

This method helps to really secure the scarf, but the downside is that the pins are quite visible. I was able to wear this style for a day without any adjustments.

How to choose a fabric?

Now let's talk about the best and the worst fabrics for head scarves.

1. Cotton

The best material for headscarves is cotton. Cotton scarves rarely need any adjustment at all.

2. Wool

Wool scarves are pretty good as well, but I recommend wearing an under-hat with them.

3. Satin polyester

The most difficult head scarf to wear is a satin polyester. The only way to keep these scarves in place all day is with bobby pins. 

Not all polyester is the same. The polyesters that are not shiny are much easier to wear.

You can wear them basically like a cotton scarf with no problem at all.

4. Satin silk

Satin silk will be just a little bit better than polyester satin. It will still fall down easily.

Don’t get me wrong, I love silk scarves, and I wear them all the time, but here I'm talking about headscarves that have to be worn for many hours.

5. Silk twill

Silk twill is still shiny, but it is much better than satin.

If I need to keep it in place all day long, I would wear a velvet headband or add bobby pins.

If you absolutely love silk, I would recommend crepe de chine silk. It is not slippery, and it’s almost as good as cotton.

Easy scarf hacks

I hope you’ve found this tutorial helpful and that it’s given you some ideas for how to keep scarves on your head.

These techniques let you wear your scarves for longer without having to worry about them falling down.

If you know of any other ways to prevent your head scarf from slipping, please let me know in the comments!

For even more ideas on how you can wear a scarf, check out my Easy and Elegant Braided Scarf Tutorial.