Pop tab Madness - DIY Pop Tab Belt

When I was a little girl my Dad would make my sisters and I belts by weaving pop tabs together with ribbon. I thought they were the coolest thing and when I started crafting heavily I wanted to use pop tabs to try and create objects that would be functional...just like my dad's belts.

Unbeknownst to me, Dad had been saving pop tabs for years! He had bags and bags of pop tabs just waiting to be turned in to eye catching works of art.

I am going to start out with a simple belt pattern. For this project you will need:

Pop tabs - for this weave you will need 12 for every 3 inches of belt
1 "Webbing in any color
2 piece grommets (and tools necessary to install)
Belt hardware
Needle and thread
2 pieces of ribbon 2x the waist measurement
Safety pins

I start out by sterilizing my pop tabs in a solution of boiling water and soap making sure to agitate them very well. For this I use a wire basket type colander.

After draining you will have a big pile of silver tabby goodness.

You want to prepare your lengths of ribbon by dabbing a bit of fray check or super glue on both ends of the ribbon. (the ends do not have to look pretty as they will be trimmed after construction).

Attach a safety pins and they will function as your "needles".

Take 2 pop tabs, placing the second on top of the first. (excuse my horrific nails).

Bring the ribbons up through both holes in pop tab #1, leaving a tails of about 6 inches. From now on you will be threading the ribbons through 2 pop tabs at a time.

Pull them nice and tight.

Now, place a third pop tab behind the second. Bring both ribbons up through the holes in tabs #2 and #3.

Continue in the same fashion until you reach the desired length. 



And the back.....

Continue until you have reached the desired length.

I use alligator clips to secure my pop tabs to the webbing while I sew them together with matching thread. Use a crochet hook or nimble fingers to secure the tails to the wrong side of the pop tab strip. Remember to leave enough webbing on one end to place the grommets.

Now it is time to place your grommets and attach the belt hardware. I found that heating a nail and melting a hole in the webbing eliminates fraying and makes placing the grommets so much easier. Just be sure and do this in a well ventilated area as the fumes are very hazardous.

These belts are fun and easy to make. Once you have the hang of pop tab weaving there is no limit to what you can create.

I am currently working on a  pop tab skirt and a backpack, feel free to email me if you are interested in those tutorials.