Ribbon bows can be easily made at home on a budget.
Bows are so versatile, feminine and elegant. They can be used for topping wrapped gifts, decorating wedding venues, embellishing Christmas trees and even adorning a little girl's hair. While it may be easy to buy bows for all of these reasons, it is more economical to make bows at home since ribbon can be purchased cheaply by the yard at most craft, sewing and hobby stores. Color and size options are almost limitless when you choose to make your own bows out of ribbon. Bow making does not require sewing skills and just about anyone -- even individuals with little crafting experience -- can complete a perfect ribbon bow.
Instructions
1. Cut 1 yard of ribbon for a small bow, 2 yards for a medium bow and 3 yards for a large bow. Use wide wired ribbon for medium and large bows. Use any size and style of ribbon material desired for small bows.
2. Lay the ribbon out on a table or on the floor. Decide how long you want the tail of the ribbon to be. Make a small mark in pencil where you would like the tail to start. For example, if you want the tail to be 6 inches long, measure from the bottom of the ribbon and make a mark in pencil 6 inches up from the bottom of the ribbon.
3. Cut 3 inches of crafting wire. Set aside to fasten the bow together.
4. Hold the ribbon at the point of the pencil mark between your thumb and pointer finger. Make a loop with the ribbon with the opposite hand. The loop can be as big or as small as you desire. This will be the approximate size of all of the bow loops. Grab the loop under the thumb.
5. Make more loops. Use the original loop as a guide to make the rest of the loops of the bow so that they all look similar. Work in an "X" motion, creating and securing loops from the left top to the right bottom and turning clockwise as you work, until the bow is circular and full. Use your thumb and pointer finger to hold the bow together while working.
6. Cut the second tail to the same length at the first. Secure the bow together by wrapping craft wire around the center of the bow and twisting the wire until the bow is secure. Cut off any excess wire.
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