Add a special touch to your gift wrapping with a handmade paper bow. These bows are a snap to put together, and make you look like a gift wrapping expert. Once you start making your own bows, you may never need to buy one again.
Instructions
1. Select the color or colors of paper you would like for your bow. Use a piece that's at least 8 inches wide. Think outside the box. A pizza ad, for instance, yields a unique bow with a pepperoni and cheese effect.
2. Cut the paper into strips that are between 1/2 and 3/4 inches wide and 8 or more inches long. You can do this freehand since a bit of variation in the width won't really show up in the final product. You want at least six strips of paper, and perhaps a few more for a fuller bow.
3. Hold one strip of paper at a 45-degree angle in front of you. Take the top end and twist it half a turn, pulling it to the right of the bottom end. Hold it horizontally while you keep the bottom end put. From the horizontal position, wrap the top end around so it touches the backside of the bottom end. Make the loop half the length of the strip of paper.
4. Keep the loop in place and take the end that now points downward. Twist and fold it so both ends touch and you have a second loop that's a mirror image of the first. The piece should look like a figure eight with twists. Staple it in the center to attach both ends.
5. Make five more of these double-looped strips. Arrange them with the staples on top of each other, and staple them one more time to hold the whole bow together.
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