Holiday Decor Series: Bows Bows and More Bows!

I have been on a pretty long blogging break.
Yikes....I haven't posted since Halloween and now we are deep into the Holiday Season!
I don't have any real good excuse for this....I am sort of rethinking and want to revamp the blog.
I guess that will be my project for the new year.
In the meantime.....

wikipedia.com

I will share some of my old favorite Holiday Decor on a Budget posts from years past.
So with a nod to Charles Dickens I present for you...
NOT the of GHOSTS of Christmas Past.....These are POSTS of Christmas Past!

Let's start with those BOWS...because it really is all about those BOWS!

I pretty much put a bow on EVERYTHING....and knowing the tricks to making these lovelies will save you money and add a bit of "class" to your decor.

Tooo funny....I was looking for pictures of pretty bows to add to this post and I found this site:
christmastreewreaths
You can buy a pre-made bow like this for a mere $6.75....or go wild and buy 12 for $72.00!

It always amazes me that people really buy stuff like that....go figure!

Here is mine using the Costco ribbon!

Now....you do the math!
$8.00 for 50 yards of ribbon.....2 yards per bow.....hmmmmmm!










I love Costco for lots of things....but I REALLY love their wire edged ribbon!

cochaser.com

 $7.99 for 50 yards of beautiful wired ribbon!
Beautiful ribbons....and with 50 yards there are no worries about running out.

It takes a long time to use up 50 yards of ribbon so my "stash" is growing.

We use these ribbons for our annual Boughs, Bows and Beverages events here at Sweetwater....so it is really a good investment (says the woman trying to rationalize her ribbon fetish)!

Read about Boughs, Bows and Beverages here.

There are lots of places to get ribbon.....and lots of sales this time of year.

It is also a great idea to save your bows from year to year.




It is now time to get your BOW on!
There are some links to bow making tutorials at the end of the post....written by actual posters who excel at writing tutorials.

Here is my poor attempt to show you how I make a pretty....professional looking bow.
Warning:  holding the ribbon, the wire, and taking pictures.....now THAT was a trick!

Start by cutting a piece of florist wire about 12 inches long....

If you don't have any paddle wire like this...GET SOME!  NOW!  You will use it and use it and use it!






Leave the ribbon attached to the spool and pull out about a yard.....

If you cut now...you might not have enough for a pretty bow....and besides...if you mess up...
just let go and start again!










Make a loop that is half the size of the bow you want....

pinch it tight....











flip over and make a loop on the other side that is the same size

pinch that tight










Keep going back and forth....
loop, pinch, loop, pinch





This bow has 5 loops on one side and 6 loops on the other.....

I read somewhere that you should always have an odd number of loops....but who's counting? Oh...ME!





Now take the piece of wire and wrap it around the center....whew!  You can let go of the loops now and hold on to the wire.











Twist the ribbon...NOT the wire....around about 3 times to get an nice tight center.

NOW....you can cut the bow away from the spool!

Then start pulling the loops up and twisting them into a pretty shaped bow.

The wire in the center lets you have at it without worrying that the bow will come apart.

The wire edge of the ribbon lets you shape the loops.

There you have it! 

 Here are the other links I found with much more professional tutorials....take a look!

Better Homes and Gardens Video Tutorial
Directions for lots of fancy bows
Michael's Tutorial

Good Luck!

Have a Wonderful Day!