How to Make a Hair Bow

Bows and ribbons in her hair--what better way to accent her cute outfit and pretty little face. Making the hair bows yourself is a great and easy way to add your personal and loving touch.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Grosgrain ribbon
• Metal clip
• Measuring tape or ruler
• Scissors
• Floral or craft wire
• Fray check
• Hot glue gun

Preperation

1. Decide which type of ribbon you want to use. Grosgrain is a good quality and popular choice, especially for beginners. It will make a pretty hair bow, while providing an easy and bendable fabric to work with. The type of ribbon might also be dependent on the sort of bow you are making. This article instructs you on how to make a medium sized, classic pinwheel bow and grosgrain works well.

2. Gather your supplies and choose which sort of hair clip you want to attach the bow to. Alligator clips work well for fine hair and smaller to medium size bows, where French clips with springs do best for fuller hair or ponytails and medium to larger size bows.

3. Cut two pieces of ribbon. The width of the ribbon should be 3/4 to 1 1/2 inches. The length of the pieces should be about 24 inches and around 10 inches. If you use a wider ribbon for the long piece--which will be the body of the bow, then you might want to use a narrower ribbon for the shorter knot piece.

Assembly

4. Fold the long piece of ribbon over 5 times in about 4 1/2 inch lengths. Adjust the lengths to be even.

5. Pinch the folded ribbon in the center of the loops. Wrap floral or craft wire around the bunched ribbon to make a tight gathering in the center of the bow. You could also use embroidery thread, dental floss or fishing line, whichever you find works best for you. The floral wire is durable and doesn't melt when you glue it. Make certain to tuck under or trim the excess wire off so it does not poke out.

6. Turn the bow over and trim the ends so that they are even. Angle or kite tail finishes both work nicely for this particular bow. For an angle or strait line, trace a line with your ruler and trim. For the kite tail you need to first make a straight line, cut, then fold into the center and clip a triangle shape off the edge. Practice on a scrap piece if needed.

7. Finish the edges to prevent fraying. Use a thin coat of Fray Check or clear nail polish along the edge and allow to dry.

8. Attach the dried bow to the clip. You can slide the Alligator clip under the wire and then secure it with hot glue, or use additional wire to secure it to a French clip and then hot glue the ends, or simple hot glue the bow to the clip.

9. Take smaller piece of ribbon and knot it in the center. Place the smooth side of the knot on top of the exposed wire in the center of the front of the bow with a dab of hot glue. Wrap around, glue and trim each of the edges of the small piece of ribbon to the bow.

10. Flip the bow over and adjust the fullness and edges to your liking. Your bow is now complete and ready to be worn. You can get tips for this and other bow styles on websites such as Girly Things or Offray.

Resources

• Girly Things website
• Offray Ribbons website

[iamageniuster]

on 10/31/2008 Very cool article. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks for sharing.