How to Make Curly Ribbon Crowns

Ribbon crowns often adorn the heads of girls at renaissance festivals. They also make a great accessory for fairy costumes, princess play or for a birthday party headpiece. Making these curly ribbon crowns takes time, but once you have mastered the basics of curling the ribbon, subsequent crowns will be quick and easy to make. You can experiment with colors and different lengths of ribbon to make each crown unique.

Things You'll Need

• 3/8-inch fabric ribbon
• 1/4-inch dowels, 2 feet long
• Scissors
• Baking sheets
• Wooden clothespins
• Fray-stop spray
• Coat hanger
• Wire cutter
• Duct tape
• Hot glue

Instructions

Curl the Ribbon

1. Attach the end of the ribbon to the end of a dowel with a clothespin. Pin it so that the ribbon is perpendicular to the length of the dowel.

2. Wrap the ribbon tightly around the dowel. Do not overlap the ribbon as you wrap.

3. Pin the ribbon to the other end of the dowel with a second clothespin. Cut off any excess ribbon. Repeat this process for a total of six dowels.

4. Place the ribbon-covered dowels on baking sheets and place them in an oven that has been preheated to 275 degrees F. Bake for 25 minutes.

5. Allow the ribbons and dowels to cool down for five minutes after removing them from the oven. Remove the clothes pins and slide the ribbons off the dowels.

6. Spray the ends of each ribbon with a fray-stop spray to keep the ribbons from unraveling.

Create the Crown

1. Cut the hook of a hanger off with wire cutters. Straighten out the remaining length of wire.

2. Bend the wire to make a loop. The loop should be approximately 16 inches for children, and 22 inches for adults. Overlap the excess wire on the ends to make the proper sized loop.

3. Wrap duct tape tightly around the overlapping ends of the loop to hold it securely. Use enough tape to cover the cut end of the wire so that it will not scratch your head.

4. Hot glue the end of a ribbon to the wire loop. Wrap the ribbon around the loop tightly, making sure it overlaps so that no wire shows through. Once the wire is completely wrapped, glue the ribbon to the wire and trim off any excess ribbon.

5. Fold the six lengths of coiled ribbon in half. Place the looped end of the folded ribbons through the center of the crown. Pass all of the ribbon ends over the side of the crown then through the loop. Pull all the ends through the loop tightly so that there is a dangling tail of curled ribbon off the back of the crown. Wear the crown so the ribbons dangle down the back.

Tips & Warnings

• Glue small fabric flowers or rhinestones to the front of the crown.

• Do not allow the ribbons to touch the heating element in the oven.

References

• Information on Curling Ribbons