How to Make Pinwheel Hairbows

An ivory bow

It is easy to make pinwheel hairbows and clips for yourself, your daughter, granddaughter or friend. Handmade hair bows make great birthday party gifts and favors, and pinwheel hairbows in particular make a stunning impression because of their layers of ribbon and three-dimensional look. The best part about making pinwheel hairbows yourself is that you get to choose the colors, type of hair clip and size.

Things You'll Need

• Ribbon, 1/2 inch wide
• Contrasting color ribbon, 1/4 inch wide
• Craft wire
• Wire cutters
• Hot glue gun
• Hair clip

Instructions

Making the Pinwheel

1. Cut a 25-inch strip of the 1/2-inch wide ribbon. Cut a 4-inch strip of the 1/4-inch wide ribbon

2. Holding the 25-inch strip of ribbon almost at one of its ends, fold the short end of the ribbon up and away from you to make a loop, leaving the long length of the ribbon in front.

3. Holding the end of the long length of ribbon, fold the ribbon away from you, up and over to make another loop. The long end of the ribbon should be in the front now.

4. Fold the ribbon one more time to make another loop, making sure that the ends of both ribbons end up behind the loops you made. You should be holding three ribbon loops in your hand.

5. Pinch the center with your fingertips and secure by wrapping craft wire around the center four or five times.

6. Turn the bow over and cut the ends of the ribbon to matching sizes. Cut them on a diagonal or with a "V" in the center to make them look more decorative.

7. Take the 4-inch section of ribbon, dot the center of the pinwheel with hot glue, and wrap the ribbon around the center section of the pinwheel to form a pretty "knot." Cut the ends in the back so that they fold nicely over one another and dot with hot glue to secure.

Attaching Pinwheel to a Hair Clip

1. Slide the bow onto the hair clip, or use wire to wrap the bow onto the clip.

2. Secure with hot glue.

3. Cut the ends or hot glue them down according to the look you want to achieve.

References

• Girly Things: Pinwheel Bow
• Sweet 'n' Sassy Girls: How To Make Hair Bows

Resources

• Artists Helping Children: Hair Barettes and Clip Crafts