Instructions for a Poinsettia Hair Bow

Make a poinsettia hair bow to complement your Christmas outfit.

Christmas is a time when you want to look your best. There are parties to attend and family gatherings to look forward to. For women and girls alike, hair accessories are often as important as the outfit itself. A poinsettia hair bow is the perfect thing to complement a Christmas outfit. Make a poinsettia hair bow easily and inexpensively at home. If made properly, your hair bow can be stored and used again for future holiday gatherings.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring tape or ruler
• 1 yard of 1-inch red organza, grosgrain or taffeta ribbon with wired edges
• 1/2 yard of dark green organza, grosgrain or taffeta ribbon
• Scissors
• 8 inches of 20 or 22 gauge cloth-covered craft wire
• Hot glue gun
• Gold beads or sequins
• Bobby pins

Instructions

1. 

   Measure out the desired length of tail for the bow.

   Measure out the desired length of tail for the bow. Twist the ribbon, keeping the right side out. Do not cut the ribbon.

2. 

   Wind the ribbon around your thumb.

   Wind the ribbon around your thumb, creating a small, tight loop. This will be the center of your bow.

3. 

   Twist the ribbon.

   Twist the ribbon while holding it between your thumb and forefinger, making the first loop to the desired length on one side of your hand while still holding the ribbon between your thumb and forefinger. Give the ribbon a half twist. For a hair bow, do not make the loops too big or it will become too large to wear once you have added more loops to make a full bow.

4. 

   You should now have a simple bow.

   Make another loop on the other side of your hand, taking care that the ribbon is right side out. Give it another half twist securing it with your thumb and forefinger. You should now have two loops and a middle and it will look like a simple bow.

5. Repeat the steps several more times, half twist, loop on one side of your hand, half twist, loop to the other side of your hand until you have made your bow the size you want it to be. The more loops, the more full the bow will be.

6. Hold the bow in your hand and with the opposite hand, take the wire and slide it through the loop that is the middle of the bow. Twist the wires together securely and tightly underneath the bow to secure it without being noticeable from the top. Leave the wire ends long for now.

7. 

   Cut the other bow tail.

   Measure out a length of ribbon that matches the tail you already have on your bow. Cut the other bow tail to separate it from the leftover ribbon.

8. Cut the corners of each ribbon tail into a point. Do this by folding the ribbon tail in half vertically and cutting diagonally downward 1/3 of the length starting at the inside corner of the folded ribbon.

9. Cut each loop of your bow except for the center, horizontally to make each loop into two pieces. Cut the ends of each piece into a point. This is optional, you can leave the loops intact as well.

10. Cut the ends of the wire twisted around the middle to approximately 1 inch long. Twist the wires a couple more times to ensure they will not unravel. Do not twist excessively or the wire will snap and your bow will fall apart. Bend the remaining wire tail flat against the bottom of the bow.

11. Cut two equal lengths of your green ribbon. Thread through the center loop of the bow like you did the wire and securely knot them one at a time so they are in an X pattern. These will become the leaves for your poinsettia bow.

12. Cut the green ribbon tails to the desired length, and then fold the end of each ribbon together horizontally and cut diagonally down about 1/3 of the ribbon from the outside edge, this time to the folded middle edge. As the cuts on the red ribbon ends made points, this cut will be exactly opposite.

13. Glue the gold beads or sequins to the top of the center loop of the bow with a hot glue gun. The bow can then be secured in the hair with bobby pins.

Tips & Warnings

• If you want a poinsettia comb or barrette, use the hot glue gun to glue your bow to one of these hair accessories. You can also create a hair band by gluing the bow to a plain hair band.

References

• Richards Arts and Crafts: Bow Making, The Basics
• Crafttown.com: Bow Making
• Offray: Bow How To
• Offray: Ribbon Poinsettia Ornament
• Metacafe: How To Make A Loopy Bow