Flower Bows

These bows might just be my favorite bows yet.  I have always loved the 1960's-1970's look and really enjoy how retro these are.  I made two designs, one out of squares with tulle and one out of circles with some fabric remnants.

Price breakdown:
Alligator Clips
Buttons
4 different fabric remnants
Felt
Hot glue gun
Ribbon 

FREE!

To start out, you will need a small circle of felt and 8 large "squares".  I put that word in quotes because these do not have to be anywhere near perfect.  You will also need 8 squares about half the size of your others.

Take your first square and fold the bottom to the center to create a triangle.

Take the same square and fold it up on the backside the same way.  The result will end with a point at the bottom like below.

Make all 8 of these and glue the edges together at the bottom (remember, a dot is a lot!).  Hot glue onto your felt circle.

Create the same petal shapes with your smaller squares and hot glue them on top of your bottom layer.

Glue your flower to the clip of your choice.  Add a pretty button, cap, brad or whatever you have available to the center for a little embellishment and you have yourself a party bow!

Up next is the more traditional flower bow, this time made from circles.  Cut one large circle from felt, 8 circles from one fabric and 8 smaller from a coordinating colors. Follow the steps above for creating your pointed "petals".

Arrange just like the Tulle bow above and you have yourself one preppy little bow!

Two different styles, one easy method!

Christmas Wreaths

Check out these awesome Christmas wreaths I made.  I have always dreamed of having a house full of them, but didn't know how to make them!  For a tutorial, go here.

Candy Cane Bows

Here is another great bow that is easy to make.  I found this and several other bow designs at http://www.girlythingsbows.com.  Their tutorials are much better than mine because they do this for a living.  Wouldn't that be the best?

Price breakdown:
$1 ribbon
Alligator Clip
Hot glue
Needle and thread
Candle
$1

Follow all the steps for heat sealing your ribbon and preparing your alligator clip here.  Cut 12-18 inches of ribbon depending on how big you want your bow to be.  Wrap the ribbon length-wise around itself 4 times.  One edge of your ribbon will be inside and one will be out, facing the opposite direction.

Hold or pin the ribbon in the center and pull both edges down.  Pull the loops out evenly and pin in the center.

Thread a needle and pull it through the center of your bow.  Wrap it around several times and pull the thread through the center again.  Knot off and trim excess thread.

Adhere your bow to the clip and pull ribbon around the center like the bow tutorial referenced above.

Now I just need a red jumper and some tights and we have a Christmas outfit!

Bows From Other Projects

These two bow projects were created with things I found in the dollar bin at Joann's.  I absolutely love these.

Price Breakdown:

$1 Reindeer bracelet
$1 Star craft kit
Metal clip barrettes
Hot Glue
$2

Cut your reindeer bracelet apart and take off the beads.

This project is so easy...simply glue the reindeer head to the edge of the metal clippy.  That's it!  If you want to get real fancy, glue the red beads to the noses of the reindeer to make little Rudolphs!

Next, lets make our little star bows.  I found these cute fabric stars in a craft kit.  Again, these were so simple.  All I did was hot glue them to the metal clips.

Sadie asks to wear these almost every day.  Maybe I should stick with the simple stuff!

Ho Ho Bows

I have a great friend named Jenn who taught me how to make fun, girly bows last year.  This post is dedicated to her.  Sometimes one little lesson spurs on a whole creation of crafts!

Price Breakdown:

$1 ribbon

Alligator clip from my stash

Hot glue gun

Needle and thread

Candle

$1

For a bow of this size, measure out 12-14 inches of ribbon.  This length can vary based on how big or small you would like your bow to be.

To prevent fraying, its important to seal the ends of your ribbon.  You can buy a sealer at a craft store, but isn't it more fun to do it for free?  Simply hold the edge of your ribbon close to a flame and the edge of the ribbon will melt and harden.  Don't get too close or your ribbon will burn ;).

Turn the ribbon RS out and create the first half of your crazy eight shape at about mid-length of the ribbon.  Wrap your other side of ribbon to create the other half of your eight.

Now, down the middle of each loop so that they meet in the center as well.

Pin together.

Next, thread a needle and pull your thread through the center of the bow.  Wrap it around the center several times and pull it through the center one last time.  Tie in a knot and cut off excess thread.

Now, we need to cover our alligator clip.  Cut approximately 5 inches of ribbon and heat seal your edges.  This can be done with a neutral color or with the ribbon your already using.  Turn your clip upside down and hot glue the tip of your ribbon to the bottom edge.

Add a dot of glue to each of the clasp edges and push the ribbon in.  I always told students when I taught that "A dot is a lot" when it comes to glue.  If you use too much, your hot glue will seep over your edges and your project will look cheap.

Next, glue the ribbon to the top of your clip.  Be sure to add a dot at the opposite edge.  This needs to be reinforced since you will be pulling on the ribbon when you glue it to the inside later.  But don't glue to the inside edge just yet!

Flip your clip right side up and hot glue your bow to the center of the clip.

Now, you will need one more small piece of ribbon.  This piece is about an inch long here, but you may need longer pieces if you want to get fancy and tie it in a knot.  This piece will be the final, top piece of your bow.

It's hard to tell in the picture below, but you want to hot glue the edge of this ribbon (after heat sealing, of course!) to the center of the inside of your clip.  Wrap it around your bow and hot glue back to the center again.

Finally, take the ribbon that you held off gluing to your alligator clip and glue it to the inside of your clip.  A dot on both edges is enough.

Tada!

I haven't been slacking!

I just haven't been posting!  I promise I have been doing projects every week...I just need to find time to blog too!  I worked on a huge painting project that I will post soon...but in the mean time, read ahead!

Thanksgiving Wreath

This easy project is actually copied from my friend Stephanie's blog, www.thegeeseandus.blogspot.com.  She made this great wreath and inspired me to make one! (Yes, she is my sensational cake froster from the post below).

Price breakdown:

$2.56 coordinating colors, 5 inches each from 45 or 60 inch fabric (5)
wire hanger
$2.56

I have always wanted to have wreaths around the house, but have always been to cheap too buy them...but now I plan to make one of these for ever holiday!  Another great thing is I made this in an hour and a half (while watching When Harry Met Sally, talk about a good time!).

Start out with your fabric and wire hanger reshaped into a circle:

Cut those fabrics into one inch strips.  Don't worry about being exact...a little variation will add some pizazz to your final piece.

Tie those strips on your wire hanger.  You can go at random or in a pattern, it won't matter either way!

Keep filling up that hanger and push them close together to add fullness.

Hang up your wreath!

Happy Harvest!

Topsy Turvy Birthday Cake

So, here is another great project from FamilyFun.com.  They posted this cake as a nod to a Alice in Wonderland Theme, but I thought it would be a cute cake for any girl's party!

Price breakdown:
$3.00  cake mix (3)
$9.54 frosting (6)
food coloring
straws
disposable cake decorating bags and tips
cardboard circles in 9, 8, 6 inches
$12.54

First mix your three cake mixes according to package directions and bake 2, 6-in, 8-in, 9-in EACH cakes.

Use the top of your cake pans and trace them on your cardboard to make 3 circles, one for 6-in, one for 8-in and one for 9-in.

Next, mix your white frosting with the food coloring of your choice.  I used some fun neon colors.

Next, trim the tops of your cakes off to make them level.  Place them on the coordinating cardboard piece.  This picture is my friend and cake engineer, Rick who did all the cutting (and most of the frosting!) on this cake.

You should have all of this when you are ready to start constructing your masterpiece:

Put a small gob of frosting on the top of one of each sized cake.  Place the coordinating layer on top.  Frost the sides of your layers together with the white frosting.  Experienced people call this a crumb layer.

Ignore the straws, those actually come later!

Next, have your cake cutter, in my case, Rick, cut your layers at an angle.

Now, push three straws in a triangle pattern through each of your layers for stability.  Cut the straws even with the top of your cake.

Next, frost your three layers in the color of your choice.  The picture below is my brilliant baking friend, Stephanie, helping my frost.  She is also Rick's wife :).  I am lucky to know a husband and wife who are both creative to help me in these ventures!

Now, stack your layers (with the cardboard underneath each) on top of one another.

Now, pipe frosting around all of your layers.  We stopped in the middle of piping and put the cake in the fridge because the frosting started to get goopy (is that a word?).  The frosting will stick better if it is chilled (not cold, or it won't spread) and if your cake is cold.  If it makes you more comfortable, chill your cake in between every step.

After all the piping is finished, add any decoration on the side. 

This cake feeds tons of people!  We had 20 folks at our party and it was only halfway gone!  Enjoy!