21 July 2011

How to Tie the Perfect Flat Bow

One of the nicest ways to finish off a card is with a ribbon bow.  I thought I was pretty good at tying ribbon, but I found that without a consistent method, some of my bows were perfect, and others were definitely not.  I would sit there trying to reverse engineer the good ones and work out what I had done!  My downfall was single-sided ribbon, I could never work out how to get the pattern to remain uppermost, and many twists and loops later, it was hit-and-miss as to whether I had the desired result.  

Now that I have sat down and had a bit of a think, here is a very easy method to tie a perfect flat bow using single-sided or double-sided ribbon.   I hope it helps you as much as it has helped me. 

* For this method you can leave the ribbon on the spool and cut it once the bow is finished to save ribbon wastage.

 Step 1:  Make a loop ensuring the cut end (this will be the tail) is on the top and pinch to hold.

Step 2:  Wrap the ribbon around the front to form a small loop (just like tying your shoe) and bring it round to the back.  See how the underside of the ribbon is now showing?  Give the ribbon a tight half-twist close to where you are pinching the centre, so the printed side is uppermost and  push it through the central loop as shown below to form the bow.


Step 3:  Gently pull on both loop ends to tighten the centre knot.  You can make adjustments here to ensure your bow is the size you require and that both tails are sitting flat.

Step 4:  Once you're happy, pull tight and trim the ends.

Step 5:  Add it to your project!  With a bit of practise you too will master the perfect flat bow.

Note:  I am left handed, so I actually hold the bow in my right hand to tie.  I took the photos and flipped them to look right handed - this method works in either hand.  I even tried it out on my Dad!

Happy Stamping,

31 comments:

  1. This was SO helpful! After watching many YouTube videos on this and still not being able to get it, I was about to give up but ran across your site. Attempted it once and it turned out perfectly. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  2. OH MY WORD!!! Thank you so much! I struggled with same thing but never had the time to "think" it out!! I am glad I am not the only who struggle{d} with bow tying for cards and such! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you so much for this lesson Now I know how to do it. hurrraaahhhh

    ReplyDelete
  4. this is something I have struggled with...my friend usually ends up doing it for me...but I will definately be praticing with these instructions...they are awesome. Thanks very much for doing them.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Olivia, Love this tutorial, I have just shared it over on my blog http://thinkbowtique.com/blog/ Please let me know if you don't want me to.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for this! Made it so easy when I used to struggle!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you!! Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks so much for the tutorial!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Brilliant - We struggle yet you make it look so simple. Thanks for sharing this with us all :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow wonderful its really good to see your art i wonder how can you produce such a art it must be GOD gifted you are so lucky. I would like to ask what kind of printer and Toner Cartridge you use when you need to print card or might be you got print from shop? please anyone tell me suitable printer to print hard cards.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi John, I use an HP Photosmart 7510. I print my cards and inserts out beautifully on this. Hope this helps.

      Delete
  12. Hi Olivia this is a great method thanks so much for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hi Olivia this is a great method thanks so much for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hi Olivia this is a great method thanks so much for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Olivia, I've spent all morning trying to tie a bow and after searching google I found your blog and 'how to' guide and had 'perfect bow' success at my first atttempt. Thank you so much for sharing xx

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh! Thank goodness I found this! Luckily, this project, the ribbon is the same on both sides. I was happy to find this without a "base knot".

    ReplyDelete
  17. Oh! Thank goodness I found this! Luckily, this project, the ribbon is the same on both sides. I was happy to find this without a "base knot".

    ReplyDelete
  18. I am so impressed how easy that was,especially me being left handed I normally have difficulty, but this was great. I don't even get this good a result with my bow maker. Thank you for sharing

    ReplyDelete
  19. I did battle a bit but think I've got it now! Thanks so much - another learning curve!

    ReplyDelete
  20. TFS. This is a game changer. I would never use ribbon before, because I could not tie a decent bow despite spending ample time trying.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Thank you , thank you, thank you, bows are something I stopped trying as most time they didn't work.
    Your demonstration has helped me so very much. Cheers

    ReplyDelete
  22. ty very cool. I've always had problems tying a one-sided ribbon bow. Practice will make perfect. Thank you again for the tutorial.





    ReplyDelete
  23. I want to add my thanks to you for this. I have also been struggling with this problem. So glad you sat down and "had a think" about this and shared!

    ReplyDelete
  24. thanks for sharing this with us. Great tip for cards

    ReplyDelete
  25. Thank you so much! Your written steps were great..1st time was a success!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Thank you, even 2021 your hint is valuable.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...