If you know how to tie your shoes, then you likely know how to tie a bow. When it comes to gifting, though, we think a little extra know-how in the art of bow-tying makes all the difference in presentation.
In this tutorial, we’ll walk you through the steps of how to make a bow that’s worthy of any gift wrap aisle. And the best part? It’s so easy!
Here's what You'll Need:
- Your wrapped gift
- Wire ribbon
- Curling ribbon
- Paper towel roll
- Tape
- Scissors
Use your scissors to cut the end of the paper towel roll so that it’s approximately the length of your hand — around 7 or 8 inches. You can discard the small end since we’ll need only the longer end to form the bow.
Starting at about three-quarters of the way down the roll, gently wrap the wired ribbon around the paper towel roll lengthwise. Do this until the ribbon runs out.
Hold on to the ribbon with one hand and carefully remove the paper towel roll with the other. Then fold both sides of the ribbon toward each other to find the middle.
Use your scissors to cut a small slit on either side of the ribbon, about 1/3 of the way through.
Take your curling ribbon and tie a tight knot between the two slits.
Tape the ends of the curling ribbon to your gift to attach the bow, then cut off any excess ribbon. Make sure your bow is securely attached to the gift before you begin fluffing.
Now comes the fun part! Separate the loops of the bow and spread them out, twisting and pulling on each loop to create volume.
Loops of ribbon look best in groups of three, but you can play around with the appearance of the bow until you get it the way you like.
You’ll end up with one excess strip of ribbon. (If you’re using single-sided ribbon, it may also appear upside down. If so, just twist it over.) To finish the bow, cut a “V” at the end.
And you’re set! Keep in mind: you can easily adjust the size of your bow by using more or less wire ribbon.
