Decorating a Christmas Wreath Part 1: the bow

I love this time of year because I get to use all my metallic spray paint, ribbon and GLITTER!! So much glitter! This time of year can also be very, very expensive. It is so easy to go overboard with the decorations.

Today I am going to show you how to decorate your own holiday wreath. This is part one of a two part tutorial that can save you mucho dinero this season. You can use any colors you like...the possibilities are seriously endless!

my funky wreath from last year.

You will need:

a spool of pretty wire ribbon (2 inch wide ribbon is way easier to work with then 4 but use whatever you like)
a foot of floral wire or any old type of wire... I used 24 gauge silver plated craft wire that I had around.
scissors
wire cutters

Note: For this tutorial I used ribbon that is patterned on one side and bold on the other. You always want the pattern to face out. If you have ribbon that is solid on both sides you don't need to worry.

Do not cut a strip of ribbon and assume it is enough! Just pull from the spool! In these directions I refer to the piece of ribbon leading to the spool as "the tail" 

The easiest way to make a fancy bow is to start with the centermost loop and work your way out. You simply take the end of the ribbon and fold it. This fold forms the center loop. You can make this loop as large as you like. Simply keep in mind that all the other loops will increase in size. NOTE: hold on tight to that end piece of ribbon. Notice how there is about a half inch on the right side of my finger? You don't want to lose or let go of the edge piece.

Holding on tight to the edge piece with your thumb, you take the ribbon tail and fold it back towards the centermost loop (towards your thumb). Now you should have two loops. Make this fold the same size or slightly bigger than the first loop.

side view: the loop on the right is the first fold. The loose ribbon on the top right is the tail .

top view: your thumb should be holding the two loops with the tail running out the bottom and the edge piece sandwiched in-between. You can see the edge piece peeking out at the top. Hold on tight!

Next, take the center that you are holding with your thumb and pinch it. This cinch or gather created by pinching secures the two loops and the edge piece together.

Now comes the tricky part: holding on to the cinched center with your left hand use your right hand to grab the part of the ribbon where the tail meets the cinch and give it a firm twist. This twist brings the pattern up towards you and is important when you form your next loop. 

side view: the tail twisted with the pattern facing you.

Now that the ribbon tail is twisted you can fold it back towards the cinch. Make this loop slightly larger then the previous two. 

The center loop is the original loop. The loop on the right is the one you just added. 

Securing the new loop, grab the tail and twist it so that the tail is underneath a loop on the opposite side of the loop you just made. You continue in this manner. Twist, fold, bring the tail to opposite side, twist, fold. 

Twist, fold, bring the tail to the opposite side, twist, fold..... 

Just hold on to that cinched center with your thumb and make sure all of your twists gather together near that cinch. It can be a little sloppy at this point wire ribbon is very forgiving.

Keep going! Make every loop a little bigger until you are happy with the size.

Once you are happy with the size of the bow (for now, don't worry about the shape) You are ready to finish it with long flowing ends. 

With your left hand hold tightly onto the cinched/twisted center of your bow, take your right hand and grab the tail. While holding the ribbon tail loosely, extend your arms out into a wingspan pulling ribbon off the roll. This should give you a wingspan of loose ribbon between your left and right hands. Take the part of the tail that you are holding onto with your right hand and bring it towards the cinched center of your bow. In other words you are forming a really, really large loop.

The curly part in the middle is the tail. The two long pieces on either side are both ends of the large loop. 

Take your wire and pull it around the cinched and twisted center of your bow. Make sure the wire goes around everything...including where the large loop touches the center of the bow. Basically thread your wire around everything being secured by your left hand.

View from the bottom of the bow. The ribbon closest to the camera is the tail.

Once the wire is around everything twist it like crazy! Use pliers if you need. Make that wire nice and tight so the cinched center cannot get loose.

The long ribbon piece in the center of this photo is the tail leading to the spool. See the wire nice and tight?

Once everything is secured with the wire you can cut the tail off. Make sure you cut the tail leading to the ribbon spool and not your giant loop.

Once you cut off the tail, you should have a bow with an extra long loop hanging down. Keep that loop long for now. Remember how I said wired ribbon is very forgiving? Once everything is secure you can fan your loops out and make them nice and round. Come back soon and I will show you how to decorate the rest of your wreath. Happy bow making! If you have questions please ask! I did this tutorial while holding a baby and typing one handed. I am sure I left something out. Thanks for looking. Love, Ms. Kate.