Red Plaid Christmas Ribbon Combination

Here's something a lot of people never consider...pairing your ribbons for a really special look to your holiday gifts or tree.  Each week, I'll post one to two videos about these pairings.  Some are traditional, some are modern showstoppers.  You may want to visit my previous blog on how to decorate your tree with ribbon.  It's very informative with a whole lot of tips.  Even my daughter who helped to film it learned a lot.  So here's the first--a very traditional look. 

Tutorial-Decorate your Christmas Tree Beautifully with Ribbon

About Grosgrain Ribbon

Did you know the translation for the French word grosgrain?  It is coarse texture. This ribbon is aptly named, because it is a textured woven ribbon, very sturdy and utilitarian. It is durable and washable hence you will see it in many fashions, the brim of hats,wraped and woven into plaits and pigtails and, cheerleader ribbon. You can find grosgrain ribbon in many widths, solids, patterns pleats and sometimes scalloped edges. Grosgrains are made of a variety of fibers usually a blend of cotton and viscose, and more recently, green and ecological bamboo.

Grosgrain is an excellent choice for hair ribbons, because it doesn't slide or un-tie

Here at Over the Moon Ribbons we have a wide range of grosgrains,in the coming weeks the Swiss dot. confetti dot, and asprin dots will arrive.

Although the bamboo is not shown, it is available, just e-mail me with your request.www.allim089@cs.com

Dressing up the Pumpkins

As you all know I am in love with fall and I have been dressing pumpkins for years.

You can choose to spray paint your pumpkin a color, or leave it au natural.
I am a big fan of coppery colors, and since the two places where I'm likely to put this pumpkin, the fireplace mantle or the dining room table, are dark, copper works well (in fact, any metallic color works well to bring light to an otherwise dark area).

Next I looked around my studio for ribbons and stuff to add to the little critters. What you see is the end result.

I used sheer ribbons, red gold from our Luxor Collection, and double faced satins. You can pin or glue your creations onto your pumpkin neck. Tying works well too, but if they are moved much the tying sometimes slips and moves around.

Spray painting doesn't seem to affect the life of a pumpkin, in fact it may lengthen it; it seems to seal it as long as there are no blemishes.

Another helpful tip is to be sure to add ribbons on both sides it it is a true centerpiece. If it is only viewed from one side this is not necessary.

You can choose large or small pumpkins, all size pumpkins, you can even choose an artificial pumpkin.

I have used them as an inexpensive centerpiece for charity events, as decorations on my table, as place card holders etc.

Add some fall leaves or some fall garland to give them a little extra punch.

Jodie and Bill are having their wedding here on the mountain this week, I will be showing you pictures of their dressed ladies next week, a real variation on a theme.

IT'S FALL !!!!!

At last, my favorite season. As August arrives and we have a few more heat waves, I am reminded and comforted by knowing fall is almost here.

Now we are in wonderful September with its cool nights and Indian Summer days and I am renewed!

I retired my summer wreath last week and replaced it with a new creation. I used a birch wreath base and studded it with autumm leaves of olive/greens, golds and orange/reds. I added some pale yellow gold pears, followed by my favorite copper accents. All of these items are artificial, but beautiful.

Great possibilities when you combine ribbon!

Of course now I am getting to the good stuff-ribbons. My wreath is under a small overhang, mostly protected from the weather. I used Over the Moon Ribbons 2 inch velvet in reseda combined with 1-1/2 inch width Luxor metalic in red/gold, which is a very coppery metallic, mesh, wired ribbon. I really love the combination, but you can have fun coming up with your own winning combos.

The Luxor line of ribbon is great for outdoors.   If you have some protection from the elements, our double faced satins, grosgrain's, velvets, or any ribbons from our fall collection would be wonderful too. Most of our fall collection is outdoor worthy.

Just a little FYI, I will make a bow of your color choice, and send it safely to you. The price will depend upon what ribbon you choose, they range between $8.00 and $18.00, plus shipping.

I will have a few Halloween and Thanksgiving ideas for you, so stay tuned fellow crafters!!

Until next time

Alice
Over the Moon Ribbons

Beautiful Decorative Candles for Unity Candles or Special Occasions

I was thinking about something beautiful that could be done with candles, this is what I came up with.  I have crisscrossed 1/4" sheer ribbon onto a straight sided taper, and added some accents from the local craft store.

Caution: Be sure to test all materials to be sure they will not catch fire.  When I burned my candle the paper flowers melted, the pearls dropped as the candle burned. The ribbon melted, but did not catch fire. 

There were no products I used that were a fire hazard, including Morex sheer organdy ribbons sold by Over the Moon Ribbons.

Materials needed :

• 1/4" sheer organdy and/or double faced satin ribbon
• sharp scissors
• straight sided candles ( I used Carolina Candles) I suggest using a good quality candle, you will have longer burn time
• glue gun
• embellishments of your choice

After some trial and error, it became apparent, you don't use your glue gun to glue the ribbon to the candle, but merely to melt the wax on the candle so the ribbon will adhere to the melted wax. This method works quite well.

Start with a length of ribbon approximately 14 inches long.

Cut the top at a 45 degree angle and adhere to the candle using the glue gun to melt the wax,by touching the hot glue gun to the ribbon on the candle.

Once dry,( about 1 minute) spiral the ribbon down the candle, keep the distance between the ribbon equal. at the bottom adhere again using the same hot wax method.

Cut another length  the same as the first one .  Cut at a 45 degree angle. Start at the top exactly where you began ribbon number one,but now you will be spiraling in the opposite direction, making sure to keep all the crossing points in a straight line with the candle. Attach at bottom, hot wax method.

Now the fun begins. At each crossing pint attach ,a pearl, rhinestone, little flower, bow,etc.  I found these could be glued to the ribbon using glue gun or craft glue. Just go to your local craft store, and let your imagination run wild.

Same idea this time with floral embellishments.

This design would work well for unity candles, as their purpose is not to burn for a long period of time.

Gifting with ribbons

Hi fellow ribbon lovers.

I have often given ribbon "birthday cakes",  to my fellow crafters, floral designers, scrap bookers, and romantic ribbon lovers.

You can use any combination of Over the Moon Ribbons to make an exquisite "cake of ribbons".
a color theme may be in order, or perhaps an approaching holiday, and therein lies the fun; using different combinations of ribbon

Of course you don't have to use the birthday candle if you would like to give for another reason, such as newly expectant mother to decorate the nursery, or a cheerleader with different ribbons of her school colors.
I used a narrow plastic bag to wrap the ribbons, such as clear bags that newspapers come in. One could use cellophane as well, and of course shrink wrap would be fabulous.

If you would like to order a ribbon combination from Over the Moon, in your notes include, "please include plastic bag"

Soon to come to Over the Moon "goodie bags" You will love them, they will include at least 5 rolls of  ribbons for $8.00. Perfect for the "Ribbon Cake."

There is a chance you may not want to wait for me to get my act together, in that case contact me ribbonlady

Until next time,


The Ribbon Lady

Seat Belt Purse

I love my Harveys Seatbelt Bag!!! I bought it from Material Girl.  The bag is great and so is the company. They offer excellent customer service important to us and one of our strengths at Over the Moon Ribbons, I love them.


The bag comes in several styles and many colors.  I purchased mine in an olive green (love that green-- my favorite).  Then I went crazy one day adding Over the Moon's cheetah ribbon to it. The cheetah ribbon is from our new safari collection.


 It was so easy and lots of fun. I can change it whenever I want to.
The method used was to cut 3 lengths of ribbon a bit longer than the circumference of the bag.

Weave the ribbon in and out of the weaving already present. When the ribbons joined, I stapled them and hid them under the non cheetah spot. It took me about eight minutes to complete, and any 1-1/2" ribbon can be used.

Hope I have inspired you.

The Ribbon Lady

Wedding Invitations by Sydney Singer

Sydney Singer makes gorgeous wedding invitations.  She got in touch with us asking me for help finding the perfect ribbon combination for her client's wedding invitation. 

She knew she wanted a beautiful,  rich,  plum ribbon with a traditional ivory ribbon. She chose our Luxe

double faced satin ribbon in plum in an 1-1/2 inch width combined Luxe double faced satin ribbon in bridal white in a 5/8 inch width.  Double Faced Satin Ribbon Luxe is our top of the line double faced satin ribbon.  Our tagline reads, "When only the finest will do", and we think that perfectly describes it. 

The matching thank you notes, used 5/8 inch sheer in grape.

Hats off to Sydney for a creative, interesting and truly beautiful invitation. 

For more information contact Sydney Singer at ses@sydneyesinger.com

Until the next time. 

Alice, the Ribbon Lady

My Visit to Mackenzie Childs

Be still my heart!!!

My friend Donna needed some help moving to her summer home, so I volunteered. She lives in Auburn NY.

Being from the hills of Pennsylvania I only knew we would be going north, I will follow, NO map NO map quest, NO GPS. After 3 hours of absolutely gorgeous driving, we arrived in Auburn. (What a charming town, looks like a Norman Rockwell painting.)

My friend Donna asked while we were having lunch Would you like to visit MACKENZiE CHiLDS?  It sounded like a pleasant idea so my answer was yes! (I'll leave you guessing what or who this is so you'll visit the link).

OMG!! I had no idea what a treasure trove existed in Aurora NY.

I was so charmed, and as a ribbon lady, I saw so many great uses of ribbon, and wonderful combinations of patterns that work so well together.


If you aren't familiar with MACKENZie- CHiLDS please visit at www.mackenzie-childs.com, or better yet take a trip to Aurora NY, you will be enchanted.

Help us win a makeover

Hi all,

Short and Sweet.



We sell our ribbons through an all-in-one e-commerce solution called Big Commerce.  Thy are running a contest.  You can help us win simply by taking 60 seconds to watch our humorous video.

The video

Thank you so much for watching.

Drone Ribbons for Bagpipes

What a lovely experience several weeks ago to talk to Les about Fraser Tartan ribbon. What is Les going to use his Fraser Tartan for?  Drone ribbon; ribbon for his bagpipes!!

Les is a member of the78th Fraser Highlanders, so of course only Fraser would do.

From reading material shared by Les, I learned that drone ribbon, although very festive, should never be used in competition since a stiff wind or a breeze could cause a ribbon to flap over and knock out a drone.

There are complete instructions on making and attaching drone ribbon at www.bagpipejourney.com. My favorite part of Andrew Lenz's article was suggesting that tartan ribbon can be found online,and when clicking on tartan ribbon, you guessed it, Over the Moon came up first.

I have always been fascinated by bagpipes and piper music, I even have a brooch from a Northern Irish gal's outfit, it is a treasure. She is a piper in her hometown band, certainly occupied a lot of her time in her teen years, and she loved it!!!

Les promises a picture when the project is complete, I suspect Mrs. Les is in on this too.

Want to learn more about the 78th Frasers? Go to www.78thFraser.org

Great favor idea compliments of Ann and Bill

This past weekend I switched hats to be florist and wedding coordinator for a small wedding on our beloved Kirkridge property. Kirkridge is a retreat center located just South of Stroudsburg PA , on the Kittatinny ridge of the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania.  It is a rustic place so a fancy crystal and diamond wedding just wouldn't work here, however our breathtaking views rival any crystal or diamond.

I was totally charmed by the bride's choice of favors. Ann has been along time collector and fan of vintage handkerchiefs.  She wrapped the traditional Jordan Almonds in 64 of her lovely handkerchiefs, tied them with Over the Moon white organdy sheer ribbon.  They were so well received, and looked so lovely on the table before the guests were seated.

Even if you haven't been a collector, vintage handkerchiefs are easily found in antique and thrift shops. You can usually strike a deal if you are buying more than one or two. You may want to pick a color theme.  Ann's mix was adorable!!

Julie's Wedding

Julie and Brian wanted a little something to spark up their program for their upcomming wedding. Julie contacted me for samples and chose light coral double faced satin ribbon in the 3/8" width. To quote Julie  " the programs look awsome", and they do Julie!!

A Beautifuly Wrapped Package

Hi everyone. I find May and June to be big gift giving months. I love to wrap packages. There was a time when I thought I would like to operate a package wrapping service, but then I thought about the time involved and wondered if, at the end of the day,  I would still enjoy wrapping packages.

This week I wanted to show you a lot of packages, but alas alack, I ran out of time, so I picked my favorite, the bridal shower package.

It is wrapped with our double faced satin ribbon, two of our sheer ribbons, two widths of ivory double faced satin, and a " pin wheel" backdrop of Luxor silver metallic ribbon.

I liked the idea of something old incorporated with the ribbon. I used a vintage sterling silver serving pieces. Two small tea cups would be a great addition, a cake or pie server, a vintage juicer, a beautiful handkerchief the bride could use on her wedding day.

The finished product has something old, something new, something blue. I missed the borrowed, so if you have ideas on the borrowed aspect, e-mail me.

When wrapping a package you want the recipient to say "It's too pretty to open!"  I think a beautifully wrapped package adds excitement to the gift. It's so much more fun , and it says I care about you, rather than giving a gift in a paper bag and saying excuse the wrapping. ( That happened to me, I won't name names.)

In order to make a bow, refer to my Christmas video on You Tube on how to make a bow for a wreath. same process, different ribbons and sizes.

Now I need to see your pictures, and hear your creative ideas.  Feel free to send your pics here

Alice

The Ribbon Lady

Cinco de Mayo and ribbons

The history and reason for the celebration can be found at this website. It is quite interesting, and even includes some recipes. I was excited about this, because I am having a Cinco de Mayo party. I thought the soupy stew called Menduo sounded interesting, but the ingredients of calf's foot and tripe gave me pause for serving it at the party, I am sure it is delicious however.

I am making these wonderful flower cones for my party, and since I don't own a Mexican table cloth I will create some fun on the table with ribbons.

For the flower cone project you will need :   

• pins
• craft glue
• glue gun
• card stock  paper  or colorful wrapping paper
• Styrofoam cones of different sizes
• brightly colored silk flowers or fresh flowers                  
• colorful ribbons from Over the Moon Ribbons, varied widths and textures

I am using Styrofoam cones for ease of doing the project.

Start cutting a square of paper big enough to cover your cone.

Glue or pin paper in place and wrap around cone.

Trim excess paper away from top and bottom of cone.

Next I added my flowers.  Using wire clippers cut stems to three to five inches long. Simply arrange in cone until the Styrofoam is covered, (sometimes foliage is very helpful in covering)  I tend to like to use the same colors and flowers in each cone, you may choose to do it differently, designers choice.

Now I will add a ribbon handle pinning the ribbon and adding a drop of glue to secure the ribbon handle.

Lastly, using pins I will add ribbons to give the cone a festive party look.

I think these would be fun for any party or shower, just use the appropriate paper and ribbon to coordinate with you event.

I am hanging these from my patio umbrella, they can hang from a ceiling, or shepherd hook plant hangers.

Have fun and keep crafting, especially using ribbon!!!

Alice aka The Ribbon Lady

Maypoles and May Baskets

Here we are in the beauty of spring. With all the snow and rain of the winter it is really green around here and soooo very pretty!

I am thinking about May Day and Cinco de Mayo. I think I will save Cinco de Mayo for next week,and talk a little about May Day.


For a complete and informative history of May Day go to http://www.theholidayspot.com/


There are many stories that surround this celebration of spring: one of them the Maypole.


Ceremonial dances around the Maypole have several translations, one being the pagan symbol of fertility, and prosperity to the land and it's people.


Now to the best part---Ribbons of many colors were entwined around the maypole by fair young maidens dancing in a much choreographed manor. Each village seemed to have their own dance that resulted in a specific weave for each village.


It was believed if the ribbons were beautifully woven, without breaking, the village would have a good year of prosperity, and good fortune.


If you would like to try your hand at a maypole, a length of PVC pipe would be a good start. If there is no possibility of driving it into the ground, an old Christmas tree stand camoflauged with grass or fabric could be an alternative. Another thought would be to cement or plaster the pole into a bucket or large flower pot.
depending on the beauty of the bucket or flower pot you may want to camoflague it.Flowers or green plants may be placed in the top of the bucket, if enough space has been left.


I would attach at least four colors of ribbon purchased from http://www.overthemoonribbons.com/ , at the top of the pole, by taping or gluing. The length would depend upon the height of the pole. To finish off the top you could use a Styrofoam ball or a decorative finial from the drapery department. Another thought would be a big beautiful bow.


I would suggest the ribbon be 1 to 1 1/2 inches wide for this project.


This could also be a fun way to decorate your patio umbrellas, the umbrella pole now serves as your maypole. The ribbons could lead to each persons plate, or a favor could be attached to each ribbon.


If all this is too ambitious for you, make a may basket and give it to a neighbor, shut-in or a friend. A little inexpensive basket can be filled with treats, or flowers, pretty ribbons attached, then hung on the door of the recipient for a fun surprise.


I would like all of you to send me a picture of your May Day projects, I would like to post them on my website.


Next week, Cinco de Mayo, not to be missed.

Easter Sensation

 


Spring is here!.  The bear that lives here woke up from hibernation and is dutifully visiting every bird feeder on the mountain.

I have transformed a basket from a thrift store into an Easter sensation.

The materials you will need are as follows:

• Handled basket---- store bought, or flea market find.
• Scissors
• Wire cutters (not pictured)
• Trusty glue gun
• Ribbons of your choice.  Of course, we love when you buy our ribbons.
• Silk greenery and flowers. Flower choice and color are yours. Tip: smaller flowers work better; one large head of flowers may have many little flowers that can be clipped apart using your wire cutters. Example: the hydrangea pictured above can yield about 25-30 small flowers.
• Filler for your basket such as Easter grass, or excelsior.

1.  Cut small sections from your silk flowers with a wire cutter.  Using your glue gun, attach greenery to your basket, small ferns and ivy work very well.

2. Trim the handle of your basket with your ribbon choices. I wrapped the handle of my basket first with a narrow double-faced satin in yellow. This step is not essential. I attached two types of ribbon to the handle; attaching them with wire at different intervals along the handle.



My ribbon choices were Chick-N-Egg, an adorable wired ribbon, 1-1/2 inches wide from our Spring Collection. Second choice was our delicate organdy sheer in light yellow, 2 ¾ “wide, not wired.

The next step is like trimming a Christmas tree in that you can use as few or as many flowers as you wish; color coordinate them with your ribbon choices.  Use some smaller flowers to camouflage the wire where you attached your ribbon. See?  No wires showing.

Fill your basket with whatever you would like, decorative eggs, treats, bunnies, birds, fresh flowers etc.

Note for Brides: You could alternatively create an necessity basket for the ladies room for a wedding. Of course you would be using wedding appropriate ribbon, lining the basket with a lace edged napkin, and filling it with the necessary items.

Sit back and enjoy your efforts, and guard your bird feeder from the bears.

The Ribbon Lady

Over the Moon Ribbons

Organizing and Storing Ribbon

OMG I have never seen so much snow as this past week.  I remember snows in New England as a kid, but I really think this tops it.  I am here in Bangor PA; it has virtually been snowing for four days. I am sure you northern states are laughing, but this is a real dump of snow for us. On a positive note, it is sooo beautiful, and lots of fun watching the birds.

With all this snow and trapped in the house, it’s a great time to organize, including your ribbon.

One great idea is to mount rain gutters, yep, to your wall or pegboard. You can go simple or fancy, such as copper gutters.  Your rolls will fit right in there, and you can see them all.

And for all you scrapbook crafters who have enormous amounts of ribbon, check out Pull-EZ Ribbon Purse organizers by Simply Renee.  The Pull-EZ Ribbon Purse can hold more than 200 ribbons at a time in a small compact space and is flexible enough to squeeze into a tight space. The best part...the ribbons do not tangle when you pull one out!  If you find any other clever ideas let me know.

Coming soon: I will craft a ribbon storage box for you out of a photo box.

Speaking of coming soon expect a spring ribbon line from Over the Moon Ribbons, you will love the great selection.

Until next week keep crafting and enjoying!!

the Ribbon Lady

Spice up Your Sneakers with Argyle Ribbon

I love my argyle ribbon, but then I love all my ribbon. Being washable makes it versatile and it's a high quality printed grosgrain.  I decided to see how the argyle ribbon would look as shoelaces in sneakers.

See Argyle Ribbon from Over the Moon Ribbons.

The little girl next door , Emma, has a cute pair of pink sneakers that set the stage for the color to use. I chose our bright green with pink and red accents argyle, measured a length of ribbon the length of the shoelace, and started lacing. When I was finished, I finished off the ends with a little glue to keep a little stiffness in the tips.

I thought a little bow for the pony tail would just finish everything off, and Emma agreed.

I think the teens would love this look in their Chuck Taylors.

Oh to be young and on the cutting edge of fashion.

Have a creative week, and I will do the same.  See Argyle Ribbon from Over the Moon Ribbons.

The Ribbon Lady

Hot Tip! Custom Printed Ribbon

Wow  what a beautiful world.

We had a 18 inches of new fallen snow last week, I loved every minute of it. Six neighbors joined us for hot chili, stuffed peppers, and chicken noodle soup. Neighbor Shelly brought homemade lemon squares and brownies. We sat beside a roaring fire, exchanging laughter and good stories. Many trips to the window to see if it was still snowing, and it was about 11:00 pm when the stars came out.

Now that you are informed of the weather reports here on the mountain, I want to share a great ribbon tip I just learned about…..custom printing on ribbon from your computer printer.

You will want to use a smooth ribbon such as double faced satin above and be careful--not all printers can handle the width of ribbon.  But, if you know your printer can handle cardstock, you should be safe.  I used 1-1/2 inch width double faced satin ribbon in ivory for my bookmark and borrowed a verse from one of my favorite poets, Robert Browning. 

Think of  all the possibilites--kids birthday party goody bags, anniversary parties, wedding favors, bookmarks, tags for your homemade gifts such as jams, knitting.    Scrapbookers, crafters and party planners beware....you'll be hooked.

Now for the craft. It doesn't matter which software you use; just as long as it prints text.

1. Print out the text you would like to repeat on a piece of regular computer paper-if you are making a lot of tags, repeat the text leaving enough space between lines to accommodate the width of the ribbon you are using. (Leave the paper intact, don't cut.)  
2. Cut a length of ribbon to fit the text; (several lengths if you are making more than one).
3. Use "spray on" glue to the underside of the ribbon (the side you are attaching to the paper) or scotch tape around edges to hold the ribbon in place over your text. Don’t put tape over area to be printed or you'll have ink on the tape and not the ribbon.
4. Now put the ribbon attached to the paper in the printer feeder. 
5. Hit print again and voila! You have custom printed ribbon.

One more thought--this could  make cute tags for homemade items, sewn or knitted items, even jams or jellies.

If you would like to try this, of course we'd love you to try our ribbon.  We offer 196 different colors of double faced satin to choose from in 7 widths and great prices.  Over the Moon Ribbons

Jumping the Broom

Can you believe it’s the end of January? Hope you have some fun planned for February.  I like February, my birthday falls in February, I think there are a few Presidents days involved, Valentine’s Day, and the superbowl.

I just spent last week working on a wedding in Manhattan. It was a lovely wedding with a winter theme. There were seven designers working on the flowers.  I was the personal flower person. After I have finished all the bouquets, boutonnières, corsages , flower girl things, ring bearer things etc., I put them to bed  in a refrigerated space to wait for the big moment.

I then step into my role as the fru fru girl adding ribbons bows more fresh flowers to lovely baskets and containers filled with mounds of tulle. It looks so special when presented to the bridal party.

Delivery day we all play the role of Jacks and Jills of all trades including sweeping and cleaning if necessary. On a wedding of large scale, much of the work is done on premise.

Since we are talking about weddings, did you ever hear of Jumping the Broom?

During the days of slavery when African American couples were forbidden to marry, ceremonies that could be performed secretly developed to celebrate a union; one of them is Jumping the Broom.

The bride and bridesmaids decorated the broom with ribbons and bows before the ceremony.  The broom was the symbolic act of sweeping away the old life and celebrating a new life together. A basket of ribbon was usually placed at the ceremony so family and friends could symbolically show their support by tying pieces of ribbon onto the broom. I think this sounds so sweet and charming.

I have never decorated a broom, but I have decorated a long piece of ribbon with a garland of greenery and flowers for one wedding. When the ceremony ended the couple stepped over the ribbon and into their new life together. The flowers dried nicely and they we incorporated into a decoration for their home.

I love to hear of different traditions, if you have some to share please be in touch.

If they don’t include ribbon, I am sure I can figure out a way to make it into a ribbon project.

Next week I think we will do another valentine craft, stay tuned, and keep your creative juices flowing.

Be Mine Valentine Craft Project

Hello ribbon lovers and crafters. Hope you all had a good post holiday week getting back to normal, loosing those 10 lbs, throwing away the holiday cookies, and continuing to vacuum those Christmas tree needles that just seem to keep appearing. I think that was just a give away of what I did this week sans the 10 lbs.

I keep my wreath on the door, it is more of a winter wreath than just a holiday wreath, I may do something different for Valentines Day. For St. Patrick’s Day I always do a green spring wreath or door basket. I use St. Patrick’s Day ribbon, and then change it to a more spring like ribbon after March 17.

Since we are on the subject of holidays here is a great Valentine project. Simple enough for your kids, elegant enough as a gift for adults.

And for your convenience, we've even put together (drumroll please) a Valentine combo ribbon kit  for this project.  An adorable mix of satins, sheers and ribbon with tiny hearts on it
in four color combinations. A picture is worth a thousand words so just click on the link to see.  

Supplies Needed:

• three ten-inch paper doilies
• a glue gun
• sharp scissors
  
• Over the Moon Valentine Ribbon Kit 
• fresh flowers 
• water tubes from florist or floral section of grocery store (if using flowers)  or candy to fill
• (optional) heart stickers from craft supply store
  

Step 1: Weave ribbon around lacy front edge of doilies

Take three doilies and treat them as one.  Three gives you a sturdier end result.  Measure and cut a yard of narrowest ribbon from your kit and weave on the outside edge of the three doilies. 





 

Step 2 - Create cone shape and glue

(Use glue gun to glue all three doilies-- not craft glue or Elmer's unless you like maximum frustration.)

Step 3:  The handle:

Now take the widest ribbon from the kit, measure and cut 15 inches for the handle and glue to outside solid part (not the lacy part) of the cone.

Stapling works in a pinch too.



Step 4: Use bows to cover the glue spots or staples

Designers choice here--any ribbon will do.  Once the bows are complete, glue on to the sides.

If you are perplexed on how to make a really great bow, here's a link to my bow tying video on YouTube. This bow will be much smaller made with no more than 4 loops but the principles are the same.

You're back!  Ok, if you're still pulling your hair out, just make  simple “shoe string” bow.



Step 5:  Trim and fill

Now your basket is ready for trimming and filling.

Time for the optional heart (or other) stickers. 

I used Hershey kisses in this example.

If using fresh flowers, fill the water tubes with water and place each flower in a tube first to make them last. 

Please send us photos of your finished Be Mine Valentine craft so that we can post them in the next blog!!!
Send to the Ribbon Lady and keep crafting.


BONUS TIP for Brides:

These make great bridal favors as well as aisle markers for the budget bride.  Eliminate the glitter hearts, use crystals?  I'll be demonstrating that version in my upcoming Budget Bridal video series due this spring.  And of course I'll share with you. 

Wired or Unwired?

Hi and happy New Year. You may have “the holidays are over” itis.  I get it about now every year but it doesn’t last long  because I am one of those people that actually like winter!

It’s a beautiful winter morning here on the mountain.  This is a view from where we eat breakfast and bird watch every day.

Many people don’t realize that you can remove the wire from a ribbon if you want to use a ribbon that won’t get bent or squashed.  Just grab the wire and remove it like I'm demonstrating here.

You would want to do this if the bow is going to be handled frequently, or there is a chance it will be brushed by a lot, or something may sit on top of it. (Examples pillow trim or drapery trim, bridal and bridesmaid bouquets, hair bows)

Whoa, look at that squished one.

 Let me show you the difference.

 A simple bow made from unwired ribbon.

Wired bow.

 

I know many of my customers like to use our toile ribbon as tie backs for curtains.  This is a case where I would suggest leaving the wire in place. Here’s a sample on curtains in our Granddaughters room.

Next week -- valentine craft tips, meanwhile keep crafting, and enjoy the winter.