Super stacked bow tutorial-part 1

You know those gigantic boutique hair bows? The ones you could easily spend a small fortune on? I'm going to show you how to make them! With just a little practice, you can fold bows like a pro. They make great gifts, and it's very handy to be able to whip up a bow to match an outfit before pictures or another big event since custom bows can take a lot of time.

This bow has 5 layers, and I'll show you how to make each of them separately then how to put it together. You can rearrange, resize, and add or remove layers to make this bow your own. I'd love to see your creations!

The layers (from bottom to top): large boutique bow made with 1 1/2 in. ribbon, spikes, larger loop bow, slightly smaller loop bow, medium boutique bow made with 5/8 in. ribbon

To create the large boutique bow:

You will need 1 1/2 in. grosgrain ribbon, needle and thread (I used all purpose polyester thread, two strands), scissors, and a pin.

Cut your 1 1/2 in. ribbon 30 in. long. Heat seal the ends. Lay the ribbon out along side some measuring implement (tape, ruler, whatever you have handy) with the front side down.

Measure out 5 in. and fold that 5 in. over the remaining ribbon. Fold the other end over at the 6 in. mark. Continue wrapping the ribbon around until there are two loops and a tail at either end. It should come out perfect (Okay. You caught me. It probably won't be perfect, but it really doesn't matter much)!

Stick a pin right in the middle to hold the ribbon in place. I like to work on a surface that I can stick the pin directly into. A cutting mat would work great, but anything will do.

Take the outside ribbon loop on the right side and pull it up. Take the inside ribbon loop on the left side and pull it down. Pull the outside left ribbon loop up and the right inside ribbon loop down. Try to get the tails to line up. It should kind of look like a bow already.

Holding the loops in place, begin weaving your needle (pre threaded with a large knot tired at the end) from the bottom (the side closest to you) through the center of the bow, using your pin that should still be there as a guide. Continue weaving until you get to the top of the bow, removing the pin when you reach it.
Pinch the folds made by the weaving together, then pull the needle through until the knot is pulled tight against the bottom of the bow. Wrap the thread around the bow center three or four times then tie it off. You might want to trim the long tail that remains down to about 3/4 in. and re-seal the end.

Voila! You have made a boutique bow!

You'll need to make another with 21 inches of 5/8 in. ribbon to make the top layer of the super stacked bow. You'll fold at 3 inches first, then 4 (rather than 5 and 6), then complete the rest of the instructions. You can make a great bow just by stacking these two bows, but we're going to add more layers.

I'll try to get the rest of this project up tomorrow!