A wedding bow is a subtle yet important detail that can give any wedding a flair for elegance. But if you’re like me, weddings are already expensive enough to plan and decorate, so I like to DIY as much as I can to save a little money. Let’s talk about the different kinds of wedding bows and how you can make them yourself.
The Perfect Bows to Fit Your Design Needs
Wedding bows sit most often on chairs, benches, or pews as pristine decorations. They are also sometimes used at bridal showers and during practices as a placeholder for the wedding bouquet.
What’s most customizable about bows is their materials. You can make a beautiful wedding bow out of tulle, ribbon, polyester, and more. You can even include other elements to fit your wedding theme, such as ivy branches for a natural touch.
The steps for making a wedding bow depend on the materials you want to use, so here’s how to make wedding bows out of two materials: tulle and ribbon.
How to Make Your Own Tulle Wedding Bow
Tulle is a veil-like material that can make wedding bows look beautiful. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Scissors
- A roll or spool of white tulle material
- A handful of straight pins
- A large piece of cardboard
- A tape measure or ruler if desired
- First, you’ll need to consider what size bow you want. Measure out the bow’s desired diameter on the cardboard and leave a mark. You’ll also need to measure out and cut a length of tulle to use for the bow’s tail. You might want to cut this piece longer than you’ll need ‒ you can always trim it afterward.
- Next, roll out the tulle on the cardboard up to the mark you placed, and pin the end down carefully.
- Fold the tulle back and forth over the original strip, accordion-style, until each end has the desired amount of “loops” (for bows 12” or longer in diameter, I recommend five “loops” per side). Each time you make a fold, gently pin it down and remove the pins from the previous fold.
- Remove the pins and cardboard, holding the bow gently in place. Tie the tail strip tightly around the center of the folds, letting the ends hang down.
- You should have a pretty bow shape now. If you want, you can use scissors to cut the “loops” at the ends for a more frilly look. You can fluff and trim the tulle to your desire.
How to Make Your Own Ribbon Wedding Bow
Ribbon is an elegant, shiny, and more resilient bow material. You can choose either mesh ribbon or sheer ribbon. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Scissors
- A roll of ribbon in your color, size, and texture of choice (I recommend 2 ½” wide ribbon for a perfect balance of size and durability)
- Tacky glue or hot glue if desired
- Cut a long section of ribbon from the roll. Cut longer than you think you’ll need ‒ you can always trim the tails later.
- From the center of the ribbon strip, form two symmetrical “bunny ear” loops.
- Cross the loops over each other, keeping the right loop on top.
- Bend the right loop back and thread it through the center from behind. Pull tightly to finish the ribbon knot.
- If desired, make another ribbon following the previous four steps. Glue this ribbon firmly to the back of the previous ribbon to create a unique and beautiful double bow that really pops!
