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{No Sew} Felt Bows

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These felt bows are so easy to make and turn out very cute. There are also so many different ways that you can use them, and they cost just a few cents to make. All you need is felt, a hot glue gun, and scissors.

I was inspired by these beautiful felt bows from {Every}Nothing Wonderful. Also check out how she uses old tights or hose to make headbands. I am definitely going to give that a try. I decided to make smaller no sew bows.

I made them as hair bows for Lyla’s hair, but I think I will use them in a lot of other projects as well.

1. Cut a strip of felt 1 inch wide and 4 (to 4.5) inches long. Cut a second strip of felt that is 1 cm wide and about 1 inch long. Lastly, cut out 2 pieces that will go behind the bow.
2. Dab a little hot glue down the center of the strip. Fold over both edges and press down until the glue starts to dry. This side will be the back of the bow. Don’t use too much glue or it will harden and be difficult to work with.
3. Before the glue completely dries, pinch the front middle of the bow until the glue hardens.
4. Flip the bow over and fold up the edges to give the bow little creases. Then glue the strip around the center of the bow. You may need to trim it so that none of it is visible from the front.
5. Glue the 2 ribbon-like pieces to the back of the bow. Make sure that they are the right size and shape before you attach them.
6. Ta da!
There are so many variations you can make.
1. Use fabric instead of felt for the strip in the middle. Simply cut a piece of fabric about 1 inch wide. Fold this into thirds so that the frayed edges are not visible and glue.
2. Use different colored felt for the bow and for the center/ends. I think they are fun to make in your favorite team’s colors. I made a Florida Gators bow for Lyla to wear in her hair. {shh don’t tell Grant}.
3. For the green bow, I stitched a white edge around the large piece. I also reversed the creases.
4. You can play around and experiment with the size and shape of the bow. For the turquoise bow I made the first strip 3/4″ wide and 5 inches long. I made the center strip also 3/4″ wide.
To make larger or smaller bows in the same shape and proportions of the first red bow, make sure that your strip is 1 unit by 4 units. For example:
XS bow (1 inch wide): 1/2 inch by 2 inches
S bow (1 1/2 inches wide): 3/4 inches by 3 inches
M bow (2 inches wide): 1 inch by 4 inches
L bow (3 inches wide): 1 1/2 inches by 6 inches
XL bow (4 inches wide): 2 inches by 8 inches

 Great ways to use these felt bows.

1. Make a felt bow and paperclip bookmark. These are so cute and easy to make. You can usually just slip the large paperclip through the middle strip. Sometimes there is too much glue so it is easier to glue the middle strip around the paperclip.

2. Use these bows as jewelry. I want to make a necklace out of them, but for now I made a simple felt bow bracelet.

3. String a lot of these bows in coordinating colors and make a felt bow bunting. Use them to decorate picture frames, vases, or lampshades. Use them as gift bows.

4. Make hair bows and clips. You could attach these to a variety of hair clips. I just slipped a simple hair pin through the back of the middle strip. If you are planning on using the bows as hair clips from the start, I would go ahead and glue the center strip around the hair pin. This worked very well for Lyla’s hair. You could also attach them to a headband.

These bows look beautiful on Lyla. I love how there is a much younger picture of Lyla in the background. 

Comments

  6. these are adorable! so easy to do! i just bought some at a vintage market and payed $6 a pop…no more! going to make myself!

    thank you for posting! i plan on using with an alligator clip!

    Reply

  12. These are so sweet and yet so simple! Now would be time to make a bunch to have available for on Christmas presents! Thanks for joining last week's What's In The Gunny Sack? link party and I hope to see you again for tomorrow's party!

    Reply

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