Hello, Ribbon Retreat readers! It is Sarah from Craft Quickies. I am thrilled to be back here guest posting once again, and guess what?? I’ll be back next week as well! Stay tuned!
I grew up in a family of three girls. We always fancied our home to be something akin to Little Women. Lots of “plays,” make believe, dressing up, roughhousing, singing, arguing, and LOVE! It was so fun! And my mama always enhanced and facilitated that fun by providing us with a “dress up box,” creative birthday parties, endless patience for watching our lame made-up plays, and by creating fun holiday traditions.
One of my favorite things that she did for us at holidays was making us “Firecracker Bows.” It started as a Fourth of July idea (hence the “firecracker” nickname), and people loved them so much that all three of us ended up with Firecracker Hairbows for every holiday. One year my mom and I even made them in our school colors for my entire drill team and we all wore them with our uniforms when we were performing at football games.
These Firecracker Bows are so cute, versatile, and EASY! You can make them from ribbons, which is the original way that my mom made them and definitely the classiest looking option, or you can use fabric scraps and pinking shears. You can see what that looks like by visiting the Halloween Firecracker Bow tutorial that I posted on my blog last fall. Isn’t my model insanely cute? I couldn’t resist recruiting her again!
Ready to make your own? Seriously, you will be done by the time you finish reading this blog post!
1. Gather up hair elastics and the ribbon that you plan to use. I used a package of the American Pride Seasonal Ribbon Mix from The Ribbon Retreat. It was the exact right amount for two piggy-tail hairbows that were VERY full! There are several options of patriotic seasonal ribbon mixes at The Ribbon Retreat, and they are all very cute!
2. Prepare by cutting the ribbon to your desired length. My strips were approximately 8 inches long. I was not precise about the lengths, because I think it is fun when there is a bit of variety of size and length in these bows.
3. Trim the ends in a cute way if desired. You can choose to use Fray Check at this point to seal the edges of the ribbons. They will hold up much better if you do, but you will have to wait for them to dry if you do so.
4. Tie the ribbon or fabric strip in a knot around the elastic. Repeat over and over.
Yes, it is THAT easy! Amazing, right?! I love how full they look, and I LOVE this cute little model! She is the daughter of my dear friend, and she is just as feisty and fun as her red hair suggests!
If you enjoyed this tutorial then you should check out my other tutorials for The Ribbon Retreat:
Gift Bag Tutorial Tied With Baker’s Twine
Ruffled Grinch Dress and Feather Headband
Happy Fourth of July!
Sarah…these bows are ADORABLE!!! I love how full and festive they are. Your model…so super cute! Thank you for sharing your amazing talents with us. You are awesome!
Don’t you just love those bows. I think it is so great how quickly you could throw them together for a special occasion, holiday, school pictures, dance competition, or to complete the perfect outfit. The Ribbon Retreat has so many great ribbon mixes and packs that are perfect for creating these bows. Don’t just make one, we have ribbon mixes galore so you can make more and more….and, there is just the right amount of ribbon in these mixes to make two bows perfect for both piggie tails. Gotta love the piggie tails! 🙂
Happy Bow Making & Happy Creating!
14 Comments
Adorable Model!!! Fantastic Bows….got two redheads in my house – will be making these today. Thanks so much for posting 🙂
Thank you Sue! I bet your two redheads are ADORABLE! I would love to see those bows on your cute little models. 🙂
Super cute! Do the ribbons circle the whole elastic, or just partially? Thanks!
Hi Jodye! Great question, the ribbons actually go around the whole elastic. So fun huh?!? I love this tutorial and bows. Thanks for your comment. Have a wonderful day. 🙂
So it does go around the entire band? Doesn’t it make it hard to get in their hair? My little girl is just starting to get enough hair for pony tails.. Thanks for posting!
Hi Michelle! It goes around the whole thing! You really need thicker hair for it. It won’t stay in well in wispy, thin baby hair. Thank you so much for your comment! Have a nice day! 🙂
I know you say you used a package that made two bows. However, if we don’t have a package how many ribbons did you use for your bows?
Hi Terri! I used a package. Each ribbon piece was 8 inches. So however much ribbon comes in the packages divided by 8. I didn’t use all of the blue with polka dots, though. I just did it until they looked full. I wasn’t counting, and I let my model keep them, so I don’t know how many of each. Sorry I can’t be more specific! Good luck and thanks so much for your comment! 🙂
What were the ribbon widths and did you tie a double knot for each one?
Hi Kelly! Thank you for your questions. Sarah used the ribbon mix that is full of ribbon 3/8″ to 1″ in width. The ribbon packs are so great, and I love that they are all color coordinated. She also did not tie double knots. I hope this helps. Good luck with your bows and thanks again for your questions. Have a wonderful day! 🙂
These firecracker bows are amazing, cute and easy to make. I started making one to match my gymnastics leotard, (the colors on it were green, pink, black, and orange) and it turned out amazing, especially in my hair. I know I’ll be making more of these bows. Thank you so much!
Hi Annie! Yay! You are so welcome and thank YOU for sharing your success with us! I am so glad you love these adorable bows and that yours turned out so amazing! Have a wonderful day and thank you again! Michelle 🙂
I have a baby girl that will be 6 months by the time 4th of July comes around. I want to make a special bow for her for her first 4th but I know I won’t get a ponytail to stay in. I was going to attach my bow to an elastic headband with a hot glue gun. What should I tie the ribbons around to attach it to a headband instead?
Hi Ashley! Oh how fun! I love these fun bows! Your little sweetie will look so cute sporting these fun bows for the 4th! My suggestion would be to actually make a Puff Spike Bow…tutorial found HERE instead. Then you can attach the bow to a lined clip and slide the clip through the loop on an elastic headband or you can use two felt circles and hot glue one to the back of the finished Puff Spike Bow. Then you hot glue the elastic headband to the felt circle on the bow and then finally, hot glue the second felt circle to the elastic headband (which will then be sandwiched between the two felt circles) and felt circle on the back of the bow. I hope this helps. Good luck and have so much fun making this fun bow! Michelle 🙂