Christmas Favors and 'Non-Bow' Bow Tutorial

  Hi everyone!  Bonnie here from Really Reasonable Ribbon.   I hope today finds you with a low stress level.  I know my stress levels have been soaring over the last week, but now most of my Christmas chores are done, so things are getting better.  :)   I've been busy for the last week or so making some little Christmas goodies for my son Steve's 5th grade class.  I like to do this for him and he says the kids love what I send, so I'm happy to supply some fun little gifts for his students.   Last year I made the class some little packs of Snowman Poop (made with white tic tacs) and they loved them.  Here is a photo of what I did last year.  Notice I couldn't resist using a little Baker's Twine on them.  :) 

 

 

(inside) 

 

This design actually comes from Whimsie Doodles and it's in their freebie section.  What a cute and easy little craft.  I encourage you to head over and pick up the file if you have not already done so.  There is even a video tutorial for making them.  Even if you don't have time this year, you'll be ready to roll for next year.  Take a look at the great digi images Melyssa offers while you are there.  I love her style and she offers so many freebies and tutorials.     So, this year I wanted to do something different.  Pinterest is a great place to find ideas and I found several different 'Grinch Pills' options.  I really wanted to do one with green tic tacs, but I could not find value packs of green tic tacs, so I had to go with m & m's.  

 

Isn't that adorable?  Sadly I could not find any free files for the photo and poem printout for this type of favor in the right size and shape, but I was able to use the poem and a Grinch cartoon image I found online and merge them together to get what I wanted.  It was a bit of a chore because I'm not a wiz on photoshop elements by any stretch of the imagination, but I got it done.   I will be sharing the image and a tutorial for the Grinch Pills pack that I made over on my Make Time 2 Craft Blog, so head over if you are interested in that.   I'm also sending a little Santa topped cookie pack for each child.  Isn't it cute! 

 

When the cookies are gone, Santa can become a Christmas decoration.  It doesn't show too well in the photo, but I put a red eyelet at the top of Santa's hat and looped some White Iridescent Metallic String through for  a hanger.  To make this I used my Silhouette Cameo and a file called Santa Treat Topper.  I re-sized it for my needs and cut the pieces out and assembled them.  Seriously ladies, if you don't already own this machine, it should be on your Christmas list.  This is my favorite 'big-girl toy'!!   I wanted to add a little ribbon as an accent on my Grinch pills packs too (it's really never done until you add ribbon, right??), but since there are a large number of boys in Steve's class, I didn't want to make it too girly, so I went with a 'non-bow' bow.  

 

I think this is an okay ribbon look for boys too, right?    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   So, here is a quick card an a Non-Bow Bow tutorial.  

      Non-Bow Bow Tutorial   It's really a very simple technique.  Here's how I did it along with a quick card idea:   My supplies are shown below.  I have the layers for my card cut. Santa came from a design paper from Reminisce called Santa Collage, and then whatever other layers and colors you want on your card.  I love lots of layers, but it's not necessary.  For my non-bow bow I used a piece of 7/8" Red Satin w/Grosgrain Edge ribbon about 18" long.  Then I have another piece of it about 6" long and a piece of 5/8" Forest Diamond Satin and a piece of 3/8" Red Satin Chevron which will be used for a layered ribbon that will run across the middle of my card.

 

 

Punch 2 holes about 1/2" down from the top of the card and centered with the holes spaced about 5/8" apart.  If you use narrower ribbon, your holes can be closer together.

 

 

Thread your ribbon down through the right hole and back up through the left hole.  It's easier to thread the ribbon through if you cut the end on an angle.

 

 

Now take the ribbon on the left side and thread it back down through the hole on the right.  You may have to fuss with it a bit so it lays the way you want it.

 

 

Now bring the ribbon back up through the hole on the left side.  Work it a bit until it looks neat and you're happy with it.  I leave the center a little puffy, so don't pull it through too tightly.

 

 

Now trim your ends at an angle, or however you prefer.

 

 

One thing I do with my bows when I want them to behave is to put a little micro glue dot on the underside and place the end where I want it so it stays put. 

 

 

For the layered ribbon strips in the middle of my card I use ScorTape in the appropriate width for the ribbon and stack it.  ScorTape is a perfect adhesive for ribbon!

 

 

Be sure you decide where you want the ribbon layers to be before you remove the backing of the tape.  I love ScorTape because it's a wonderfully strong adhesive.  That being said, you will not have the option of changing your mind once it's stuck down.  Do all your auditioning before you stick it down!!  :)

 

 

And there you go.  A quick and easy card with ribbon that isn't too girly.  I think this is a great ribbon treatment for a guy card in the appropriate size and color. Give it a try on your next 'manly' card.

Thanks for stopping by today and have a wonderful Christmas!

 

Be sure to head over to my Make Time 2 Craft Blog if you want to pick up the file for my Grinch Pills party favor and see a complete tutorial for assembly.