Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Home Tour Tuesday---All Wrapped Up

I'm not sure where December went, but here we are the week of Christmas and the final Holiday Home Tour Tuesday post. What a whirlwind! 

To be honest, as of eight o'clock yesterday evening, I had not a single present wrapped. Luckily, thanks to my ever-helpful hubby, we were able to pull off a Christmas miracle of our own, and complete most of the wrapping before calling it a night.

In our home, wrapping is a two person job---Bret is the wrapper, and I'm the bow maker. We've had this particular system since we were first married, and it just seems to work for us. {Or should I say works for "me", I'm sure Bret has a million other things he'd rather be doing that playing Elf to my Santa!}

Over the years, I've learned to be patient with Bret's wrapping, but it's probably not for the reason you think. You see, Hubs is an engineer by trade and is quite meticulous about most things, including his gift wrapping technique. His presents are always impeccable, so much so that the edges where the paper has been cut align seamlessly with no visible signs of tape, leaving you questioning if perhaps the Hubs has magical powers.

And though it takes us a while to get through our mountain of gifts, I've learned to bite my tongue and never rush perfection! So don't be mad friends if your hubby isn't quite as willing to chip in, Bret is one of a kind. And as I've told you before---I'm quite lucky!



And that my friends, is how we roll!

Bow How-To
Thanks to so many wonderful comments and emails about the bows on my trees in a previous Home Tour Tuesday post, I wanted to include a quick bow-making tutorial. And once you know how to make them, you'll find yourself placing your signature bows on all your gifts, not only at Christmas time, but throughout the year!

Oh and I can't begin without a quick shoutout to my mom, the reigning bow-making queen. She's responsible for teaching me all the tricks for making a present look like something out of a magazine.

What you'll need:
  • scissors
  • wired ribbon
  • curly ribbon


{one} Purchase ribbon in a large roll. I bought mine from Hobby Lobby, but Sam's also carries a large assortment of wired ribbon at the Holidays. Decide how wide you'd like your bow to be by looping the ribbon over on itself until you've reached your desired width.

{two and three} Loop ribbon over on itself at least 16 times. The more loops, the fuller the ribbon will be. Smaller bows are an exception. Because the bow is small (in width), you will not need nearly as many loops to achieve a full look.

{four} As you loop, be sure to keep the ribbon lined up as best as possible. This will help when cutting the ribbon.
 

{five and six} Fold ribbon in half to determine the center.

{seven} Cut a small slit in one side of the ribbon. Be careful not to cut to the center of the ribbon. Repeat same process on the opposite side, again being very careful not to cut to the center of the ribbon. 

{eight} Check your slits. If your slits are cut properly, the ribbon should twist in your hands without breaking apart. If the slits have been cut too close to the center, the ribbon will pull apart. If this happens, (and Lawdy knows it's happened plenty of times to me)  remove loose loops or, in a worst case scenario, simply start over.


{nine and ten} Cut a long strand of curly ribbon. Use matching curly ribbon to anchor ribbon by threading it through the two side slits. Tie the curly ribbon in a knot on the underside of the bow.

{eleven and twelve} Starting with the bottom (inner) loops, alternate sides, pulling the ribbon apart. I like to twist as I pull each loop. Continue until all loops have been separated.


{thirteen} As an optional finishing touch cut small inverted v's at the bottom of any remaining unlooped strand of ribbon.

{fourteen} Congratulations, you're almost done!

Securing Bow

{fifteen} Cut another strand of ribbon from your original roll long enough to tie around your package.

{sixteen} Use the curly ribbon hanging from the underside of your bow to secure the bow to the ribbon on your package. (Be sure to tie a knot.)

{seventeen} Viola! Now you're done!

*Note-If using the bow for another decorative purpose other than gift wrapping, use the long curly ribbon strands the same way you did on your package to secure bow in place. 

Special thanks to my lil' stinker helper! Don't know what I'd do without Sweet Bean to show me how it's done!





With all the holiday festivities, HTT will not be posted next week, but Daphne and I look forward to seeing you back for the link up on January 4th for the first Home Tour Tuesday post of the New Year.

January 4th theme: Out with the Old, In with the New---Show us your one room remodel, reno, or makeover!

Now as always, Daphne and I hope that you'll join us in a little Home Tour Tuesday fun.  Link up, don't wait! Grab our badge and show us how you wrap!







{Congratulations to all three giveaway winners!

Stella & Dot: Joni
Friedasophie: Mama K (That makes 2 giveaway wins in one week! Girl go to Vegas!)
LOL Designs: Laura S

Yay, y'all! Email me as soon as you can!}

30 comments:

Sara said...

You're so lucky to have a husband that enjoys wrapping presents and is so good at it.

Lovely bows!!

Susan said...

His wrapping is impeccable... I should know as I'm a wrapper, too. He matches up the lines and everything. Wow! Merry Christmas!

Cory (playdates and prescriptions) said...

YAY! Thanks for the bow tutorial!! I've always wanted to make those pretty things! :)

Aly @ Analyze This said...

You make wonderful bows! I'll have to save this tutorial for next year!!

The Regal Pup said...

Yay! Finally the bow tutorial I have been wanting to see!

Thanks so much - definitely bookmarking this post!

Lindsay said...

What a great bow tutorial :) You crafty momma you :)

Kelly said...

My Daddy was a Civil Engineer and THE best present wrapper, by far! Lucky for me, I definitely got the engineering brain...too bad I didn't pursue it in college :( You're lucky to have an elf...I was hoping mine would have visited overnight but, alas, it's going to be a marathon over the next few days for hubs & moi! Enjoy these final days before Christmas & many Christmas blessings to you & yours! xo, Kelly

nomo wino daph said...

OMGosh.....Look at all that goes into the bows!! When I unwraped mine from you, the first thing I thought of was the box....had no idea you were the genius behind it! You go girl!

I see something with a bow that you could have included in my package...just be sure to send the diaper bag:)

Playing catch up from yesterday, grrrrr.
So sorry about all that's happening girl. (((HUGS)))
Instead of coffee, we may need to meet for wine! teehee

Jennifer said...

First off, I didn't link up today. Sorry :( I didn't post at all. I had a crazy day and I didn't have time to post at all. But, my wrapped presents are all packed away in the attic and there was no way I was getting them down. And they are not to impressive anyways. There are no fancy bows like yours :) Wow, you and Bret working together, that is awesome. My hubs is not into wrapping. It is quite an effort for him to just wrap the presents he gets me. And they are not very good :) You can practically see what is in the box since he misses so many spots with wrapping. I am glad to hear that you are all done and finally ready for XMas. And love the Sweet Bean is all about helping with the bows :) Have a great day Shannon :)

Laura@The Oily Cupboard said...

ok i sooo need to link up later after my mall experience w/the girls

as for ur hubs...ours need to get together..mines does ME...haha they can nerd out w/their weird habits...don't get me started w/the handwriting

as for the bows...i'm heading for ribbon today..my hubs will be irked for yet another hobby lobby bill on my statement!

Emily said...

Aww YAY for little Sweet Bean! What a cutie!

Mungee's Ma said...

Awesome bows! I hate wrapping presents. This stems from a bad experience I had wrapping something at my first job at the mall. I had no space in which to work in the stock room of the store, it took forever and when I brought it out to the customer she looked at it in disgust and said she'd have to rewrap it when she got home. I use gift bags now.

Joni said...

Great job Shannon, those are fabulous. i made some bows similar to that one year and saved them for several years to use over and over. i have no idea what happened to them. Did you make the red and green polka dot hair bow GG is wearing too?

Heather said...

Wonderful husband! THANKS for the tutorial!! I will be making a big tree topper tonight :-) LOVE IT! I might just have to puchase some on sale ribbon on the 26th to impress my fam and friends next year :-) Thanks again, Merry Christmas!!

Liz said...

I want to try a bow sometime, but I confess that i don't even bother with the stick on bows! my presents are shameful!

Suze said...

My sister and hubs are both engineers so you can imagine the perfection when they both wrap things! And the bows oh my goodness! Im just thinking this poor baby on the way, if she does anything to get that paper out of fix , they are lival to have a fit lol. anyway, little GG was quite a helper, i just KNEW you had to throw in some pictures for me and make me smile! I unwound all of that type of ribbon actually as a child bc i though it was fun to see it rolling down the steps . ANYWAY , glad y'all got a good bit of wrapping done! im wrapping and cooking today lord willing:)

Terri said...

OMG!! We should have had ribbon class a week ago! Now I feel compelled to go re-do my packages!! LOL!! Beautiful!! Thanks for sharing!!!!

Unknown said...

your DIY bow is fabulous!! =)

Heather said...

Did one for the tree and LOVE it!! But, yours are much fuller on your trees, so did you do 2 bows and attach them back to back for the tree toppers, or just do lots and lots of loops? I am going to go and re-wrap my mom's gift bc she will LOVE that big old bow!! THANKS!

Tote said...

I can't wait to start making bows! Of course you make it look so easy. Bean is so cute! Have a wonderful Holiday!

Annie said...

i need to attempt to make one of these!! how fun!!
cute pictures of the little lady :)

Mateya said...

That is so great that your Hubby helps you wrap! If mine helped me, they would all be a disaster haha!

The bows are amazing, I am going to have to try it!

Beth said...

What a sweet husband and what beautiful gifts! Loved the step-by-step instructions! Merry Christmas!

Mama K said...

Thanks for the tutorial!! Forgot about a Christmas party we had last night, so no wrapping took place!! I will link up late tonight though :)

And yay!! Can't believe I won!! :) So excited!

Little Hatchlings said...

OMG...I'm "finally" able to join in on the Home tour and did I pick the wrong time to do it. LOL!! Your bows are impeccable and how awesome that your husband likes to gift wrap! That is very hard to find in a man...kudos to him!

Karen At Home Blog said...

Your packages are beautiful Shannon!!! I love that you put together a tutorial, this is exactly what I needed. I am a bit "bow-challenged" so I am looking forward to prettier bows now in my future after reading your post! I wish I could have participated today in your link up, it's Jilly's birthday so I wanted to have a little birthday post for her.

I hosted a dinner party tonight for the Grandparents, it was nice to get together with the family for Jillian's birthday before her big party in January. Talk to you soon!

Karen

Kristy said...

Yay for a bow tutorial! Looks beautiful, can't wait to try it!

Jumping Jack said...

I'm so glad you posted this tutorial! I've been wanting to make a bow for the top of our tree! I'll have to hit the after Christmas sales to get ribbon for next year.

I put GG's shirt in the mail today. I think it turned out so cute!

Lexie Loo, Lily, Liam & Dylan Too said...

Beautiful! My mom always tries to teach me how to make those bows, but I lose interest around step 7. ;)

UGA Bama Belle said...

I am forever trying to make the perfect bow! The wrapping and bows look fabulous!