TUTORIAL: How to make a no sew fabric hair bow

Hair bows are a quick way to make your hair pretty or keep it out of the way. Making these sew rock-a-bow-billy hair bows is simple, just follow these 15 steps.

Don’t have the patience? Enter my competition at the end to win a readymade Make Me Pretty Shop hair bow for free!


Shopping list:

• Fabric (1 FQ)
• An iron
• Pair of scissors
• Ruler
• Pipe cleaner
• Glue gun and sticks
• Alligator grip

 
STEPS 1-5

• Gather your equipment and clear a surface
• Lay out your chosen fabric
• Measure and cut a strip approx. 55(L) x 11(W) cm
• Fold 1cm of the fabric each side and iron flat
• Fold the ends in and in again, leave an overlap

  

STEPS 6-10

• Take another piece of fabric (contrasting pattern is good)
• Measure and cut a strip approx. 38(L) x 6(W) cm
• Fold 1cm of the fabric each side and iron flat
• Fold ends in and in again, no need for overlap
• Lay the smaller piece on top of the larger piece

 

STEPS 11-15

• Hold the fabric and pleat, secure with pipe cleaner
• Cut a small piece of fabric for the centrepiece
• Turn the bow over and glue at the back
• Wrap centre fabric around the middle and glue
• Glue the grip to the back and leave to dry

 

Voila! One beautiful no sew hair bow!

 

Why not experiment with different fabrics and using different size strips of material to make smaller or larger bows?

Try adding an embellishment to the centre or use a fabric covered button as a centrepiece.

And why stop there? Fabric bows can be used for a variety of purposes - check out my alternative bow tie necklace!

I hope you found this tutorial useful and it inspires you to make your own no sew fabric hair bows. If you do please post a picture of your finished crafts on my Facebook page.

However, if you don’t want to invest in the tools or you simply don’t have the patience, you can always buy one of my bows and tell everyone you made it!


COMPETITION TIME!

To win one of my rockabilly hair bows just follow the instructions below. The winner will be picked at random on the evening of Friday 4th April.

1. Re-tweet or share my tutorial blog post on Facebook
2. Comment underneath my blog post with ‘pick me!’

Enjoy and good luck!

Lisa xXx

Past, present and future vintage finds and crafts

It's been a while but I'm back. And, as we begin 2014 I've been reminiscing about the year just gone.

2013 was a great. I finally put my passion for vintage and handmade jewellery making into practice by starting Make Me Pretty Shop on Etsy, and I began writing this blog.

Before I recap on some of my best vintage finds and crafts I want to share with you the best thing I made in 2013, my beautiful baby boy Joshua; he's a smiler!

Top 3 vintage finds

1. No doubt it's this gorgeous purple prairie dress by Paragi
2. Next it's this super cute mustard paisley shirt with ruffe neck
3. And, last but not least, this 1980s monochrome ra ra dress

Top 3 retro crafts

1. 2013 was all about porcelain - Wade Whimsies and tea cups / pots
2. Among my best sellers were these retro swallow bobby pins
3. And, a more recent make, these patriotic rockabilly hair bows

All clothes and accessories in my blog are available from www.makemeprettyshop.etsy.com

Now for 2014 I'm working on more bows, this time adding them to my jewellery, as well as necklaces with tiered rows of super cute spot and gingham buttons.

If you want to hear about my latest vintage finds and crafts, as well as generous competitions, mosey on over to my Facebook page.

I'd love to hear about your favourite vintage finds and jewellery purchases so please comment below.

Lisa xXx