DIY Gift Bows - Weekly Recap - HGTV Handmade

**DIY Paper Gift Bows: An Easy and Affordable Craft Project**

by Karen Kitt

Hello everyone! I'm Karen Kitt, and today on HGTV Handmade, we're tackling a fun and practical DIY project that you're going to love. Store-bought gift bows can be expensive and often come in tacky ribbons that just don't match your style. But fear not—today, I'll show you how to create your own custom paper gift bows using materials and patterns that suit your taste. Let's get started!

### Materials Needed:

- Decorative paper of your choice

- Scissors or a craft knife

- Hot glue gun and glue sticks

- Double-sided tape (optional for attaching the bow to a gift)

- Ruler

### Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. **Cutting the Paper Strips:**

Begin by cutting your decorative paper into strips that are 3/4 inches wide. Once you've cut out several strips, trim them down to specific lengths:

- Three strips measuring 10 inches each

- Three strips measuring 9 inches each

- One strip measuring 4.5 inches

2. **Creating the Figure-Eight Shapes:**

Take one of the 10-inch strips and gently bend it in half, creating a slight crease to mark the middle. Twist the strip into a figure-eight shape, ensuring that the twist is tight enough to hold but not so tight that it becomes difficult to work with. Use your hot glue gun to secure the ends together, forming a solid base for your bow. Repeat this process for the remaining two 10-inch strips and all three 9-inch strips.

3. **Forming the Center Loop:**

Take the 4.5-inch strip and glue it into a simple loop. This will serve as the center of your bow, adding both structure and visual interest.

4. **Assembling the Bow:**

Start by gluing the largest pieces together. Stack the twisted figure-eight shapes on top of each other, using a small amount of hot glue between each layer to secure them in place. Continue this process with the 9-inch pieces, ensuring they are evenly distributed around the bow. Finally, attach the 4.5-inch loop at the center, completing your custom paper bow.

### Customization and Tips:

- **Experiment with Materials:** Feel free to use any type of paper you like—whether it's patterned, textured, or even something unique like sheet music. Karen demonstrates a smaller version made from sheet music, adjusting the measurements accordingly. The key is to maintain consistent ratios for uniformity.

- **Adding Layers:** For an extra touch, try adding additional layers or loops to your bow. Karen shows an example created from measuring tape, experimenting with different sizes and shapes to achieve a varied look.

- **Versatility:** These bows are perfect for birthdays, Valentine's Day, or simply as home décor. They’re also quick to make once you get the hang of it, making them ideal for last-minute gifts.

### From the Channel:

Before diving into today’s project recap, Karen shares some exciting news: Marian's Craft Union videos will now air on Tuesdays, filling a previously awkward mid-week gap and allowing viewers to enjoy her content even sooner. Stay tuned for more updates!

### Weekly Project Highlights:

- **Monday:** Meg demonstrated how to make stunning 3D Starburst orbs using materials like paper or fabric. Despite initial concerns about their safety, Meg assured viewers they’re not sharp and are perfect for creating a bold wall display.

- **Wednesday:** Julia showed how to create intricate painted throw pillows using stencils. By layering designs from different stencils, she achieved a unique, personalized look that you can replicate at home.

- **Thursday:** Throwback Thursday took viewers back to the early days of duct tape crafting, showcasing creative projects by fashion design students who turned this humble material into impressive works of art.

- **Friday:** Ann shared innovative ways to display Polaroids and photos, ideal for Valentine’s Day gifts or home décor.

- **Saturday:** Maryann delighted audiences with a frozen Suncatcher made from ice and fruit—a fun and artistic project perfect for kids.

### Additional Content:

Throughout the week, Karen also mentioned other videos she has posted:

- A tutorial on making a DIY bedroom canopy, offering a touch of elegance to any room.

- Julia’s video testing whether "spring Pam" (a popular nail polish) helps speed up drying time—perfect for anyone looking to save time on their manicure.

### Behind the Scenes:

Karen also shared some fun behind-the-scenes content, including recent Instagram photos with Meg and Rob from Threadbanger. The trio recently collaborated on a video project, promising exciting new content in the near future.

### Viewer Engagement:

Finally, Karen encourages viewers to share their own craft projects by posting photos on social media with the hashtag #HDTVHandmade. She plans to feature some of your creative submissions right here on the channel.

So there you have it—another packed week of crafting fun and creativity! Whether you're making paper bows, experimenting with duct tape, or testing out new nail polish techniques, there's always something exciting to try. Stay tuned for more incredible projects in the upcoming weeks, and don’t forget to share your creations with us using #HDTVHandmade.

Happy crafting, everyone! I’ll see you all next time on HGTV Handmade.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhi everyone I'm Karen Kitt and this is HGTV handmade for today's project we're going to be making these really cute paper gift bows store bought bows are expensive and are usually made out of cheap and tacky ribbon so today I'm going to show you how to make your own bows using whatever paper and patterns you'd like I'm going to be using this decorative paper Begin by cutting your paper into s 3/4 in wide strips once you've cut those out cut them down so you have three 10in strips three 9in strips and one 4 and 1/2 in strip now take one of the 10in strips and bend it in half lightly so you have a slight crease showing where the middle of the paper is twist it into this figure8 shape and use your hot glue gun to glue the ends down this is the shape you should be left with do the same thing for the other two 10-in strips and also for the 9in strips once those are all twisted and glued down into these figure8 shapes take your 4 and 1/2 in piece and glue it into a simple Loop now it's time to glue them all together beginning with the bigger pieces stack them on top of each other using a bit of glue between each layer then glue the 9-in pieces on top the same way and finally glue the small Loop right into the center and that's it now you have a custom paper bow that you could put on birthday presents Valentine's Day presents or even just to decorate your house to attach them to a gift use a piece of double-sided tape or even just another dab of hot glue feel free to experiment and use any kind of paper you like here's one that I made out of sheet music since it's smaller I adjusted the measurements but if you keep the ratios the same you could make them at any size you like or make the ratios different and experiment with adding more layers of Loops like I did with this one that I made out of measuring tape once you get the hang of it they're really quick to make and they definitely take your gift wrapping skills to the next level so let me know in the comments what other ideas do you have for things you could cut up and make into gift bows aren't these so great they're so easy to make and now I want to give someone a present just so I can wrap it with one of these bows so before we get to the recap I have a small piece of scheduling news to share starting this coming week Marian's craft Union videos are going to be moving from Saturday to Tuesday that fills up that kind of awkward Gap we had in the middle of the week and now we get to see her videos even sooner so onto the recap we started off on Monday with Meg showing us how to make her 3D Starburst orbs a lot of you guys in the comments seemed worried for the safety of anyone who comes close to them but Meg assured us that they're not actually very sharp hang in clusters and voila you have a bold statement wall of 3D orbs you can go with a two-toned pink situation with flex of gold or an ombre blue moment on Wednesday Julia showed us how to use stencils to make this really intricate painted throw pillow I used designs from two different stencils and just kind of randomly placed them on different parts of the pillow until I was satisfied with the way it looked and this is the final result I'm Thursday I took you back in time for throwback Thursday to the early days of duct tape crafting and look what happens when students at a school of fashion design get a hold of some duct tape on Friday Ann showed us some really cool ways to display Polaroids and photos in your room and they would make a great Valentine's Day gift and finally yesterday Maryann showed us how to make a frozen Suncatcher out of ice and fruit so that was the week on HGTV handmade on our personal channels and put up a video showing how to make a DIY bedroom canopy which is just beautiful Julia made a video testing whether spring Pam on nail polish helps it dry faster you can watch her video to find out if works and finally I put up a crafting video showing how to make luggage tags out of leather and duct tape so be sure to stay tuned for this upcoming week because we have a ton of really great videos for you here is a small clip of Meg's video tomorrow let us know your guesses for what she's making down in the comments a few days ago Meg also instagrammed a few photos with Karen and Rob from threadbanger because they just shot some videos together rad Banger is awesome and Meg is awesome so be sure to stick around so you can see this those videos because I'm sure they're going to be fantastic one last thing remember that if you want us to see any of your takes on the projects that we feature here post your photos on Twitter Tumblr or Instagram with the hashtag HDTV handmade I'm going to be keeping an eye on that hashtag and I would love to feature some of your photos right here on this channel so that is all from me keep crafting I will see you all next time uphi everyone I'm Karen Kitt and this is HGTV handmade for today's project we're going to be making these really cute paper gift bows store bought bows are expensive and are usually made out of cheap and tacky ribbon so today I'm going to show you how to make your own bows using whatever paper and patterns you'd like I'm going to be using this decorative paper Begin by cutting your paper into s 3/4 in wide strips once you've cut those out cut them down so you have three 10in strips three 9in strips and one 4 and 1/2 in strip now take one of the 10in strips and bend it in half lightly so you have a slight crease showing where the middle of the paper is twist it into this figure8 shape and use your hot glue gun to glue the ends down this is the shape you should be left with do the same thing for the other two 10-in strips and also for the 9in strips once those are all twisted and glued down into these figure8 shapes take your 4 and 1/2 in piece and glue it into a simple Loop now it's time to glue them all together beginning with the bigger pieces stack them on top of each other using a bit of glue between each layer then glue the 9-in pieces on top the same way and finally glue the small Loop right into the center and that's it now you have a custom paper bow that you could put on birthday presents Valentine's Day presents or even just to decorate your house to attach them to a gift use a piece of double-sided tape or even just another dab of hot glue feel free to experiment and use any kind of paper you like here's one that I made out of sheet music since it's smaller I adjusted the measurements but if you keep the ratios the same you could make them at any size you like or make the ratios different and experiment with adding more layers of Loops like I did with this one that I made out of measuring tape once you get the hang of it they're really quick to make and they definitely take your gift wrapping skills to the next level so let me know in the comments what other ideas do you have for things you could cut up and make into gift bows aren't these so great they're so easy to make and now I want to give someone a present just so I can wrap it with one of these bows so before we get to the recap I have a small piece of scheduling news to share starting this coming week Marian's craft Union videos are going to be moving from Saturday to Tuesday that fills up that kind of awkward Gap we had in the middle of the week and now we get to see her videos even sooner so onto the recap we started off on Monday with Meg showing us how to make her 3D Starburst orbs a lot of you guys in the comments seemed worried for the safety of anyone who comes close to them but Meg assured us that they're not actually very sharp hang in clusters and voila you have a bold statement wall of 3D orbs you can go with a two-toned pink situation with flex of gold or an ombre blue moment on Wednesday Julia showed us how to use stencils to make this really intricate painted throw pillow I used designs from two different stencils and just kind of randomly placed them on different parts of the pillow until I was satisfied with the way it looked and this is the final result I'm Thursday I took you back in time for throwback Thursday to the early days of duct tape crafting and look what happens when students at a school of fashion design get a hold of some duct tape on Friday Ann showed us some really cool ways to display Polaroids and photos in your room and they would make a great Valentine's Day gift and finally yesterday Maryann showed us how to make a frozen Suncatcher out of ice and fruit so that was the week on HGTV handmade on our personal channels and put up a video showing how to make a DIY bedroom canopy which is just beautiful Julia made a video testing whether spring Pam on nail polish helps it dry faster you can watch her video to find out if works and finally I put up a crafting video showing how to make luggage tags out of leather and duct tape so be sure to stay tuned for this upcoming week because we have a ton of really great videos for you here is a small clip of Meg's video tomorrow let us know your guesses for what she's making down in the comments a few days ago Meg also instagrammed a few photos with Karen and Rob from threadbanger because they just shot some videos together rad Banger is awesome and Meg is awesome so be sure to stick around so you can see this those videos because I'm sure they're going to be fantastic one last thing remember that if you want us to see any of your takes on the projects that we feature here post your photos on Twitter Tumblr or Instagram with the hashtag HDTV handmade I'm going to be keeping an eye on that hashtag and I would love to feature some of your photos right here on this channel so that is all from me keep crafting I will see you all next time up\n"