Felt Bows and Bow Ties Perfected

So much felt and hot glue today…

Guess what?! Baby E’s birthday is this weekend!

I still have a lot to do but I finished a few things today. We are doing a Minnie Mouse theme and decided to make bows and bow ties as favors.

I’ve posted a tutorial in the past on felt bows but I figured out a technique that drastically cut down on glue gun related blisters. I also did a few multicolored bows.

Felt Bows/Bow Ties:

1. Do an accordion fold in the middle of your rectangle. The back will be the side with the edges showing. Put hot glue in the middle of this side.

2. Clip your alligator clip to your long skinny strip of felt. Put it (flat side down) onto the glue in the middle back of your bow.

3. Wrap the strip around the front and clip into your alligator clip.

4. Turn it around (with the back still to you) and fold down the extra felt from the strip. Put a line of hot glue in the crack it creates, cut off the extra, and fold it back down on the hot glue. (This is the step that saved fingers!)

Done!

Multicolored Felt Bow:

For a multicolored bow cut out the rectangle you want for the top and place it on the other desired color of felt. Cut around it a slightly bigger rectangle of the other color. Follow the regular steps from here.

How cute is that?!

I added a little felt rosette to this one.

I hope the kiddos like them. We are doing classic red, white, and black Minnie. I’ll definitely post party pics this weekend.

Felt Bows and Bow Ties

Here’s a shocker… We have a nerdy family.

We love Star Wars, Star Trek, musicals, super heroes, and especially Dr. Who.

Bow ties have become a big thing lately. You know, because bow ties are cool.

For felt bow ties and bows you need:

• A hot glue gun
• alligator clips (less than $3 for a big bag at our craft store)
• sheets of soft felt (4/$1 at our craft store)
• scissors

Step 1: Cut a rectangle from your felt (this one is about 3′ x 5′) and a smaller rectangle (1′ X 3′). I tend to eye ball my sizes. I’m not good at measuring or follow exact recipes.

Here are my supplies and the cut felt.

Step 2: Pinch the middle of the large rectangle to make your shape and glue it.

This is the back of my bow tie with glue.

Step 3: Clip your alligator clip to the small rectangle and glue it onto the back of your bow tie. Bring it around the front and then tuck it under the open clip. Glue it and cut off any extra felt.

The back of the bow tie with the middle added. Sorry, for the less than great picture. It is hard to hot glue and take pictures at the same time!

Optional (but not recommended) step: Burn the tar out of your finger on hot glue. Dance around the house in pain. Try to run your finger under cold water but realize that you, sadly, live in Texas and it is August- the “cold” water tap only runs warm. Try not to cuss in front of the children… Just keep crafting…

You are done!

They clip really well onto polo style shirts but can also be clipped onto the neck of a t-shirt or used as a hair bow.

Here is K’s bow tie clipped to his t-shirt.

He decided this black bow tie was his “super spy bow tie”. He also has a yellow one that he always wears with his Batman shirt. (Yes, my son is a gloriously nerdy little soul.)

Here is Super Spy K.

Here are few more pictures of finished bows and bow ties from past and present crafting sessions:

Here are a few from today. I love the dinosaur felt I found. The pink one is E’s. I added a little felt flower to it.

Here are a few more bows and bow ties. I love my models. They are super cute.

E’s birthday is coming up and we are planning on doing a Minnie Mouse theme and giving bows and bow ties as favors. I can’t wait! (Although I will probably let the blister on my pinky heal before wielding the glue gun again.)