I’m running around putting the finishing touches on things. Or trying to. I haven’t done the bathroom yet, for instance. I still have to clean up the detrius of living and lug half-emtpy boxes of unused decorations upstairs.

I had to find a replacement couch because our new ones aren’t built yet. Fortunately, they are bringing me a loaner on Friday.

And the phone is ringing…

Before I get to the bowmaking part, I just have to tell you about my awesome neighbour Pauline. She brought over a tree and all kinds of decorations for it, plus she spent four whole hours helping me fluff garland, place lights and being a good eye for adjustments. She owns a bridal shop behind me here, so it should go without saying that she has excellent taste.

I’ve had to make quite a few bows for decorating. I hardly use red anymore, and a whole spool of outdoor ribbon is much much cheaper than premade bows. And that’s *if* you can find the kind of bows you want. Bows are also a good way to dress up just about anything. Slap a bow on it, and whatever it is will immediately look festive. (Yes, even the the dog, but I doubt he’ll like it.)

I made this bow to cover up the end of the over-the-door wreath hanger we have on the back door. The biggest secret to a nice formal bow like this? It’s done in pieces. It’s not even tied, except for the gold twist tie holding all four lengths of ribbon together.

One shorter piece with ends overlapping in the middle.
Another one just like it.
Pinched and folded in that middle.
Two longer pieces for tails, each one pinched in the middle and all held together in my other hand.
Gold wire twist tie (or pipe cleaner, or whatever) is wrapped around the middle and given a good twist to hold.

Voila! Instant bow. (Huh. Maybe I should have taken some pics of each step.)

Here’s a good site with some clear directions for all kinds of bows. How to make bows.