How to Make Perfect Bows

Fork Bow Technique

Bows are beautiful and bows are sweet, but sometimes it can be a difficult for many of us to tie pretty bows. The solution? The “Fork Bow”! Here’s a no-fail recipe for to follow to create the perfect bows.

Softer ribbons that aren’t too wide work best for this bow technique. Try the Stampin’ Up! 1/2″ Seam Binding Ribbon or 1/4″ Cotton Ribbon for the best results. Dinner forks make sweet small bows and serving-sized forks make bows that are a bit larger. When selecting a fork to use you’ll need to choose one that has 4 tines, not 3.

1. To create a Fork Bow, begin with a standard dinner fork with four tines and a 8″-10” piece of ribbon. (Use a slightly longer ribbon for bows created using a server fork). Hold the fork facing you. Place ribbon across front of fork with 1/3” of the length to the left of the fork. This end of the ribbon doesn’t move. Wrap the right end of the ribbon around behind the fork.

2. Wrap ribbon over the top of the first end and thread it down through the space between the center fork tines and below where the first ribbon crosses the fork.

3. Pull ribbon end up through the space between center fork tines from behind.

4. Tie the ribbon ends in a tight knot against the fork. (This photo shows the back of the fork bow).

5. Slide the bow off of the fork. Pull on the bow loops to tighten the bow. You now have a perfect bow! Use Glue Dots to attach the bow to your project.

I hope this tutorial helps you with your beautiful bows!