I am super excited about today’s tutorial. Why? Because I love love love saving $14.50!
I was out on South Congress here in Austin the other night with my gorgeous husband. We had a wonderful meal and decided to walk around. Everything was closed except for American Apparel. We went in. We saw some crazy things, we saw some cool things. Most of all, besides an awesome chiffon dress, were these hairbows.
Definitely a blas from the past...and they're selling them for $14.99!!!! seriously!?!?!?
Well, you can bet I came right home and began work on making these for $14.49 LESS than what they’re charging! I may be biased, but I feel pretty good about mine … I think they look exactly the same! (well, less shiny for sure!)
To make these yourself…
Grab some scrap fabric and cut a rectangle about 9.5" x 7" (go smaller or bigger if you want.)
Fold in half lengthwise ... meaning your fabric will now be 4.25" x 7
Using a narrow seam allowance, sew along the sides and the top, leaving a hole in the center for turning right side out.
Clip your corners, turn right side out, PRESS!, and sew up the little hole.
along the center, pinch up both sides equally to make the bow shape. I used a clothes pin to hold it in place while I located my needles and thread. (sorry, there's a bit of hand sewing in this project...just a tiny bit, you can do it!)
However you prefer, sew the center section together, cinching it in.
Set aside for just a minute. From the scraps, cut another rectangle approximately 4" x 3.5". This will be the band that goes around the bow.
Fold the band along the longest side and sew. (Only sew the side that is represented with fringe in my photo. You're making a 4" x 1.75" tube) This sounds complicated, I'm only writing all that so that you can be clear on which sides to fold and sew. Don't overthink this step - it's easy!
Grab your glue gun, glue along the top of the hair clip. Set your bow on top, centering it on the hair clip. Let the glue dry. Then, after you've pressed your strip, place it centered like shown in the photo.
tuck one side through the arch in the hair clip, then the other. Tuck in a portion of the raw edges, and now sew that little band shut.
TADAH! You're all done!
And you'll like it so much that you make another...
...and another!
And your daughter will love you for it... and begin placing "orders" for the other colors she wants!
My apologies American Apparel, but why would I pay $15 when I can make one in 12 minutes for 50 CENTS!
There you have it folks … day two of SO CELEBRATE SEWING!
see you tomorrow!
Love it!!! Thx for posting! I have been making bows like this for my daughter for the last couple weeks…I have been using interfacing to make them stiff and then I just do a zig zag stitch on the outside in a contrasting color. quick and easy…..I would NEVER pay that much for a hair bow!! goodness!!!
Ahhhh…the memories…I made dozens of these in the 80′s for my daughters and you are right..so easy and they love them!!! Now for the Grands! Thanks!
When my girls were little, there wasn’t a day that went by that they did not have a bow in their hair (my choice). Then they were old enough to have a choice and we had to say goodbye to bows. Now that Meagan is in middle school, all of a sudden bows are back in (huh?) She will love these and this could be a great first sewing lesson!! I’ll let you know if that machine finally gets to make it out of the box
Those are gorgeous. I like them and I am with you….why buy when you can DIY!!
OMG. I wore these. Every. single. day. Along with my sweater dress, chunky belt, and jelly shoes.
I was hot.
I think I saw you on the street one day. Were they lime green jelly shoes and a magenta off-the-shoulder sweater dress? lol
You are so inspiring! I mean, I’m a knitter/crocheter, but you make sewing look so fun. I’m really close to getting back to it and teaching my daughter. But first, I’m going to crochet a bow….
I’ve really enjoyed your blogs.
I am a day late but I am here!
Love these bows-my neice and I made some while she was here visiting. I wish I would have saved a few for myself too:(
Thanks for sharing another great deal tutorial with us!!
There’s no such thing as ” a day late” in the blogosphere … is there?? As always, it’s nice to “see” you!
Ohhhhhh. Wonderfully wonderful Robie! Just like u.
These are really great. I make cloth dolls and am always looking for embellishments for them, this would be fabulous. Where do you get the hair clips with nothing attached?
You can find them at most crafting stores, but I even find them at Walmart in the jewelry/craft section. You have to stare very hard until your eyes find them b/c they can disappear amidst the beads and such.
Hey everyone I had a question about these bows. I wanted to make them but was wondering, what would be a good sturdy fabric to make the bow like the ones from American Apparel?
Hey Maddie! American Apparel uses all kinds of fabric for their bows … and so can you! I typically use a nice sturdy cotton, like a quilter’s cotton or calico cotton. In the winter, a wool blend looks gorgeous, but truthfully you can use anything. Heavier weight fabric can be used to make really big bows, but for lighter weight fabric you’ll want to stick with smaller sizes to keep them from drooping (unless, of course, you use stabilizer/interfacing). I hope this helps!
Hey I too am looking for an american apparel knock off haha this is so simple that i am heading out to pick up fabric scraps in a variety of colors as soon as possible. Any suggestions for this? Also what size clips do you use. I am partial to ordering them online in bulk but theres a variety of sizes. If I am aiming for the bigger bows like you’ve made and AA has is 2 inch long clips fine or should i opt for longer ones?
you should sell them!!!! i would love to buy from you
Love, love, love! I’m trying it!
awesome!!! was soo tempted to buy a few from AA for some outrageous amount…then i googled ‘cheap AA bows’ and this popped up. made 3 so far…thanks so much!!!!
Love this tutorial!! Thank you for sharing! I featured it on my blog: http://www.eleganceandelephants.com/2012/11/inspiring-knock-offsaccessories.html