DIY? Don't mind if I do!

Spending so much time on Pinterest lately has inspired me to make something.  I have been feeling crafty lately, and I enjoy a good project every now and then....especially when I don't fuck it up.

My daughter has the thinnest hair EVER especially considering how thick my hair is and how much her father is covered in hair himself - we were convinced I was going to birth a wookie when I was pregnant with her.  I haven't cut it because I'm hoping it'll get thicker, but I may have to bite the bullet and get her a trim.  Fortunately, her hair is long enough to do really cool things, like braiding and ponytails, but because it's so thin, it's hard to keep clippies in.  If it's not the right kind of clip, it won't last long in her hair without falling out.  What ever is a mom to do?  Off to Pinterest I go!

I found this tutorial and figured it looked simple enough.  Here is my version:

 You will need:

• 1 yard of 1.5" grosgrain ribbon
• hot glue gun (with glue sticks.....duh)
• a fabric pen
• needle and thread (color doesn't matter since it will be covered)
• ruler
• clip of your choice

 Measure and cut off 5" and put it aside.  It's going to be your knot.

 Measure 3" from the end of the remaining 31" and make dotted marks with the pen.  As you can see, my pen bled a little bit,  but again, it doesn't matter because it'll be covered.  Just don't go nuts with the pen.  You also want it to bleed through to the other side.

 Measure 6" from the first mark you made.  Continue doing this until you have 5 dotted line marks and there is 3.5" remaining at the end after the last dotted line.

 Next you're going to want to double thread the needle.  Now if you're like me, you're thinking "WTF is double threading?!"  If you're crafty by nature, or happen to sew more than just buttons, then perhaps you know what this means.  If you don't, no worries....here's the tutorial I googled.

I know you can't really see the thread...I chose a dark color.

 Take your double threaded needle (make sure you make a pretty big knot at the end) and start a running stitch along the first line you made.  Continue with the next line, but make sure you are folding the ribbon so the back side is showing every other time. If you don't do this, you will jack up your ribbon.

 Once you have sewn through all the lines, gently, yet tightly, pull the thread so that the ribbon bunches.

 Wrap the remaining thread around the center and add a few stitches through the center to hold the shape of the bow.  Before stitching, make sure you've arranged the bow the way you want it and that the pattern side is showing.

 Remember that 5" you cut off?  Fold it in 3rds and knot it in the center.  When you glue it to the center of the bow, you may need to trim it a little so it's not too bulky.

This is the back of the bow after the knot has been glued on.

 You can use pretty much any kind of clippie, but I prefer these with the teeth because they hold really well, especially in thin hair.

 I snipped off a little bit of the ribbon and glued it to the clippie before I glued the clippie to the bow.  With this type of clippie, you can't cover the part that holds the hair with ribbon, otherwise you defeat the purpose of the teeth.  I also cut the tails of the bows into points and sealed them with stuff that helps it not fray.  Supposedly, you can use fire, but I'm not enough of a pyro to test that out.

Here's the finished product.  It's a pretty big bow, so for now my daughter will use it just for a ponytail.  I'm going to attempt to make smaller ones so she can use them as barrettes and for her signature pigtails.  Not too shabby if I do say so myself!  What do you think?