header

header

12.14.2015

Recycled Gift Bows



Repost from December 2011, Enjoy!

Need some last minute gift wrapping ideas? I always run out of bows when i don't have time to run to Target.  Here are some bows you can make with magazine pages, wrapping paper scraps or even old homework papers!

Pull out your old magazines, girl, because I know you are just like me and hold on to those dang things "just in case"! Well, the time has finally come. Nah, nah, Big Guy!

Use a page of print to wrap your gift, then make this quick and easy gift bow GGCAA taught me how to make from a colorful magazine page. For this example I used a magazine photo of a giant ice cream cone!

Recycled Gift Bows

Supplies:

Magazine
Scissors or paper cutter
Stapler
Tacky glue
Tape


I used my handy dandy paper cutter to cut 9 strips of paper 3/4 inch wide:



Next, I sized them as follows:

Leave 3 strips at this length.
Cut 1 inch from the end of 3 strips.
Cut 2 inches from the end of 2 strips.
Cut the remaining strip to a length of 3 1/2 inches.

Now, begin to form figure 8's from all the strips except the shortest. Staple them to hold. *(I had a momentary brain fart during this step, but I finally got the hang of it. Just keep looking at the picture.)



The last strip will be glued to form a small loop.

Now, nest those babies! Begin with the largest figure 8's like this, placing a dot of glue between the layers:




Go ahead and layer the remaining 8's, largest to smallest then staple the whole lot together in the center:



Using a dot of glue, slip the loop you made from the smallest strip into the center:



Check out what you can do with an old homework paper and an ink pad. You're so clever!



Want some more ideas?

Try dressing up a paper lunch bag with scrapbook paper and ribbon.

Wrap yarn round and round plain brown craft paper wrappings, like ErinEverAfter:



Wrap in a square of reusable fabric, like Chewingthecud:



Or weave this amazing paper gift topper like PaperCrave:



Savvy Southern Style

14 comments:

  1. What a clever way to recycle a magazine into something useful.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Morning Jen,

    Very cute ideas!

    I'm back from the dead and trying to get into the blogging swing of things again.

    I feel as if I have I have missed so much. Life moves so fast in Blogland!!!!

    Enjoy the week.

    Cheers,
    Janet xox
    http://theemptynest-janet.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh my gosh I just love that !!!
    Thank you for the fun tutorial !

    ReplyDelete
  4. i love these ideas! magazine's paper have so much potential, it's such a waist to put them in the recycle bin!!! thanks for all this brilliant ideas!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow, I knew there was a good use for those old magazines! haha. Thanks for sharing -so excited to try this for Christmas!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great idea! I've been staring at a pile of magazines I've been keeping hold of, wondering whether to put them in the recycling--now I know what to do with them!

    ReplyDelete
  7. You remind me so much of my daughter. She only has one boy, though, so the testosterone level is a little lower. I made your purse organizer for my friends and now I'm going to try the magazine gift bows. Awesome idea! Thanks! Visit my blog sometime, I'd love to have you!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Love these ideas! Especially the bow made from the recycled magazine pages. I've got to try that one!

    ReplyDelete
  9. just recently found your blog- am already in love with it! love the recycled magazine bows- super creative and cool looking- thanks for the inspiration... and instructions!

    ReplyDelete
  10. What a great idea and very cute. Thanks for joining Wow.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Can I use one of your photos for an article in Lane County's Transfer News (it goes to our customers dropping of their trash and recycling). I'd like to use a photo as an example of what you can do to reuse during the holidays. I'll give credit to the site of course.

    mikayle.anderson.co.lane.or.us

    ReplyDelete
  12. You are sooooooooooooooo creataive! Wish I had more in me.!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thanks so much for the pictures. That helps my brain. Pinning this.

    ReplyDelete

Tell me what you think!

How to Avoid Stress At Work