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      Home made crochet ribbon

      May 13th
       
      I have always admired beautifully wrapped presents and over the years have tried my best, mostly at Christmas, but time always seems to run out, so lately I have been thinking how to make my gifts just that little bit more special.  Over Easter I began playing with the idea and now think I have hit upon a quick and simple yet stunning combo, I thought I would 'pass on' my idea to you, what do you think? 
       
       
      Crochet gift ribbon
      You will need:
      ♥  3 different coloured yarns
      ♥  crochet hook appropriate to yarn, plus on a size larger
      ♥  scissors
      ♥  yarn needle

      
      


      To begin with I used a crochet hook larger than I wanted to actually crochet with.  This is so that once I begin on the first row, it will be easier to find the correct stitch.  So I began here with a hook size 4.5, but after the initial chain, I continued with a hook size 3.
       
      Depending on the size of your gift will determine the length of your chain.  I wanted to wrap a small book and so chained 65.  To determine the length of chain you need to chain as many as you think you will need and then put it along the side of your gift, to give you a rough idea, this part is not exact science.
       
       
      Initial chain of 65 on the larger hook.
       
      


      When desired length is reached, switch to the smaller crochet hook and single crochet into the first chain.  Continue to single crochet to the end of the chain.

      


      Here you can see the difference in the width from the chain and the chain with single crochet.
       
      


      In the last chain single crochet three times into the same stitch, this will produce a neat curved end.  As you continue to single crochet on the other side of the chain you will see the original loose thread from the beginning of the chain.  To avoid needing to weave it in at the end, hold the loose thread close to the chain and 'catch it' into the single crochet stitch,
      thus hiding it and trapping it within the ribbon.
       
      




      Continue to single crochet along the second side until the end of the row. In the last chain, again, single crochet three times and then pull thread through to finish the row.
       
      

       
      Once you have single crocheted on both sides of the chain, it should look like this:
       
      

       
      Introducing the second colour and bordering the crochet ribbon:  Take the second colour and into the first stitch by the end of the ribbon chain two.
       
      

       
       
      For this row, you will need to hdc along both sides.  Continue to the end of the row.
       
      
       
      Into the last stitch, hdc and into the same stitch dc. In the next stitch, dc twice into the same stitch. Into the next stitch dc and hdc in same stitch.  This should now have created a smooth curve around the end of the ribbon.
       
       
      Continue on the second side with hdc until the last stitch and again to create the curved end, into the last stitch, hdc and dc, in the next stitch dc twice and into last stitch dc and hdc.  Finish off, leaving a long thread, this will be needed for stitching the ribbon together.

       
       
      Your ribbon is probably quite curly and wants to bend, so blocking is necessary to keep the ribbon flat.  I use an old ironing cloth with a doubled over towel underneath to allow for lots of padding and to enable the pins to be bedded in.  Pin ribbon in place and put iron onto steam.  Make sure you do not place the iron on the ribbon, but hover it over and allow the steam to penetrate.  Leave ribbon in place and pinned until dry.


       I think the ribbon needed a little more and so decided to add a flower in the centre piece.  I have had my eye on these puff stitch flowers for a while and decided this would be a great time to try them out. They are quick and fun to make. 
      However, any flower that you enjoy making would work just as well and depending on the size of your gift maybe it would call for more than one.

      

       
      As an aside you could use the ribbon for a lovely corsage wrist candy decoration too!
       
      
       
       
      Ribbon with flower sewn on and the gift that needed to be wrapped. A book on 'Hope'.
       
      


      Gift wrap present as normal and sew together the ends,
      with the loose thread of the ribbon, to form a loop. Finally slide it onto the gift.
       
      


      I think the home made crochet ribbon wins hands down on wrapping, don't you?
       
      


      This gift smiles out love and happiness.  As this was a small gift to wrap, all was made and done in about 40 minutes, time well spent I think.
       
      


      And it all began at Easter when I thought about gift wrapping, you can vary the theme for season or to make it more personal to the recipient of your gift.  Hope you have a go and let me know how you choose to decorate your ribbon. 
       


       
       
      A photo montage of making the Easter ribbon:

       
        Happy crocheting! 



      www.deramores.com/blog-awards
      :This blog entry is my submission to the Deramores Blog Awards 2014. Deramores is the UK’s number one online retailer of knitting and crochet supplies.

      9 comments:

      1. What a great idea, and then there is an extra little gift with the present! xx

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        Replies
        1. Thank you Amy, it is such a quick make, which as you have probably come to realise suits me best, but I think it really smiles out 'thoughtful' too. Let me know if you give it a try x

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      2. That's such a clever idea, and would make any gift more special. Thank you for sugaring it.

        ReplyDelete
      3. "Sugaring"???
        That should say "sharing". Stupid autocorrect!

        ReplyDelete
      4. I like to sugar my posts, makes it more sweet to read!

        ReplyDelete
      5. Thanks for sharing! I like that you have a Norwegian book ;)

        ReplyDelete
        Replies
        1. Thank you Elin. I am in Norway now so thought it appropriate. We all need a little 'Hope' in our lives 😉

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      6. Thanks for sharing this post and to The Twisted Yarn for mentioning your blog today so that I could discover it - just what I've been wondering about. I love using brown paper wrapping and wanted to explore origami decorations but this is a great idea too - quick little crochet projects and I could have a stash of goodies ready to use.

        ReplyDelete
        Replies
        1. Very kind of you to pop over and glad you like the idea, it was fun and quick. The Twisted Yarn is one of my favourite blogs too! i also use brown paper, and my sister always wraps her presents in newspaper and with the most glorious ribbons, that also makes for a great combination too. Let me know how you get on with the crocheted ribbon!

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      I will always read all comments and will try to reply but it may take me a couple of days, do please pop back and lets get a conversation going...