This simple and elegant no sew tulle bow proves that hair bow making doesn’t have to be time consuming or complicated. When we posted our initial Tulle Bow Blog post with basic instructions on how to make tulle hair bows, we never would have imagined it would be pinned over 50K times! Three years later, it is still one of our most popular & frequently pinned tutorials. So we are bringing it back today to answer some FAQ’s with more detailed instructions, a video tutorial, and different sizes and variations on making tulle bows. The best part…these are SIMPLE, NO SEW bows that you can make in less time than it takes to make a cup of coffee (or read this post). True story.
Tulle Hair Bow Supplies:
6” Spool of Tulle (any color: bows in this tutorial were made from our Dusty Rose and Navy Tulle)
A hair clip or headband of your choice. (not pictured in supply photo) We used lined double prong alligator clips.
Scissors
Ruler
Decorative Centers(optional). Centered featured is our vintage decorative rhinestone center.
Crafting glue (optional)
Cardboard, book, checkbook or your hand…basically, anything pliable that you can wrap the tulle around.
How to Make Tulle Bows
1. Decide what size tulle bow you want to make and grab an object around your house to make the bow.
Tip #1: This will determine how large your cardboard, book, etc. is. The cardboard I used to make a 4” bow 9dusty rose bow in photo) measures 3.5” across. And to make the 7” bow (navy bow from main photo), it measured 6.5” across. A general rule of thumb is the tulle bow will be about a ½ wider than the object you wrap the tulle around.
Tip #2: Make sure the object is pliable. If you can’t bend it, you won’t be able to get the tulle off of it after wrapping it. Trust me on this.
2. Measure and cut your tulle.
Tip #3: FAQ from original post: Amount of tulle needed (you can use more or less if you want, but these are generally what we have found to work well):
| Size of Bow | Length of Tulle |
| 4" | 2 yards |
| 5" | 2.5" yards |
| 6" | 3 yards |
Also cut a strip for the center of your tulle bow. Anywhere from 8-12”.
3. Wrap the main piece of tulle around your object (as you can see in the photo below, I used a piece of cardboard) .
Tip #4: FAQ from original post: Do not fold the tulle in half, just wrap the 6" tulle as shown.
Tip #5: Don’t worry about the raw edges (open edges of tulle...see photo) lining up perfectly.
(You can also see I held the edge with a piece of tape, you can do this also, but it is completely unnecessary.)
4. Carefully hold the tulle on the top raw edge and on the other side, reach inside the tulle and bend the object slightly, then slowly pull the cardboard, book, or whatever you used out of the tulle.
5. Grab your tulle bow. Use the side with raw edges to determine the middle point of your bow. Gather the tulle from one raw edge to the other.
Carefully fold from one raw edge to the other accordion style for a defined look or squish them together for a more relaxed look:
Tip #6: The back of the bow will be the side where the loose end of the tulle is.
Tip #7: The raw edges on the top and bottom should ideally both point toward the same side when you are finished the folding. This will be the BACK of the bow.
6. Wrap the small piece of tulle around the gathered center, double knot it on the back of the bow.
Tip #8: if you have a piece of loose tulle on your bow, trim it so it is roughly ¼- ½” from the center of the bow.
Tip #9: FAQ from original post: you don’t have to fold or do anything special to this piece, when you pull it tight to tie it, it will do all the work for you and come out looking good.
7. Then tie the small center piece of tulle around the hair clip or attach it to a headband of your choice by tying the middle strand around the hair clip or headband.
Tip #10: Optional: You can secure the bow in place by adding a dab of glue between the hair bow and clip or hair bow and headband if you prefer.
See how simple that was!?! And how cute!
Embellishing your tulle bows:
This is a simple and easy step. Before Step 5, grab your center piece of tulle and your decorative center and thread the tulle through the middle of the bow. Our wide selection of decorative centers is available for purchase or you can embellish with your own. Another option is to glue the centers after the bow is complete, however, that is not the recommended method.
Now we know that these details may have helped you, but we also crafted one on video so you can see for yourself just how easy and simple it is. Check the video out for your self and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to email us at ruffles@thehairbowcompany.com.
Thanks for visiting with us this week! We hope you'll come back again soon! Be sure to subscribe to our blog, follow us on Facebook & check us out on Instagram & visit us on Pinterest for more fun! Be sure to pin this post to your board for later! Happy Crafting!