Ribbon Leaves

These instructions are for a basic leaf.

These leaves can be made with or without the fine wire remaining in the edge. Without the wire, the leaf has a softer look to it. If the wire remains in the ribbon, the edges of the leaf can be shaped and you can get a more controlled, three-dimensional look to the leaf. Experiment with leaving the wire in the outside edge of the leaf, but remove it from the side that will become the center.

For purposes of illustration, these leaves were made using 6” of size 5 (1” wide) French wired ribbon. The sample was made with the wire remaining in the edge of the ribbon. They were sewn with black thread to make the stitches easier to see. When sewing ribbonwork, I use a size 10 milliners needle and size O Nymo bead thread.

· Cut 6” of ribbon and remove the wire from the edge if you want to. Fold the ribbon in half, and place the fold on the left as you're holding it in your hand. The color at the top of the ribbon will be on the outside edge of the finished leaf. Fold the left side up diagonally from the bottom. Slip the needle into the fold, and bring it out at the point. Take a small stitch to secure the thread, and to keep the knot from pulling through the ribbon.

· Sew close to the folded edge with small 1/8” running stitches, and sew down the selvedge to the cut edge with ¼” long running stitches.

· Pull the thread gently to gather. Take a few stitches to secure the thread. Do not cut the thread yet.

· Fold the gathered point down to the selvedge once, and then once again. This keeps this excess ribbon from peaking out at the point of your finished leaf. This ribbon ravels, so it's better to fold the excess down out of sight rather than trimming it off.

· With the thread still secured to the edge, open the leaf up. Sew 1/8” running stitches from selvedge to selvedge about 1/8” from the edge.

· Pull the thread to gather the bottom on the leaf, wrap the thread around the gathers a few times, knot off, and cut the thread.

· Open up the leaf and shape it. I hold my left thumbnail in the point to maintain a sharp point, while I pull gently with my right hand to shape the leaf. Tuck the finished leaves underneath rosebuds or other ribbon flowers.

Enjoy your beautiful leaves...

When you have time to browse, please visit Vintage Vogue.

Ribbon Rosebuds

This easy technique can be used to make a bud for any flower.

These rosebuds can be made with or without the fine wire remaining in the selvedge of the French wired ribbon. This sample was made with the wire removed from the bud’s ribbon, and with the wire remaining in the stem’s ribbon. They were sewn with black thread to make the stitches easier to see. When sewing ribbonwork, I use a size 10 milliners needle and size O Nymo bead thread.

The rosebuds may also be padded with a small amount of fiberfill to make them look more dimensional. If you do pad them, you’ll need to carefully sew the top closed. Sew in the selvedge to hide the stitches. Color the stitches with a Micron pen if any of them are visible when you're done.

These buds were made using 3” of size 5 (1” wide) French wired ribbon for the bud, and 6” of size 3 (5/8” wide) French wired ribbon for the wrapped stem.

· Cut 3” of ribbon for the bud and remove the wire if you want to. If you’re using an ombre (shaded) ribbon, the color at the top of the ribbon will be the top of the rosebud. Fold it in thirds to make a triangular shape, and pin to secure the folds. Turn the triangle of ribbon so that the pink point is down. At the fold just above the selvedge, insert the needle at the edge and make a couple of very small stitches to secure the thread. This will keep the knot from pulling through the ribbon and will help to secure the gathering.

· Using a 1/8” running stitch, sew across the base of the bud. Do not knot off or cut your thread yet. Turn the bud right side up again. Pull the thread gently to gather, knot off and cut the thread. Do not cut off the excess ribbon below the gathering. It will pad the calyx.

· Cut 6” of ribbon for the stem. Wrap the ribbon around the bottom of the bud and pin to secure. Turn the bud and stem so that the point of the bud is down. At the fold just above the selvedge, insert the needle at the edge and make a couple of very small stitches to secure the thread.

· Using a 1/8” running stitch, sew across the base of what will become the calyx. Do not knot off or cut your thread. Turn the bud right side up again. Pull the thread gently to gather and knot off, but do not cut the thread yet.

· Turn the bud over in your hand so that you’re looking at the back of it. The length of ribbon that will become the stem should be on the right. Pull the stem ribbon to the left around the back of the bud to hide the base of the bud. Take a few stitches to secure the stem ribbon to the base of the bud, knot off and cut the thread.

· Turn the bud over so that you’re looking at the front of it again. Gently wrap the ribbon around itself to the end of the ribbon to make the stem. The wire will hold the wraps in place, but you may want to tack the end of the stem to hold it securely. If the back of the stem will not show in your project, you can also sew a small running stitch along the wrong side of the stem to hold the wraps in place.

Enjoy your beautiful rosebuds…

When you have time to browse, please visit Vintage Vogue.

Ruched Ribbon Violets

Use a Victorian postcard printed on fabric as the background for this bouquet of French wired ribbon violets.

This vintage postcard is just one of the more than 600 postcards that I have in my collection. Addressed to Mr. Ben Crim and postmarked August 18, 1910, this message on the back says, "Hello, I am having a fine time. Samuel". This image was printed on dyer's muslin with a freezer paper backing using a HP printer.

Violets are made using the basic ruching technique. These violets can be made with or without the fine wire remaining in the selvedge. Without the wire, the violets are softer and will spring back if crushed. If the wire remains in the selvedge of the ribbon, the violets can be shaped into a three-dimensional flower. You may want to leave the wire in one edge, but remove it from the other edge of the flower.

For illustrative purposes, these violets were made using 6¼” of size 5 (1" wide) French wired ribbon. The finished flower was made with the wire remaining in the selvedge of the ribbon. They were sewn with black bead thread to make the stitches easier to see. When sewing ribbonwork, I use a size 10 milliners needle and size O Nymo bead thread.

· Cut 6¼” of ribbon and remove the wire from the selvedge if you want to. If you’re using an ombre (shaded) ribbon, the color at the top of the ribbon will be the top of the violet. There’s one fewer petal in the bottom of the flower.

· With a marking pen, make a mark 1/8” from the cut edge along the top selvedge of the ribbon and every 2” along the edge after that. The last mark will be 1/8” from the other cut edge. Turn the ribbon upside down and make a mark 1 1/8” from the cut edge and every 2” along the bottom selvedge after that. The last mark on this side will be 1 1/8” from the other cut edge.

· You can draw lines between the marks to sew on, use one of the many ruching tools that are available, or just “eyeball” the line as you sew. Starting at the top selvedge, insert the needle at the first mark and make a couple of very small tacking stitches to secure the thread. This will keep the knot from pulling through the ribbon, and will help to secure the gathering.

· Using a 1/8” running stitch, sew diagonally down to the first mark on the opposite edge of the ribbon. If your last stitch ends on top, loop the thread over the selvedge and come up from underneath to continue sewing to the next mark. Continue sewing to the last mark, making sure that the thread loops over the edge of the ribbon every time you change direction. Do not knot off or cut your thread yet.

· On both cut ends of the ribbon, cut off the excess ribbon about 1/8” from the sewing line. This ribbon ravels a lot, so you may want to FrayCheck the cut end.

· Pull the thread gently to gather. You’ll want to pull the gathers tight, but not too tight. Make each petal about the width of your finger. Take a few tacking stitches to secure the thread. With the thread still attached to one side, roll the ruched ribbon around your finger. Sew the beginning and ending knots together with a few small tacking stitches. Knot off and cut the thread. Turn the flower over and shape.

Enjoy your beautiful flowers...

When you have time to browse, please visit Vintage Vogue.

Vintage Ribbon Roses

Replicate the look of crushed and faded roses with new French wired ribbon.

· Begin with 1 yard of size 5 (1" wide) French wired ribbon. To crush your ribbon, wet the wired ribbon thoroughly. Crumble it up into a ball very tightly in your hand until most of the water is squeezed out. Let the ball of ribbon dry completely. Do not unwrap the ball until it's dry. For an antique faded look, tea-dye the ribbon before crushing it.

· Unroll the ball of ribbon. If you're using an ombre (shaded) ribbon you'll need to decide the color you want around the outside edge of the rose. Place that color at the top edge of the ribbon as you're holding it in your left hand. Fold the right side of the ribbon down diagonally letting the ribbon extend below the selvedge about ½”. Fold the diagonal edge in half again.

· Begin rolling the ribbon from the right cut edge about 1” to 1½” along the length to form the center of the rose. Tuck a few stamens in as you go or leave the center plain. Tack at the base with a few stitches using a needle and thread. I use a size 10 milliners needle and size O Nymo bead thread for my ribbonwork.

· Shirr the ribbon on the wire by pulling gently on the bottom wire from the lower left selvedge. The tighter you gather the ribbon, the fuller the rose will look. Be careful not to break the wire. If the wire does break, pull it out and then gather the bottom edge of the ribbon with a needle and thread using ¼” long stitches. Do not knot off or cut the thread yet.

· Sew the center bud to the center of a 3" square of crinoline. Coil the ribbon around the center loosely to form the rose. Tighten or loosen the gathers until you get the look you like, then knot off and cut the thread. Tuck the raw end of the ribbon under the coiled ribbon, and tack the rose down to the crinoline with hidden stitches by sewing across the flower in an X. Trim the excess crinoline away.

· If you're making a brooch, tack some purchased leaves underneath the rose to the crinoline. Cut a circle out of felt (pink or scallop the edge) to cover the crinoline on the back of the brooch. Glue the felt on the back of the rose. Glue or sew a pinback to the felt.

Enjoy your beautiful flowers...

When you have time to browse, please visit Vintage Vogue.