Nouveau Roses

Give a favorite old flower an updated look with new pleated French wired ribbon. The steps are very easy.

· Cut a 2 yard piece of size 5 (1" wide) ribbon for the rose into two 1 yard pieces. Sew the two raw ends of one piece together about ¼” from the edge. Accordion-fold this piece into tiny pleats (about ¼” wide) between your thumb and forefinger. This is the outside of the rose.

· To make the inside of the rose, take the other 1 yard piece of ribbon and begin by folding the right side of the ribbon down diagonally, letting the ribbon extend below the selvege about ½”. Fold the diagonal edge in half again. Begin rolling the ribbon tightly from the right about 1” to 1½” along the length to form the center of the rose. With a size 11 milliner's needle and Nymo bead thread, take a few stitches at the bottom of the roll to hold this center roll in place.

· Sew the tail of the center bud to the center of a 3" square of crinoline with just a few stitches, and stand the center up. Coil the ribbon around the center very loosely to form the center of the rose, leaving some space between the coil. Tuck the raw edge under the coil of ribbon when you get to the end. Now, flatten the coil of ribbon gently with your hand.

· Tack the rose’s flattened center down in the folds, and along the selvege edges. Carefully cut the excess crinoline away underneath. Place the circle of pleated ribbon underneath the center of the rose, and tack it down around the edges of the center.

· Make two simple leaves, and tack the leaves underneath the rose to the crinoline.

· Cut a circle out of felt (pink or scallop the edge) to cover the crinoline. Glue the felt on the back of the rose. Glue or sew a pinback to the felt to make a brooch, or eliminate the felt back and use this as an embellishment on a crazy quilt or other project.

Enjoy your beautiful roses...

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Simple Ribbon Leaves

Use this simple leaf to add greenery to your floral compositions. The steps are very easy.

· Cut 10" inches of ribbon into two 5" pieces. If you’re using French wired ribbon, you can leave the fine wire in the edge of the ribbon or remove it—your choice. Removing the wire will make the leaves softer.

· Fold the ribbon in half, and overlap the center selvege edges about ¼" as shown. Pin to hold in place. Make two of these.

· Place one leaf on top of the other as shown, with the outside edge of the top leaf aligned with the center of the bottom leaf. Pin to hold in place.

· Sew along the bottom edge, about ¼" in from the cut edges with ¼" long running stitches.

· Pull the running stitches to gather, wrap the thread around the gathers a few times, and knot off. Cut the thread.

· Tuck the finished leaves underneath your ribbon blossoms.

Enjoy your beautiful leaves...

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Antiquing Velvet Ribbon

Add a new dimension to your ribbonwork by overdyeing and crushing new rayon velvet ribbon to give it an antique look.

· Cut a piece of velvet ribbon in a light to medium value. Rayon or silk ribbon works best. Polyester and nylon velvet ribbons cannot easily be dyed and, because of the fiber content, the nap of the ribbon will not crush.

· Mix a dye solution using a fiber-reactive dye. Use the appropriate dye for the fiber content of your ribbon. I use a weak solution of Procion dye with the rayon ribbon. As with any dyeing project, the more dye you use in the solution, the more vibrant the colors will be.

· Wet the ribbon thoroughly. Wring most of the water out of the ribbon by pulling it between two of your fingers. Make sure the ribbon is damp, but not dripping wet. Wetting the ribbon first allows the dye to spread more easily throughout the ribbon. Place the ribbon wrong side up on a few folded paper towels to protect your work surface from the dye.

· As shown in the second piece of ribbon above, spread the dye on the wrong side of the ribbon with a brush (I use a Chinese Sumi brush) or use an eyedropper. You can purchase small glass medicine bottles with an eyedropper from any pharmacy. Use more than one color of dye for a variegated look, and let the colors mix together on the ribbon. Let the ribbon set for a few minutes to allow the dyes to set. Turn the ribbon over, and place it right side up on a few clean folded paper towels. Take the ribbon on the towels to your ironing board. Protect your ironing board with a piece of foil underneath the paper towels to prevent any leak-through onto the ironing board cover.

· With a dry iron on the cotton setting, iron the ribbon dry. As you iron, the pressure of the iron will force some of the dye out of the ribbon into the paper towels. This is why you need a piece of foil underneath the paper towels to protect the ironing surface. Because of the leak-through, the finished color will be fainter that it initially appeared when you first applied the dye. The third piece of ribbon in the picture shows just how much of the color is lost when ironing. Press down hard, and twist the iron in your hand as you iron the ribbon. The heat and pressure from the iron will crush the nap, and give the ribbon a beautiful antique look. For another look, crush the ribbon in your hand into a ball while it is still slightly damp after ironing, and then let it dry without smoothing it out. Iron the ribbon again when it's dry. It will retain some of the creases, and never look new again!

Enjoy your beautiful ribbons...

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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...

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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…

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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.

China Silk Flowers

Is it a rose? A poppy? A ranunculus? Who knows? It is, however, the fastest and easiest flower you’ll ever make to add to any bouquet.

· Cut a square of any soft fabric approximately twice the size of your finished flower. The size of the square determines the size of the finished flower. If you want a finished flower about 3" in diameter, begin with a 6" square of fabric. You can make very small or very large flowers with this method.

· Fold the fabric in half diagonally with the right sides together. With a needle and thread, sew a running stitch up the fold close to the edge and down one cut edge. Make some of your stitches long and some short. Varying the stitch length gives this flower character. On this sample, the stitches were ¼” to 1” long. Don’t tie off your thread yet!

· Turn the flower right side out carefully. Now pull gently on the loose end of the thread, and you’ll see the flower form right before your eyes. Keep pulling until the flower is the size you want. Turn the flower over and knot off the thread.

· Turn the flower right side up again. Tuck the raw edges under, and form into a flower. Place it on a piece of crinoline. Gently coax the flower into shape by forming soft folds around the center. A shot of steam from an iron may help. Be careful not to actually place the iron down on your flower.

· Carefully tack down the flower by sewing in the folds. Sewing across the flower in an X should be enough to hold the shape securely. Trim off the excess crinoline, and you’re finished!

· For another variation, try using soft velvet, charmeuse satin or any other soft fabric. Using firmer fabrics such as doupioni silk will result in a fuller flower.

Enjoy your beautiful flowers...

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

Rick Rack Roses

In the past several days, there's been a discussion on some of the crazy quilt lists about using rick rack in CQ projects.

I decided to take this opportunity to join the blogosphere, and share these instructions from a demo that I did a few years ago in one of the Sampler Classes at the International Quilt Festival in Houston, TX.

Add a new dimension to your ribbonwork and a new trick to your bag of embellishments with these easy-to-make Rick Rack Roses.

· Cut a piece of jumbo-sized rick rack 36” long to make the finished flower shown here. I use vintage cotton rick rack because I prefer the soft, faded colors, but any type of rick rack can be used. If you want to dye the flowers you must use cotton or rayon rick rack with Procion or Dylon fiber-reactive dyes. The rick rack that’s available now from Wrights and Coats & Clark is polyester, and cannot be dyed.

· Fold the length of rick rack in half, and wrap one side around the other as shown at the top of the photo. The rick rack will nestle together. It may not lay perfectly smooth initially, but that’s okay. That curve will work to your benefit when you roll up the rick rack to form a nicely shaped rose.

· Beginning at the end with the two raw edges, firmly roll up the length of rick rack to the end. Depending on how you cut the rick rack, you may have to trim the raw ends into a V in order to eliminate the raw edges peaking out of the center of the rose.

· Tack the folded end down with a few stitches; then sew through the center of the rose near the bottom to hold the roll in place. I sew through the roll in an X shape, then go back and add another few stitches through it. A milliners needle will easily sew through the roll.

· Turn the rose over, and gently fold back the last two rows of petals to complete your rose. Try experimenting with shorter pieces of rick rack to make small rosebuds. Obviously, 24” or 30” of medium-sized rick rack will make a smaller rose. If you have enough dexterity in your fingers, you can even make these roses with baby rick rack for tiny embellishments.

Enjoy your beautiful flowers…

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