BEAUTIFUL BOWS

Decorate your home this holiday season by crafting some beautiful paper bows to bring the festive fun indoors!

Materials

• Coloured Paper
• Pencil Crayons
• Scissors
• Tape

Directions

• Fold your piece of paper in half like a hamburger. Cut along the fold.
• Turn your paper so that it is taller than it is long. Make a fold that is ~2 inches wide. Press down hard to make a firm crease. Flip your paper over so that you can fold it like an accordion and make a second fold that is the same width as the first fold.
• Use the scissors to cut the paper along these folds. These will form the main parts of your bow.
• Using the same steps, make two more folds that are ~1 inch wide. Use the scissors to cut along these folds. These will form the bottom strands of your ribbon.
• Finally, make a fold that is ~1/2 inch wide. Use the scissors to cut along this fold. This will form the middle band of your ribbon.
• Now it’s time to decorate! Use the pencil crayons to decorate your ribbon however you would like. If you need ideas, try including different holiday images, shapes, types of lines, and colours!
• Once all your pieces are decorated, it’s time to assemble your ribbon!  Take the 2-inch-wide strips and turn them over so that the blank side is facing you. Fold each of the corners on one end inward so that they create a point.
• Take the other end and fold it up towards the first. Wrap the corners around the point you created and press down so that they fold around the point. Flip it over and use tape to hold your folds in place. The side of the paper you decorated should be facing outward.
• Repeat these steps with the other 2-inch strip. Place the two sides of your bow together so that the points overlap slightly and use tape to attach them to one another.
• Take your ½-inch-wide strip of paper and wrap it around the middle of your bow. Cut off any excess or fold it over so that the extra is hidden at the back of the bow. Use tape to secure it in place.
• Lay your two remaining strips of paper over one another so they form an upside down v shape. Use tape to attach these two pieces together, then use one more piece of tape to attach them to the back of your bow.
• Make more bows if you want. Find a place in your home to hang your bows!

Spark Creative Learning!

• Explore different patterns and lines as you decorate your bow. What different types of lines can you draw? Straight? Wavy? Jagged?

• Try to make your bow extra fancy! What kind of enhancements could you add to it? What types of materials could you use to make it fancy?

• There are many different kinds of holiday celebrations. Research to learn about different celebrations that take place over the holiday season and create a bow to represent each one!