Hello and a big welcome to all of you in 2023! It might sound like a silly question, but do you know how to tie a bow? Anyone over the age of four years of age will usually say yes immediately; so maybe the real question I'm asking is do you know how to tie the perfect bow? Every time. A bow that sits and looks like it was meant to be a bow. A bow that has perfect form, a good ratio of tail to bow and above all symmetry?
I wanted to share my latest blog with you as there's nothing that screams vintage more than a good bow; but tying and having it look perfect every time can be difficult if you don't follow a few simple rules. The technique I'm going to show you works for any bow of any kind - whether it's a blouse tie, a scarf, a tie on the front of a knitted top (such as my lacework top with ribbon) a bow at the back of a dress, a sash at the back of a skirt, or a fabric belt at the front of a skirt.....they all use the same technique whether they're tied in velvet, cotton, satin, crepe de chine or any other material. If you don't use this technique then getting a bow to sit correctly, to look symmetrical and not be twisted at a 45 degree angle can be difficult. This used to happen to me a lot of the time, but once you've mastered this technique and tried it a few times, you'll see how much time it saves!
Firstly though - what's on your needles at the minute? Are you working on a bigger project or smaller projects? Are you knitting something for the first time or busy working on a second or third one for a friend or yourself? As I've been ill with the flu over the new year I've not trusted myself to be able to knit. The likelihood of making an error increases tenfold; and I usually have to rip my work back which feels like a waste of energy and time. I had started knitting a second fair isle tank top as my Christmas cast on - I love my original one so much that I wanted to knit one in a completely different colourway. The original is in browns and reds with orange to make it sing - perfect for autumn! It's looks great teamed with a pussybow blouse (we're back to the bows so quickly!!) and can be dressed up or dressed down, whatever is preferred. This new cast on colourway is in blues and greens with pink to make it sing; and I'll be happy to get back to it now I'm on the road to recovery.
Anyway, back to bows. I used to tie a bow anyhow. It was usually lob-sided; with one bow larger than the other; and no matter how many times I untied it and retried tying, it came out the same, but as I moved more into wearing vintage fashion, I needed to work on my bow technique. As I say, there's nothing that screams vintage quite so much as a good bow! This technique is specifically for tying bows on clothes, which is different to how bows may be tied by florists (florists bows usually have a double bow, and there's lots of techniques that work with curling ribbons used in floristry. These ribbons are usually rigid and stiff in comparison to clothes bow which are softer and less structured). I've uploaded a tik tok video of tying a bow which you can find here https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMY1uCdRH/ but below you'll find a step by step guide with pictures. If you find this useful, drop me a line and let me know! Remember to share your beautiful bows on your social media pages and tag back to me!
Cioa for now and all the best for January 2023!
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