Monday, November 28, 2005

Bow Crazy

This month's Southern Living arrived in the mailbox today--it has the best idea for outdoor Christmas bows I think I've ever seen. Instead of ribbon, you can use a roll of thin metal plumbing strapping ($2). The result is a 3D metal bow with lots of loops and spirals, spraypainted in a glossy red and guaranteed not to get soggy or crushed in storage. Southernliving.com doesn't have a photo, so you'll just have to check out the article in the checkout line. On second thought, this might one of the issues worth owning; other articles include making a cold frame using old windows, reusing sentimental clothing and quilts to make life-size Santa figures, and too many good holiday ideas to list.

I've never been adept at bow-making (though the 59 cent bowmaker may change all that). I do like fabric ribbons, raffia, or twine on my packages. Martha Stewart often substituted rayon seam binding for her ribbon. Since finding a big green roll secondhand, I'm a convert. I love the way seam binding ties so crisply. Above is a photo from a recent package. Still trying to use those pinecones...good thing I found a 25 cent roll of pine-themed paper!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi,

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this, but I could not find the feature about making Santas out of old quilts. Can you help? Thanks!

Meredith said...

I just checked my copy. I think it might have been a regional article! Evidently Southern Living has switched to dedicating a portion of its content to area-specific articles, and since the santa-making woman was a Tennessean, this might have been one of those articles. Unfortunately the regional articles are not marked as such--and a lot of them are probably paid marketing disguised as editorial content. I couldn't find the article online, either.

Sorry about the mix-up!

Anonymous said...

Thanks, Meredith! I am a Georgia subscriber, so that makes perfect sense. My husband's grandmother left us quite a few quilts, but several are too tattered and fragile to actually use. I think I could salvage bits and pieces for crafting, though. I think I will check out the internet for ideas.

Thanks again,
Michelle in Georgia