The Art Of Pull Bows
Most consumers are not familiar with Pull Bows because they do not fall into a category of obvious-at-first-sight-products. Even those who saw or used them often carry a misconception that the pull bows only come in a single perfectly rounded shape with two short tales. However, that is not the case. Starting in the 1930s, inventors in the US and all over the world patented a number of pull bow designs in different shapes, thus creating a family of bows formed by pulling a single string or a pair of inner ribbons.
This opened a wonderful opportunity for the manufacturers and designers to experiment with materials, colors, sizes, number of loops... you name it, all aimed to a goal of bringing wide selection of the most practical and affordable bows in the world market today.
You may find them in specialty or department stores packed in long, narrow poly sleeves, attached to headers reading Pull Bow, Wedding Bow, Gift Bow, Butterfly Bow etc. At first, the flat folded piece of ribbon does not look like the colorful fluffy decoration you want for your gift package or party. Moreover, when you open the package and unfold the ribbon, the puzzle is still there. You see continuous sections of a die-cut ribbon strip. Then you spot the two thin ribbon strings showing between the tails of the bow. With one hand pull the two ribbon strings towards you, while pushing the wider ribbon away from you with the other hand and - voila - the magic happens in few seconds!
The beautiful bow starts emerging in front of your eyes. The loops are forming and coming to life, perfectly round, full and fluffy just like you wanted your bow to look. Pull the strings to the end, tie the knot on the back and you'll meet a truly magnificent invention, an ingenious product of a marriage between an artistic and engineering mind.
Once you form the bow, the two very long curling ribbon strings are still there. Wrap a package, curl the strings for additional decorating effect, tie the bow to pew ends. Don't cut the strings if you plan on reusing bows because they hold the bow construction.
A number of features prove the pull bows' unsurpassed advantage compared to similar bow designs. Shipped flat, priced lower than any other bows on today's market, formed in seconds into a guaranteed perfect shape - there is simply no other bow style on the market that can beat all that.
Selecting pull bows translates into significant savings on shipping and storing. For example 50 large 9" pull bows would fit in the same size box as 10 pre-notched bows or barely 1/2 of an already fluffed bow. That's right a half bow, it was not a typo! Due to clever design, loops always come out evenly spaced out, revealing a neat, perfectly symmetrical shape. And that's not all! These beautiful bows are also reusable. Want to try another color to match your gift package or party decoration? Just fold back the one that you already formed and save it for another occasion.
We sell pull bows in a variety of sizes, styles, colors and materials, made with wide or narrow ribbon, with short and long tails. We create our own styles/specs and have them professionally manufactured exclusively for us. Over 95% of our bows can't be found anywhere else and are either patent or patent pending protected.
As much as standing simply elegant on its own, this bow is also a perfect base for a wide range of embellishments that can be added to bring unique and personal touch to your gift/party decorations or room décor.
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PULL BOWS 101
HOW TO MAKE PULL BOWS - CONSTRUCTION AND TECHNIQUE
Learn about pull bow construction and how to make your
own pull bows for gifts, baskets, church pews, baby and bridal showers, wreaths, doors...
HOW PULL BOWS ARE MADE?
Pull Bows are factory manufactured using professional equipment and a skilled work force. The output comes either on rolls or is individually assembled and packed. Assembling pull bows is a very labor intensive process and as it happens with many other products that is a major reason why almost all pull bows you see on the market are imported. You can still make pull bows for your personal use by simply copying patterns of those that you purchased or you can follow our instructions.
MAKING VS. FORMING PULL BOWS
Arm yourself with patience as making pull bows is a very time consuming task and should not be confused with forming already made pull bows.
Making a single pull bow will take at least 10-15 minutes of your time.
Forming an already made pull bow will take 10-15 seconds!
We suggest that you use wired edge ribbon or floral satin flat, embossed or metallic ribbon. Don't use fabric satin or any type of soft fabric. Those materials won't hold well this particular type of pull bow. For a large 9" pull bows with long tails, you will need approximately 6 yards of minimum 2-1/2" wide ribbon and the same length of curling ribbons per bow. You will also need tiny florist wire precut in approximately 1" wide pieces. These will substitute for plastic fasteners that are used in professionally made pull bows. For a 20 loop bow, you will need 10x1" wire cuts.
7 STEPS
1. Fold each 6 yards ribbon strip in half so you'll have 3 yards in each streamer. Let's call "base" the point of folding as that is the only place where the wide ribbon and curling ribbon will be tied to each other. At the base, make two short diagonal cuts on both sides to create the first narrow point as shown in figure 1. Be careful not to separate ribbons when cutting as you won't be able to fix it.
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Figure 1
2. Fold the curling ribbon in half and tie it to the neck of the wide ribbon so that you now have the same length of narrow curling ribbon on both sides.
3. Position wide ribbons parallel to each other and move curling ribbon to the side. Use clothespins or paper clips to secure the wide ribbons together. This will make cutting easier and more accurate.
4. Use a ruler and pencil to measure and mark the length of the sections. The first section should be 8", all others 9" long measuring between the two narrowest points. Keeping accurate measurements and cuts is very important. Making mock-ups will help you with cutting ribbon. You will need 2 mock-ups, one 8" and the other one 9" long (see figures 2 and 3), or you can make one continuous mock up with all 10 sections. Place mock-ups against the folded ribbon, secure all layers with clothespins and start cutting.
Figure 2, use only for the base Figure 3, use for all other sections
5. When you are done with all cutting, move back the two narrow strings and position them parallel to and in between the two wider folded ribbons. Secure both strings and both ribbons together with clothespins and start tying all four at the narrow points using 1" wire cuts. See Figure 4.
Figure 4
6. The wire connection should be left loose to allow the inner strings to run smoothly along the length of the bow, yet the wire should fully and securely encircle both ribbons and strings so that the ribbons do not separate during pulling.
7. Complete tying all 10 narrow points and your bow is now ready for forming.
Gently pull the two inner strings all the way to the base and tie them together on the back of the bow. Don't cut off the ribbon strings before making a secure loop. The loop will prevent the bow from sliding back and disassembling. We actually recommend that you don't cut off ribbon strings at all. Curl them for additional decorating effect or gather with paper clips or elastic bend and hide behind the bow. That way you can always reuse your bow. The ends of the tails can be cut diagonally or "V" shaped like a fish tail.
Use this method to make pew pull bows, Christmas pull bows for gifts, baskets, wreaths, trees Add tulle or organza tails, poinsettias, leaves, roses, beads, pearls, shells, stars, feathers orbells for additional decorating effect.
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