Lizzi's Creations: DIY Framed Bow Holder

I absolutely love making stuff for little girls, especially my little priss pot. I wrote a bow holder post a few weeks back showing some of the girls’ hair bow holders I had painted.

I make these pretty often as gifts or to sell, usually personalized, but there’s another bow holder I make that is super cute but really easy. Here’s a tutorial on how I made a framed bow holder using an old wood frame, ribbon, and paint.

First, I found a plain Jane frame from a flea market for $2.50. It’s important that your frame be sturdy and wooden to ensure it will hold up under stapling, none of the cheapos at Wal-Mart. That's why I got a better frame with a very much dated picture for just as cheap at the flea market.

I then removed the backing, glass, and picture from the frame.

I used acrylic paint to paint the frame. If this had been a darker frame or had a slick finish, I probably would have used a primer on it first. I painted the front in a lime green color.

The edge of the frame I painted white.

I used brush strokes down the edge of the frame to make the stripes. This is such a cute and easy way to add character to art pieces.

I then took a pink paint marker and drew swirlies along the frame. For some reason, even with the spray lacquer coating it, they don’t show up well in the pictures.

I sprayed the painted frame with a clear spray lacquer. I use this for everything! I love it! It takes about 24 hours to dry completely, but it dries to the touch in about 20 minutes. Sorry, no pictures of the spray painting. I wouldn't want my mess of a patio shown in my pictures.

Once dry, I cut my ribbon the length of the frame. I then trimmed the excess ribbon. I got a roll of this ribbon at Hobby Lobby when it was half off, making it $2.00. Ribbon goes on sale there about every other week.