Ribbon Flowers (10 easy DIY tutorials)

I could easily have titled this post “100 ways to make ribbon flowers” – there are that many and more ways. I already have a crazily boggled mind, so I decided to stop at ten and showcase just the best and, of course, the easiest ways to make beautiful ribbon flowers.

Ribbon flowers make great embellishments on anything you sew – so long as you do not wash it; I mean, you cannot not put the ribbon flower embellished thing, whatever your project is, into the washing machine and forget it. You will need to hand wash it.

Besides this disadvantage, ribbon flowers are great on bags, gifts/ packages, wedding decorations, jewelry, accessories especially hair accessories. Ribbon flowers look beautiful as a one-off flower but when made in more than one piece you have a garden already, wherever you want it.

How to make Ribbon flowers – 10 easy tutorials

1. Easy Gathered ribbon flower

This is the easiest ribbon flower you can hope to make.

Just take  1/2 inch wide ribbon in the color of your choice and cut into a 12 inches long piece. Fold it 3 inches from one end (short edge – this ensures that the cut edge is folded to the inside). Take a sewing needle and thread and make running/gathering stitches along the long edge.

Gather the ribbon into your flower by puling at the gathering stitches. 

When the flower is arranged to your liking and you have stitched the loose ends at the back together, attach a pearl/bead etc in the middle.

You can add two different color ribbons and make flowers this way for a multi color flower.

2. Pleated ribbon flower

To make this flower, take a 1 inch wide ribbon.

You will be making pleats on this ribbon – you can pleat as you sew it on the sewing machine. The portion which comes to the center should be pleated more closely than the outer edge

Start to stitch the pleated ribbon on to a circular felt base with a hand sewing needle and thread. Start from the outer edge.

3. Pleated ribbon flower (2)

A beautiful ribbon carnation-rose flower can be made by pleating ribbon.

This flower is made with a ribbon which is 1/2 inch wide and 20 inch long.

Cut the ribbon and pleat it into small even inverted pleats.

After you pleat it will now be a 10 inch long ribbon 

After making the pleats, just roll it into a flower.

It resembles a pretty carnation rose this way. You can also have a look at the different ribbon roses you can make here.

4. Knotty ribbon flower

This flower is very pretty but very very easy to make. Cut out many ribbon pieces in different lengths – I took 3 inch long ribbons for the outer petals and 2 inch long ribbon for inner petals.

Knot all the ribbon pieces and keep aside. Fold the ribbon pieces with the knot in the middle. Using needle and thread, attach the knotted pieces on to a base/fabric. The cut edges should be together.

Layer all the ribbon pieces in a flower shape

For the inner petals take smaller ribbon, 2 inches long. Assemble and attach. 

Add a bead or more to hide the petal raw edges, joints and stitching

5. Medallion flower

This ribbon flower is made by making loops like the ones below. Just layer these ribbon pieces one on top of the other and attach, buttons, beads or another flower in the middle.

6. Ruched ribbon flower

Mark the ribbon evenly on both sides. 

Take small stitches on alternative points as in the picture below.

Gather the stitches and arrange the ruched ribbon into a circle. Stitch the raw edges together with a matching thread

7. Loopy ribbon flower

This flower is made with ribbon loops. Cut out 1/8 inch wide ribbon into small pieces of about 3 inches. I wound the ribbon on three of my fingers many many times and then gave a single cut to get these ribbon pieces.

You can measure each and every ribbon painstakingly and cut it out individually. Good for mental peace.

I stitched it into a loop by just inserting needle and thread through one end of batches of the ribbon from one side and then from the other end. Once the loop is made, cut through the middle

Add more loops around this bunch in a different colour ribbon. Stitch in place. You can make the loops and add another flower in between for a variation

8. Simple Ribbon flower

Cut out several ribbon pieces of length 5 inches. I used 1 inch ribbon. Less wide ones would look as good. Fold the ribbon as shown in the picture below.

Turn this to the other side. 

Now turn the sides to the back to resemble a petal. It is when you gather the lower edge and tie with a thread that this will look really like a petal

Layer all of these petals over a fabric/felt piece or simply one on top of the other. Stitch each petal in place as you layer.

If you are adding pips you will want to add them before they are gathered. Add beads for prettying it up as well as hide the stitching.

9. Ribbon embroidery flowers

Ribbon embroidery uses ribbons to embroider pretty flowers and other floral designs on fabric. Some of the flowers you can make using this technique can be seen in this post – 10 ribbon embroidery flowers.

10. Multilayered ribbon flower

This flower is made by folding the ribbon pieces in a particular way. Nothing complicated. Cut ribbon into 3-inch pieces (for the outer layer) and 2-inch pieces (for the inner pieces – in a different colour). Cut out a piece of felt as the base.

Fold these ribbons in the way shown below. 

Gather the lower edge and tie with a sewing needle and thread. Prepare all the petals this way and keep aside.

Layer and stitch on a felt base as done with previous flowers.

When life gives me ribbons I make flowers. What about you? What do you make with ribbons?

If you want to make simple rosettes check out this post or this post on making fabric roses. or this post on making felt roses

Other Related posts :

15 Different types of ribbons

Different ways to make ribbon trims

10 ways to make bows with ribbon