Ribbon Flower Tutorial

As I was working on one of my crazy quilt blocks I was trying to decide whether to use some of the deep red velvet flower petals I had or a silk ribbon flower. I made a 5-petal ribbon flower and thought I would share the simple steps I used to construct it.



For this all you need is ribbon of choice, thread to match the ribbon, and a simple sewing needle. Of course you will want something for the center after it is constructed, but you can play with things you have in your stash later and see what works best for your needs.

I used 7/8" wide ribbon. This is not wired ribbon. Cut the ribbon just under 3" in length (about three times the width). For the five petal flower you will need five strips.

(2) Fold the ribbon in half lengthwise (wrong sides together-if there is a wrong side). Find the middle and tack stitch just on the edge. See photo above.

(3) Fold the ribbon in half with the tacked stitch on the inside. Match the raw edges together and with the thread knotted on the end, do a running stitch through both ends from one edge to the other. You could also use your sewing machine for this using a basting stitch setting. If your ribbon ravels really bad, you may want to cut your strips a little longer so you can allow a little more of a salvage end.


(4) Pull the thread tightly to gather the raw edges. knot the thread and run the needle and thread through the gathered end a couple more times to secure it. Lock it in place with a knot.

(5) Repeat on the other four sections so that you have your five petals.

(6) Again, with your thread knotted on the end, run your thread through the gathers of each petal, one after the other, until all five petals are strung together. Continue back through the first petal in the same manner and pull all five together tightly and secure with a knot. I like to run the thread through a couple more times, again securing them tightly together with a knot.

(7) Fluff and arrange the petals until you are happy with the spacing. To cover the center I stitched a button in place, shown directly above. You can use anything in the center that is an appropriate size to cover the raw edges underneath. Below you can see I placed a velvet flower in the center with a small purchased pink organza rose over that. Layering gives you a great look.

Depending on the button you use and the ribbon, you can get a variety of looks with this technique.

I ended up not using this on my quilt, but may use it in another project, perhaps turning it into a brooch by simply stitching a pin finding to the back, first adding a small circle of felt between the back of the flower and the finding to give it a more finished look. These would also be pretty attached to a headband or even on a gift package. Hmm. What would you use it for?