DIY Fiesta Decorations – Hanging Ribbon Rings

Call it a ribbon ring, a hanging wreath, or an elaborate version of a windsock – but when you see these going up in yards around town, you know Fiesta is right around the corner. After being a fan of these colorful and beautiful Fiesta decorations for years I decided to crack the code on a DIY version and I’ve got to say: I’m pretty pleased with the results! This is a craft that isn’t really even a craft – it’s more of an assembly, and even if you aren’t very crafty, I promise that you can do it.

You’ll need some basic supplies: floral ribbon in various colors, a stapler and staples, sharp scissors, and a wreath ring. Optional, but highly recommended, are hanging basket replacement chains, a glue gun and a couple of wooden spoons.

This project used 1 spool each of 10 colors of ribbon and 12 inch wire wreath rings. I made three ribbon wreaths at about 6 feet long, and still have lots of ribbon left over.

Floral ribbon is water resistant and feels like a plasticy-paper. You can find it locally at places like Travis Wholesale Floral, and online on Amazon or (where I sourced mine) Paper Mart. The wreath rings can also be found at local craft stores or online. The hanging basket replacements chains I used are from Walmart but, again, can be found lots of places.

PREP YOUR MATERIALS

1. 1. Stack 5 spools of ribbon and drop the wooden spoon handle into the center of the spools. This will save your fingers from the sometimes sharp edges of the spool and make unrolling the ribbon fast and easy. I had two stacks going (a total of 10 colors).
   2. If you’re using a glue gun, plug it in now to warm up.
   3. Load your stapler with a fresh sleeve of staples – you’re going to be using quite a few!

CREATE RIBBON BUNDLES

The secret sauce to achieving both fullness and efficiency is ribbon bundles. For my 12″ ring, I used about 20 bundles of ribbon (10 bundles from eack of my ribbon stacks). You could use more or less depending on the length of your ribbon spool.

1. 1. Gather the ribbon ends in one hand and hold the top of the wooden spoon with the other. Then, pull the ribbons at the same time to your desired length (I did about 6 feet – one pull with my arm fully extended, and one pull a bit shorter.)
   2. Hold the ribbons together near the spool and cut.
   3. Stack the ribbons with the cut ends aligned and fan them out just a little, then staple. The fanning will help the ribbons look fuller and keep them from hanging flat and stacked.
   4. Then, repeat!

ATTACH RIBBONS TO RING

1. Working with one bundle of ribbons at a time, fold the stapled end over the ring and staple it together – you’re looking for the bundle to create a loop over the ring.
2. Repeat with a new bundle of ribbons, ensuring that they overlap the first bundle.
3. Continue until the form is completely covered.

FINISH IT OFF

1. Use a hot glue gun to secure the hanging basket replacement chains to your ribbon-covered wreath ring.
2. Decorate your wreath ring by glueing small ribbon bows or artificial flowers to the outside of your ribbon loops.
3. Leave to dry for a couple of hours before proudly hanging your fiesta ribbon wreath outside!

Viva!

More of a visual learner? Check out the tutorial reel here:

 

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