Looking for a unique wedding send-off? Try ribbon wands! You can make them yourself for under $1 each and they are a nice little take home gift for your guests (your flower girls will LOVE ‘em!!)
Ribbon wands are waved by wedding guests as the bride and groom exit the ceremony and/or the reception. They look gorgeous waving in the breeze – and the ones I’m going to show you how to make sound lovely too. (I attached little bells to the top of the wands.)
I made these ribbon wands in a snap – and you can to. How? Read on for the full instructions!
Ribbon Wands
Materials:
12 inch wooden dowels
small bells
five feet of ribbon per dowel (I used two types of ribbon for each wand, but you can use one of you want to)
eye screw
split ring
scissors
fray check
scotch tape
Insert eye screw into top of dowel.
Place split ring on the eye screw.
Add bell to split ring.
Place ribbon through the split ring and tie it in a knot. Repeat if adding more ribbon.
Apply Fray Check (or something similar) to the ends of the ribbon. When I did this to the satin ribbon it left a faint watermark. It was barely noticeable, but if you are bothered by it you could consult with your local fabric store and see if there are other options. I cut the ends of the smaller plaid ribbon in a ‘v’ shape to prevent fraying. This did not work on the large satin ribbon, so I used Fray Check. In the photo below the Fray Check has not dried so it is very visible. Once it dries it is very faint.
Wrap the ribbon around the wands and secure with a small piece of Scotch tape. Place in a mason jar or bucket for your guests to take.
Have your guests wave your DIY wands as you exit the ceremony!
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LOVE this idea!! Since many venues no longer allow such things as birdseed, rice or even sparklers (and let's face it, bubbles are old news), this is a fun, fresh alternative. How fun would these be as party favors for kids parties too? Thanks so much for posting - I can't wait to share this with my clients!
These are great! Thanks for the wonderful tutorial! Hope you don't mind me posting it over at Favors With Love with full credits of course! Wanted to mention that you could also take a flame to the ribbon ends to seal them from fraying. But always use caution when playing with fire.
Thanks for sharing the detailed tips! This is one diy task that I think I can manage for my wedding. How long did it take you to finish one wand? I need to approximate how much time it would take me to finish 120.
And are the screws easy to push into the dowel?
They're quite easy to make. I didn't time myself, but I think its totally doable to do 120. No, the eye screws are not hard to push into the end.
I was wondering if someone could tell me the size of the split ring used? I love this idea and am stealing it for my wedding!
These are gorgeous! I love the fact you used bells and tartan. I've just written up a post on ribbon wands and included you as a link for How-To's. Hope you don't mind. Thanks for the lesson!
Thanks Chamonix. I love the tartan ribbon too.. then again, I'm crazy for anything Scottish.
Hey did you tie the larger ribbon too because in your picture I only see the smaller one and when I tried it, it look bunchy! Need tips!
Thanks
Sandy, I tied the larger ribbon too.
We love your idea! We think they're beautiful and would like to make them for our daughter's wedding. Do you mind if we ask what size dowel you used? (the diameter...1/2?)
The dowels I used were 1 cm in diameter and 12 inches long.
Awesome idea. I'm totally using this. What size bells did you use?
Not sure of the exact dimensions, but they are the small ones. You can find them at craft stores.
To seal the ribbon you can use either a candle or a wood burning tool. Cheaper than using fray check :). Thanks fir the awesome tutorial. I can see making these for my daughter's parties.
Where do you purchase the wooden dowels? I love the idea of making these myself!
Where do you buy the split rings and the fray check?
Hi Jeanne, I bought the fray check at my local fabric store. You might also be able to get split rings there - or your local craft store. Just call them first to make sure they have them.
Hello,
I would like to know what the width of the ribbon is that you used?
Thanks,
Barb