One of the first things I learned to do with sewing was making a french ruffle. It’s very easy done by hand or with a machine. So easy, in fact, that you can make them with ribbon, too.

I have a ton of stitched gross grain ribbon. I haven’t used it much, so I’m not sure why I keep buying it. Perhaps the future me knew I would eventually think of this technique. So go gather up your stitched gross grain ribbon and play along with me.

Step 1

Gather some of the ribbon. Oh, I already said that. If you don’t have any ribbon like this, you can make your own stitch using embroidery floss or thread. Just make it long, very long because it gets bunched up and shorter.

Step 2

Using a hemostat, tweezers or needle nose pliers, grab on to the center stitched thread and gently pull. Right now you just want to pull out a couple of inches of the thread. You will need this for the most essential step 3.

Step 3

Tie a knot in the end of the stitch thread you pulled out in Step 2. This will keep the thread from fraying and becoming a mess. It also helps you pull on the thread some more.

Step 4

Now would be a good time to tie a knot in the other end of the ribbon. This time you will tie the knot in the gross grain ribbon with the thread still in the center. I forgot to do this and I ended up pulling the stitch out of it. Oops.

Step 5

Now you are ready to pull the stitch and let the ribbon gather in little clusters. I experimented with a tight gather and loose gathers. I also tried a mix of both, which is what I ended up embellishing with little flowers and brads. 

There you have it. Easy peasy french ruffled ribbon. It’s so pretty that I want to put some on a skirt and make a necklace, and trim a sweater, and make decorations, and …. 

You get the picture.

Enjoy.