Summer Blooms

As summer errupts in a profusion of blooms and vines and leafy wonders I can't help but think of how to mimick that with our ribbon.  Cream City Ribbon is a bit firm and can be made to stand and hold its shape giving you a wide range of use and sculpting capabilities.  The two packages below are using our signature  "floof bow" as a jumping off point.  

The first package is the Water Lily and was created by tying white 1/2" ribbon off with a thin piece of ribbon that was stripped from a 1/2" jonquil ribbon and curled.  After securing the loops the ends of the bows were turned inside out, pinched together to make a point and pushed down to round out the edges.  To give it that floating feel I wrapped the gift in a wavy paper of blues and greens.

The second gift is the Lazy Daisy.  This is also a play on our floof bow.  I created this flower by first taking (3) 4" lengths of brown 1/2" ribbon and twisting them together in the middle and tying them with a 12" narrow strip of brown ribbon and strip and curl the ends until you have a small pom-pon sort of bow.  Set that within reach and tie a jonquil floof bow making large 7" or 8" loops until the flower is as full as you would like it to be.  Tie the large bow off with the small brown pom-pon bow and tie it to your bag.  Arrange the loops until you are happy with your flower.  Experiment with color combinations.  What does your favorite daisy look like?

With any of the flowers or bows you can tie more than one together to get a bigger fuller bow.  If there is a limit to how big your bow can be - we haven't found it yet.  Maybe that is a good project for our next blog... the Bigger, the Better.

Favorite Favors

Green weddings and events are all the rage. No matter what color theme you've got going on, Cream City Ribbon makes it green.  Our 100% cotton ribbon is made in the US and is printed with soybased inks.  The ribbon itself biodegrades at about the same consistency as a leaf.  All that being said, you can get some really beautiful looks with our ribbon that other ribbon can't achieve.  You can fold it, curl it, tie it, shred it and strip it to width.  The natural properties of our ribbon allow it to hold it's shape.  Best of all at the end of your big day you can compost or recyle Cream City Ribbon and that is something we can all commit to.

Prayer Ribbons

I’ve been sitting on this story for awhile, not quite sure how or when to present it.  I guess the very best way to do it would be to just send you the follow-up email that we received and show you the pictures.  Here is her letter telling us about the experience:

“I wanted to write you a note to thank you for the beautiful ribbons, and to send you some pictures from our get-together.  As you may recall, we lost one of our closest friends to ovarian cancer in May.  She was only 42.  A suggestion was made to create "prayer ribbons" to be available as her loved ones gathered for her memorial service.  We cut the ribbons into lengths and provided pens for people to write a prayer, or wish, or whatever they liked in her memory.  Last month a smaller group of us got together at another friend's cabin in the woods of Michigan, where our friend who had passed away wanted to have her ashes spread.  We tied the ribbons to a longer string and strung them between 3 pine trees set in a triangle near where she wanted her ashes spread.  It was just beautiful.  We read all the ribbons and cried and laughed and shared memories of her.  Now the ribbons will be there until they begin to decompose, or the birds use them for their nests.  It was very important that the ribbons were bio-degradable, so we are so thankful to have found you folks.  The attached pictures don't do justice to the experience, but I hope they will work for you."

 

We are very honored to have been part of such a beautiful memorial.  Thanks for sharing.

Candycane Wreath Created by Alice Krause

We had a super cute submission for our "We'll give you ours if you show us
yours" contest. We received:

Candycane Wreath
Created by Alice Krause of www.ps-stores.com (Seattle, WA)

If you SHOW us yours, we'll GIVE you ours. 
 

This is where you show off your natural talents. We will give you 100 yards of free Cream City Ribbon® if we use the image of your ribbon project on our website. Just send a .jpg image to artdept@creamcityribbon.com clearly showing your finished product and if we like it, the ribbon is yours.  We even pay to ship it!

Cream City Ribbon Dispenser Box

How to Make Your Own Cream City Ribbon Storage Box

                Most people who are fond of crafts and arts are looking for storage solutions for their materials and supplies.  To help you properly store your various spools of Cream City Ribbon, we bring you the Cream City Ribbon way of making your own ribbon storage box from recycled materials.  This Cream City Ribbon box dispenser is made from recycled materials you can find around your home.  Now, your ribbons are stored and sorted properly, without unraveling and getting tangled up.

                Follow these easy steps, and not only do you have a smart way of organizing your Cream City Ribbon supplies, but you have also helped the environment.  Note that these instructions may be adjusted according to the size of your box, and the number of ribbons you will store.

Materials:

·         Shoebox

·         Ribbon spools

·         Chopsticks or anything you can find that may serve as a dowel

·         Old buttons, yarns, and scrapbooking materials (for decoration)

·         Wrapping paper (recycle old gift wrappers or colored paper)

·         Glue gun and glue stick

·         Scissors

Instructions:

Step 1.  Find a shoebox that can fit your ribbon spools inside, height-wise and length-wise.  Arrange your Cream City Ribbon spools inside the shoebox, in a manner that would still let you get ribbons from the roll. 

Step 2.  Once you have decided on the box to use, you can wrap it with the wrapping paper according to your own creative design.  Make sure that the corners do not become too thick with wrapping paper, as you may have a hard time opening and closing the box.  Wrapping the box will make it stronger and more durable, at the same time making it look fancy and pretty.

Step 3.  Cut two rectangles out of foam core straps, which would fit inside your box.

Step 4.  Lay the largest spool on the back side of the foam core, leaving room around the edges so that it can spin freely and make the trace hole.

Step 5.  Cut two channels into each side of the foam core ending with the traced circles.

Step 6.  Cut two dowels to fit into the channels 1/8” shorter than the length of the box.

Step 7.  Pull a length of elastic tight around the box.  Tie it off in the back.

Step 8.  Thread spool of ribbon onto the dowels.

Step 9.  Place dowels in channels and pull ribbon through elastic and put the lid on.

Now, you have your own Cream City Ribbon storage and dispenser box!  The Cream City Ribbon Box is also handy for cutting and wrapping.  Not just that – it looks great on your shelf too.  Keep your natural ribbons neat and tidy with this Cream City Ribbon Box.

You don’t have to throw away unused items in your home.  You can re-use them and recycle them in your own creative way.  With Cream City Ribbon, making new things out of the old is common practice.

Let this practice be your own. 

                Go Green.

                Use all-American products.

                Buy natural products.

                Use Cream City Ribbon.

                Explore all possibilities with Cream City Ribbon – the ribbon that’s green in every color.

E-mail us at ccr@creamcityribbon.com for more information, or go to our main website at Cream City Ribbon for orders and inquiries.

More this November from Cream City Ribbon

We are excited to inform our 15 winners that their FREE CREAM CITY RIBBON KIT is now finally on its way to their doorsteps!

We hope you all enjoyed Halloween. With its closure comes our next endeavor. For this month of November, we will be sponsoring our very first BLOG HOP, in collaboration with all the winners.

Keep posted for more details! Exciting events from Cream City Ribbon and our new-found friends for the next couple of months.

Anyhow, we are excited to offer our limited edition holiday item -- the Cream City Ribbon Holiday Kit!

The kit is available on the website and is an excellent deal because at this price the ribbon is less than half the normal cost. This item will make a great gift. The tag says "Good Things Come in Natural Packages"

Let's all go natural this holiday season.

Cheers!

Spiral Bracelets Using Cream City Ribbon

Cream City Ribbon Spiral Bracelets



It’s never too late to show your friends your gratitude and love for them. Let the any day of the year be all about friends and the special bond you have with them. Cream City Ribbon offers ribbons made of 100% natural cotton, responsibly grown and dyed in the US with water based dyes. This biodegradable ribbon is non-woven, and bound with non-toxic adhesive.

We also have custom ribbons that may be printed on, using inks that are soy based and non-toxic. You can choose what you want us to print on your ribbons, or you may write on the ribbons yourself using gel pens and sharpies, or stamp pads and ink. You may even rub on letters and use your inkjet printer for your own personalized ribbons.

Because of the unique and natural properties of the Cream City Ribbon, you can curl it, tie it, shred it, fold it, cut it, quill it, or do anything you want with them. These ribbons are very strong, and have been used in various industries to tie things together for a number of years. Go ahead. Grab both ends and see if you can break it.

Cream City Ribbon, given these properties, is ideal to be used for making friendship bracelets for your friends or children. Show your friends that they are special. Give them a small token that you made using your own hands, with your own design based on how much they mean to you, or how you know them. All you need is a few yards of your Cream City Ribbon, a couple hours of your time, and voila! You’ve made your friend a bracelet to show that their presence in your life is something you treasure.

Make a variety of bands and bracelets that you can give away to your friends. Cream City Ribbon recommends using various colors, designs, and prints for your bracelets. Here is another set of simple instructions you can follow to make your friend a gorgeous bangle using Cream City Ribbon.

Spiral Bracelets

Materials:

•Cream City Ribbon of various designs and colors
•Scissors
•Large beads that can fit through all the strands (optional)

Step 1. Gather three strands of ribbons, each of a different color.

Step 2. Shred your Cream City Ribbon into strands around 3 mm each. This will give you a total of 12 strands. For this project, I used just a striped ribbon and shred it into each color.


Step 3. Twine the length of your Cream City Ribbon to give it more texture. Spritz with water as you go along using an atomizer, to make it more pliant.

Step 4. Tie a knot on one end, leaving about 1 ½ to 2 inches.

Step 5. Start the body of your Cream City Ribbon spiral bracelet.

Hold the strands on one hand, and with your dominant hand, take one strand of your Cream City Ribbon as your working strand. Lay it over the group of ribbons you are holding (holding ribbon), and pass it under the holding ribbon, then through the loop that was made. Pull your working ribbon snugly. Do this repeatedly until you have made about an inch or so.

Step 6. String your bead through. If you decide to make the bracelet without beads, skip this step.

Step 7. Now that all your ribbons are in one group, get another ribbon (of a different color), and use this as your working strand. Repeat step 5 and 6 while alternating or switching colors. Make sure that your knots are snug and neat.

Step 8. When you have attained your desired length, tie your ribbons with a clean knot, and snip off. Leave around 1 ½ to 2 inches, to be able to tie it around your friend’s wrist.

The great thing about making this friendship bracelet with your Cream City Ribbon is that your friend doesn’t have to be extra careful with them. Cream City Ribbon may get wet, or may even be washed with mild soap, and the colors won’t fade or rub off other fabrics. Even the print will not come off the ribbon once it is dry. With Cream City Ribbon, you can explore your possibilities.

Cream City Ribbon encourages recycling and using materials that are earth friendly. Recycling materials is a great help to the environment, and is easy on the pocket. As we celebrate friendship, let us also celebrate our friendship with nature.

Let's make friendship bracelets and bands using natural ribbons.
Show your friends you care about them and the environment.
Make your gift more meaningful with naturally beautiful ribbons.

Choose Cream City Ribbon.

Make “THE NATURAL CHOICE”.

Go to our main website at www.creamcityribbon.com for orders and inquiries. E-mail us at ccr@creamcityribbon.com for inquiries and orders.