Ribbon Lacing Tutorial

Good morning! Today I have another American Crafts layout to share with you. This layout features the new Garden Cafe collection and went up on the AC blog yesterday. You can read more about it (and enter a contest) over on the AC blog, but I thought I'd share my ribbon lacing technique with you here. It's really pretty simple...just like lacing up a shoe, but with a little extra something at the end.

Let's get started!

1. Measure and mark where you want the holes to be on your layout.

2. Punch the holes. I punched fairly small holes which can make it challenging for pulling the ribbon through, BUT the holes will not show as much as bigger ones would once the ribbon is laced through them. (I used my long reach hole punch from We R Memory Keepers...I cannot tell you how much I LOVE this tool! I put off buying one for a long time and then finally had to get one for an assignment. I seriously wish I'd bought it sooner - oh the holes I've missed out on punching! ;-)

3. Erase the pencil marks from your layout.

4. Push your ribbon through either a top or bottom hole from the back to the front of your paper. Lace the ribbon through the holes just as you would shoes. Either tie ribbon ends together to show on the front of your layout or secure ends of ribbon to the back of your layout with tape.

5. Use a needle or paper piercer to pierce a hole under the ribbons where they cross over one another. Pierce another hole about 1/8" directly under the first one.

6. Push the floss through the top hole behind the ribbon from back to front.

7. Cross over the top of the ribbons with the floss and push the floss through the second hole from front to back of your page.

8. Pull floss tight to gather ribbon. Continue in this manner for each ribbon "X" and secure floss ends to back of your layout with tape.

Pretty easy right?

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!