Toolbox
- curling ribbon (various colors, but same width)
- tape
- scissors
- toothpick (optional)
- polyurethane
- cork sheets
- hot glue gun
Years ago when I was a college student, I had a part time job in a card store. One day on the job, I was fiddling with the curling ribbon we used for balloons. As I twisted and curled it in my fingers, I found myself rolling it into a tight spiral. As it grew and I added more colors, I soon realized I had a really cool design forming, and without too much effort I would have a spiral of color large enough to use as a coaster. I bought some rolls of ribbon and that weekend I sat down and made several fun coasters by carefully coiling the ribbon around itself.
Ever since then, whenever I get balloons or gifts that are tied with curling ribbon, I save the ribbon in a special box in my craft room. When the box gets full, I pull it down and make more coasters. What a fun and easy way to recycle ribbon into a real conversation piece on your coffee table!
Selecting the ribbon
You probably haven’t been saving up used curling ribbon from balloons and packages (not yet, anyway), so you might need to buy some new ribbon to start on this project. You can use any curling ribbon you like, in as many colors as you like, as long as they’re all the same width (standard size is 3/8″). Fortunately, curling ribbon is the cheapest kind of all. The best way to go is to buy 500-yd spools of curling ribbon,
Winding the ribbon
To start your coaster, just grab a piece of ribbon and roll the end up as tightly as you can. You have to have nimble fingers and be patient, but eventually you’ll get a nice tight spiral of ribbon. If you have trouble starting the coil, try wrapping the ribbon around a toothpick and pulling it tight. Once you’ve got a coil about a half inch in diameter, cut the ribbon off and use a tiny piece of tape to tape the ribbon on the side of the spiral. Now breathe a big sigh of relief, because the hardest part is done!
Now for the fun part. Pick your remaining colors and tightly wind them around and around the coil. Each time you want to change colors, cut off the current ribbon and tape the end in place, then attach a new end with another piece of tape. The tape you use should be regular household tape, and you’ll need to cut it into tiny strips that are more narrow than the ribbon itself. You need to make sure the tape doesn’t stick out past the ribbon on the top or bottom of the coaster, or else you won’t have a nice smooth surface. Once the coil gets about an inch wide, you’ll find it’s too hard to hold in your hands and wind, so just place it on the table and keep on wrapping. You need to wrap tightly, but don’t strain or pull hard, Just make it tight enough to be able to pick the coaster up without the coil falling apart.
You can see a lot of potential fun here with patterns and colors. You can make each stripe the same width, or random. You can use a couple of colors or many. Your only limit is your imagination! You can stop winding ribbon whenever you reach the size you like (4 or 5 inches across is a good range).
Coat the coasters
These coasters won’t last very long as they are, so we need to protect them. The easiest and most effective way to do that is to coat them with polyurethane. You can find polyurethane in the hardware store or the craft store, and it’s available in spray
Let the polyurethane dry thoroughly before using the coasters. It will be dry to the touch after a few hours, but it may take 2-3 days to fully cure and be rock hard.
Apply the cork
To finish off the coasters and make them really look like coasters, you can add some cork to the bottom. Place your coaster on a cork sheet
Now use your hot glue gun to glue the cork onto one side of the coaster. Press into place.
Voila! You’re done! Just wait til your friends see these awesome coasters on your table. It’s fun to see people guess what they’re made of.
44 comments so far:
WOW-these are GORGEOUS! I love the colors and shine! Thanks for sharing, I’ll be linking.
I love these! Thanks for the idea! I’ll be looking for curly ribbon at yard sales this summer.
These are the most gorgeous coaters I have ever seen! I told my hubby I have to make them and he looked at me weird, it figures. I always find curling ribbon at goodwill and I never buy it, guess I will now.
Thanks ladies!
I love this idea-and I admit I love curling ribbon too-perfect
Love this idea! I’m going to link to you on my blog.
Jedda, what’s not to love?
Caroline, we’d love a link, thanks!
Beautiful and creative idea. Will definitely try it out soon and send you pictures
I saw the write-up in the newspaper and really enjoyed reading and knowing that you young ladies/homemakers are doing such great things and have such a lovely web site. I am 71 and enjoy crafting and all new ideas. Please keep up the good work. Our homemaker club need great ideas like yours to help us in our community. Thanks again and I now have you in my favorites column.
Thanks Cathy, we look forward to it. June, welcome to the site and we hope you find lots of fun project ideas for your club!
Wow…this is a really creative idea! Thanks for sharing!
Very cool–how creative you are!
Those are so cool. I am totally making them!
What the coasters are so gorgeous.They look fun to make can’t wait to try them.
Thank you for sharing them with us.
hugs
These are so cute! I can’t wait to try this!!
These are SO awesome!!
This is so cool! This would be a perfect time-killer, and a good way to get rid of all the ribbon laying around. Thank you so much for sharing this.
So much curling ribbon! Those look amazing and must have taken some serious patience.
OMG this is a great idea for making record-esque coasters! wow…. ill have to find some black curling ribbon.
Rachie, I love that idea! If you make them, please share photos with us
Very cool looking! Actually I have been collecting curling ribbon…he he! I have gotten them on baby gifts etc. and thought they were too prety to throw away. Now I have a good use for them! Thanks! I will link from my blog!
Hi Christina! So glad we could inspire you to do something with that stash of ribbon!
I love this idea and can’t wait to make them. Do you think it would work with satin ribbon too, or do you think it would be too flexible even with poly coating and cork base?
aprilleigh1974, I love that you’re thinking of new ideas, but my guess is that satin ribbon won’t be stiff enough for you to make a tight coil without it falling apart. I also think the poly coating would soak into it, requiring a lot more coats to get a nice hard finish. Not to mention the fact that satin ribbon costs a lot more
But hey, I could be wrong, so if you give it a try, please let us know how it comes out!
Makes sense! Didn’t think about that. Thanks
that’s cool!
I have a question I bought the wrong stuff I bought clear acrylic sealer. Would this work? Thought I would ask? I hope so if not I will return it.
Gosh, Angela, I’m not sure. Depends on how thick it coats, I guess? You’ll want something that is specifically designed to provide a water-tight coating and can be applied repeatedly to build up the thickness. If the directions on your sealer sound like it will do that, you can give it a try. If not, you might want to try something else
Chica – It is a clear sealer? I might give one set a try and see. Thanks I love the site. Thanks for the quick return.
Angela, what’s the exact brand and name? Maybe I can find it online and give you better advice. Or, like you said, just try it on one coaster and see how it goes.
aw man! I’m making one right now and it is so pretty!! I’m going to turn mine into Christmas ornaments and wrap the last outer edge with a shiny gold curling ribbon for an extra touch!
Just a quick question: Do you think I should put the screw-hook in before or after the poly coat? is the poly coat too hard to put a small screw-hook into?
Thanks for the awesome idea!
Wow, Lauren, what a great idea to make ornaments! I think I would put the screw hook in before the poly coat. That way you have something told hold on to (or hang it from) when you’re applying the poly, so that it doesn’t touch the table.
Please send us photos or post them to our Flickr group when you’re done. I’ve just got to see them!
Thanks for the really quick reply! Oh great idea hanging them while drying, duh. I’ll definitely add some photos to your flickr group when I’m all done! I’m going to the hardware store tomorrow to pick up some things and I’ll get the poly then. I’m really excited! I can’t wait to give these all to my friends and family!!
I thought of more ideas while making my second one. If you make them a bit smaller they can be earrings and you can make a matching necklace pendant if you want or link a bunch together and make a charm bracelet. Or you could turn them into buttons or barrettes!
I also wonder if there would be a way to make other shapes like ovals or triangles by using a piece of card stock to hold the shape in the middle and then pulling it out later. The ideas are endless! Ha Ha!
You are a clever one, Lauren. Let us know how those fun ideas come out
amazing idea, i am going to do this but do them about 6x and then make smaller and just different varying sizes and use them as a wall decoration.
hey, just wanted to say I added some ornament photos to your flickr. It’s just the first batch and I plan on making tons more! I hope you like them!
I’m new at this and I just made 10 coasters for an upcoming party. I know nothing about finishes and I used this polyurethane http://www.minwax.com/products/oil_based_clear_protective_finishes/fast_drying_polyurethane.html to cover them. They are all sticky and not dry after 3 hours. Now I am worried that they won’t get hard because this finish is made for wood. If they are ruined, I have no other ideas for my craft!! I’m panicked!!
What a fantastic idea for making the coasters into ornaments for the tree! They look so great! Hey, readers, go check out Lauren’s curling ribbon ornaments!
Elissa, most polyurethane is intended for wood, so that is not a problem. However, 3 hours is nowhere near long enough to let it dry. The instructions for the brand you linked to say that it takes 24 hours to dry hard enough for light use, and I have experienced the same type of times in the past. Just be patient and eventually it will harden up
Elissa, I used a minwax poly as well. I used the water based one because the drying time was halved and for easier clean up. They came out beautifuly. I let them dry outside over night each time I put anew coat on them. Good Luck.
They are cute, but WAY too hard to make. I tried to make them, the first step took me over an hour, then ALL of the ribbon came off. Waste of time.
I love these! They take a lot of patience. They are really fun and pretty. If you don’t have cork, you can use old coasters instead!
Elinor, so glad you were able to get them to work. Sorry you had such a frustrating start!
These are so cute! What a clever idea. Thanks for such a great tutorial!