Yarn is such a versatile material. I often use beautiful yarn to wrap gifts, and it's very simple and quick to make a lush tassel to finish a present. The tassel can be made by anyone, in any color, with any yarn! And instead of being recycled like a paper bow, it will be cherished as a lovely handmade aspect of the gift. If you make a yarn tassel, add a photo to the CRAFT Flickr pool!
Materials
Yarn, at least 2 yards
Scrap cardboard
Scissors
Directions
Step 1: Cut the scrap cardboard as long as you want the fringe of the tassel to be. I cut my piece about 5" long. Wrap the yarn snugly around the cardboard. The more yarn you wrap, the wider the tassel will be.
Step 2: Cut about 4" of yarn and slip it under the wrapped yarn, against the cardboard. Gather the wrapped yarn together on the cardboard and then bundle it together with the small piece of yarn tied into a loose bow.
Step 3: Cut the yarn off of the cardboard at the bottom, opposite the bow. The fringe of the tassel will be held together by the bow.
Step 4: Untie the bow, and re-tie it into a very tight knot, cinching the yarn together as much as possible.
Step 5: Cut another piece of yarn, about 4" long. Fold the fringe of the tassel in half, around the knot from Step 4. Wrap the piece of yarn you just cut around the top of the folded fringe, about 1" from the knot. Pinch it tightly and then tie it off and hide the ends of the knot inside the fringe. Voilà!
