Embroidered Hair Bows with Floral Designs -- Small Embroidery Projects

After finishing my cats and cherry blossoms embroidery project, I wanted to take on something smaller and quicker—something that would also let me experiment with different stitches. Since I’ve been planning to make some hair bows for my daughters, I thought it would be lovely to add embroidery to them. It turned out to be the perfect way to try new stitches while creating something both useful and pretty.

The sewing tutorial and free PDF sewing pattern can be found on my sewing blog.

👉 DIY embroidered cottage core hair bows 

Materials I Used

• Fabric for the bows (cotton or linen works beautifully)
• Embroidery hoop
• Embroidery floss in pinks, soft green, red, and khaki green
• Needle
• Scissors
• Hair clips or elastic bands (to attach the bows)

Bow Styles

I made two different styles of bows:

1. Simple bow – just the bow itself.
2. Bow with a long tail – both the bow and an attached tail, perfect for a more elegant look.

Embroidery Designs & Stitches

First Bow (Simple Bow)

• Design: A small floral motif
• Stitches Used:
  • Cast-on stitch for the flower petals
  • Bullion stitch for the flower center
  • Closed herringbone stitch for the leaves
• Colours: Variations of pinks for the petals, soft green for the leaves

The cast-on petals gave the flower a lovely raised effect, while the bullion stitches added a neat texture to the centre.

Second Bow (Bow with Tails)

• Design: Floral motif repeated on both the bow and the tail
• Stitches Used:
  • Woven wheel stitch (also called the woven spider web stitch) for the petals
  • Closed herringbone stitch for the leaves
• Colours: Bright red for the flower, khaki green for the leaves

The woven wheel stitch created bold, round flowers that really pop against the fabric. I repeated the design on the tail as well.

The Finished Bows

I’m so happy with how both bows turned out! The embroidery gave them such a charming touch, and the different stitches made each design unique. The best part, of course, was seeing my daughters’ delighted smiles when they tried them on.

Adding embroidery to hair bows is such a fun way to practise stitches on a small project—and it transforms a simple accessory into something special.

Happy stitching!

---Flora