I asked in the cupcake thread, but I thought this was probably relevant enough to open its own thread.

I'm trying to tie ribbon around cupcake's and have it stay there without glue from the glue gun showing through and keep it looking neat and tidy - something that might be suitable for a wedding. If you've never tried it, it's so so hard because of the shape - ridiculous I know.

I want to keep the ribbon perfectly in place and tidy without it slipping when i'm picking it up and moving it about.

Glue dots? Wired/sturdy ribbon? It looks so good and is a nice touch.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=424327977589060&set=a.419995634688961.100942.418584274830097&type=1&theater

^ There's the one I have already done - but its not easy to recreate.

I have never attempted it... have you tried double sided tape??

I've never done it either just because it looks a bit tedious! But thinking about it a bit, could you use a touch of Pritt stick or other glue stick? You probably wouldn't have to glue the whole length, just in a few places. I know for a fact that that doesn't show through ribbon because I use it around the edges of cake drums for attaching ribbon.

Yes I would go with the double sided tape ( the type that is used in scrapbooking). I'm assuming that you would only need a small piece at the back to stop the ribbon slipping down.

I have experimented with several options and the one that I found works the best is floral glue dots. They are larger and stickier than standard glue dots (like in the scrapbook/glue aisle) but still peel away easily. When doing wide ribbon to cover the majority of the cupcake liner, I use one dot near the top edge and one dot near the bottom. You can reposition a few times before they lose their full strength. These held great in transport and display and did not come loose until someone pulled them away from the liner.

It's easier to tie the ribbon and then attach with the dots, making the ribbon come together in the back. This way you can tie nice bows and not deal with the cupcake in the way. Also, tension can be controlled.

At Michaels you can get one of those little double sided tape dispensers (the ones that you roll along, and the tape will stick to your paper, and then the top side is sticky). Anyways, you can roll one of these along the back of your ribbon, then stick that side all around your cupcake. Sorry - not sure if I am being clear enough! But i have used that to get ribbons sticky for a few things, and it works great.

Would a couple of dots of royal icing hold them in place? Then you don't have to worry about glue being toxic? I've been pondering this question too as would love to put ribbons round some I'm doing for a wedding but wanted the simplest way, glad you asked it I might have to thread stalk!!!

I like to tie the bows separately. I attach the ribbon and then the bow over the join both with hot glue. They sell glue guns with a tiny, tiny tip if you are worried about it showing from behind.

No matter how you slice it, it's still a PIA lol

Thanks for the tips! Time for me to make a field trip to Hobby Lobby!

Okay, so I have tried the pritt stick glue dots, and they were awful but I think its because they're just the cheap home use ones and not proper florist ones. Am going to order some better ones off the internet for the last go, and try using my glue gun to do what KoryAK said and do the ribbon and bow separately.

This will not defeat me!