Here's a less pointy variation of the
magazine gift bow. I used the yellow pages this time.
Cut 1" wide strips from pages removed from a phone book. Stacking several sheets and slicing them lengthwise with a paper cutter or rotary cutter is quickest. If you are one of the three people who still use the yellow pages, make sure you don't remove any sections you might need someday, like Clowns or Paternity. (Yes, those are real.)
Cut 5 or 6 full-length strips, depending on how full you'd like the bow to be. Cut 4 strips that are 3" shorter. Save one of the leftover short ends to use in the center of the bow.
Form each strip into an "eight" shape, securing the ends in the center with tape. (The photo above shows five shorter loops, but I ended up using only four.) Make a loop with one of the 3" leftover ends.
Arrange the longer pieces evenly to form a circle and staple it in the center. Swinging open the stapler helps position it without squashing the loops.
Repeat with the shorter set of loops. Then layer the smaller piece on top of the larger piece and staple them together in the center. Attach the single loop to the center with a piece of double-stick tape.
After washing all the dishes late last night and cleaning up the mess, all that's left of our Oscars shindig is a cupcake stand and plastic martini glasses to take apart and pack away.
That and a bunch of Black Swan dinner leftovers, including cupcakes, black olive tapenade and goat cheese, tortilla chips, black bean and white cheddar soup, chocolate mousse, and a pitcher of white chocolate martinis. Alex left on a business trip today, so what's a girl to do but drink the whole thing herself? I wonder what time is too early to start. 
