Two ceramic Santa Claus figurines with white beards and red hats sit on a red, green, and blue plaid tablecloth—perfect holiday decor while you learn how to make a giant bow for your festive celebrations.

// Santa salt and pepper shakers //

Can we still be friends if I tell you I don’t have a salt and pepper shaker?

I mean—I’ve had salt and pepper shakers before. Of course I have. I’ve lived a long salt and pepper shaker full life.

But on Thanksgiving Day, when I had all those people at my house? When I went to reach for the salt and pepper shakers for the table?

They were gone.

Yikes.

So I went on to Amazon and searched for salt and pepper shakers for my holiday table and found this set of Santas that look like they stepped out of the pages of Currier and Ives.

You can see them here.

But when they showed up?

And idea popped into my head.

I had a vision. A DIY.

And every time I looked at them, I didn’t see salt and pepper shakers.

Instead?

I saw this.

A Santa Claus ornament with a ceramic face, red and white ribbon bow like those made when learning how to make a giant bow, and a skirt of thick red yarn strands, hangs by a red ribbon in front of a window.

A Christmas tassel.

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?

See what I mean?

Can you see it (and once you see it, you can’t unsee it)?

I know it should be holding pepper right now.

Two ceramic salt and pepper shakers shaped like Santa Claus heads, featuring red hats, white beards, and rosy cheeks, placed side by side against a white background.

// Santa salt and pepper shakers //

But instead?

It’s living its best Christmas life.

Going from this.

A festive ornament featuring a Santa Claus face with a red hat and polka-dotted ribbons—perfect for those learning how to make a giant bow—hangs by a red loop in front of a blurred background.

// Santa salt and pepper shakers //

To this.

I’ve never really made a tassel like this before, so I wasn’t sure if I could do it.

And trust me.

I made a lot of mistakes along this tassel journey. But I made all the mistakes, so you don’t have to.

Here’s a simple, easy step-by-step tutorial to make your own Christmas tassel.

A Santa Claus ornament with a ceramic face, red and white ribbon bow like those made when learning how to make a giant bow, and a skirt of thick red yarn strands, hangs by a red ribbon in front of a window.

DIY Christmas Tassel: Simple Step-by-Step Tutorial

supplies:

chunky yarn

polka dot ribbon

red and white striped ribbon

craft wire

hot glue

Santa salt and pepper shakers

A close-up of a skein of bright pink chenille yarn resting on a white surface. The texture appears soft and plush, with thick, velvety strands—perfect for projects like how to make a giant bow.

A close-up of a red pipe cleaner threaded through the wooden rods of a light-colored rack, resting on a white surface—an essential step in learning how to make a giant bow.

Step 1: Wind the yarn

You want to start with a super chunky yarn.

I tried so many different ways of winding it and I made two mistakes (so I wanted to share them with you so we could all learn from them).

First, I tried to wind it by hand. Big mistake. The loops came out way too uneven, and there are way too many loops to try to wind it by hand.

So I found this plate holder. It made everything so much easier and kept all of my loops consistent.

The next mistake I made was I didn’t add enough loops.

I started with 25. Not enough.

Then I went to 50. Still not enough.

A close-up of several wooden dowels on a rack with plush, red velvet yarn wrapped around them, creating layers of soft texture—perfect inspiration if you're searching for how to make a giant bow. The background is softly blurred.

Then I discovered the perfect amount of loops.

75 is actually perfect. (although when I make my next tassel with the other shaker, I may try 100 to make it even more full).

If you don’t have a plate rack like this, just find two endpoints that you can wind it around because you’re going to want all your loops equidistant.

I tied the first loop on the bottom of the plate rack and just kept winding until I had 75.

A cluster of bright red, plush pipe cleaners is arranged in a pile on a white surface, with two thin, black wires protruding upward from the center—perfect materials if you’re learning how to make a giant bow.

2. Add wire through loops

On the plate rack, I took the wire and threaded it through. Then I wound it around one end of my loops.

I triple checked to make sure I had all my loops included in the wire.

You want to make sure to do this because if all of your loops aren’t included, they will hang lopsidedly and look distinctly un-tassellike.

Here’s what the tassel looks like (or actually the start of the tassel after I’ve wounded the wire.

I also think it’s important to note here that I left all of my loops as a loop. You could cut the bottom of the loop if you didn’t like the look of the loops.

(total aside: this may seem a little confusing, so just ask the comments if you need more clarification)

Several pieces of white ribbon with red polka dots and red stitching are arranged on a white surface, with two striped red, white, and pink ribbons below them—perfect materials if you're wondering how to make a giant bow.

3. Cut the ribbon

I wanted my ribbon to be slightly stacked, with the larger ribbon on the bottom and the smaller ribbon on the top

I figured out that you need to hot glue this ribbon to the underside of the shaker (I’ll show you how to do this in just a sec).

I cut 10 pieces of the polkadot ribbon and folded them in half. The polka dot ribbon is approximately 6 inches in length.

Then I cut eight pieces of the striped ribbon. The striped ribbon is approximately 6 inches in length.

A red and white striped ribbon tied in a bow is attached to a white decorative object, possibly a Santa Claus ornament, on a plain white background—perfect inspiration if you're wondering how to make a giant bow for your holiday decor.

4. Hot glue the smaller ribbon

Start by removing the stopper at the bottom of the shaker.

I just tossed mine because it’s not a shaker anymore. It’s a tassel. Then it was time to glue the ribbon. I wanted the striped ribbon to be on top, so it needed to be hot glued first.

I folded the ribbon in half and hot glue glued around the bottom of the Santa.

I was really surprised at how well the hot glue stuck to the ceramic. I was a little worried, but it is on there very tightly.

It’s easier when you’re gluing the ribbon to start with four (almost like creating a cross) and then add in the other ribbons on the diagonal so they all are equidistant.

A decorative bow made from white ribbon with red polka dots and red edges, arranged in a flower-like shape on a white background—perfect inspiration if you're wondering how to make a giant bow.

5. Hot glue the larger ribbon

Next, I glued the larger ribbon.

I know this is Captain Obvious, but you wanna make sure to leave the hole at the center of the Santa.

Don’t glue the ribbon over the hole because that’s where we’re gonna put the wire through to create the top of the tassel.

A Santa Claus ornament with a red hat and white beard sits on a large red and white polka dot ribbon bow, atop a textured red mat. Perfect for those learning how to make a giant bow, the ornament has a wire loop for hanging.

6. Thread the wire through the top of the tassel

Now that your ribbons are hot-glued to the bottom of the Santa, you want to take your tassel with the end of the wire and thread them through the holes at the top of the Santa, where the salt or pepper would come out.

This is actually a lot harder than it looks.

There’s probably a brilliant way to do this and I just don’t know how so if anyone has any suggestions, please leave them in the comments.

I finally ended up getting it through the top of the Santa, but it definitely took a few tries.

Once the wire was threaded through the top holes, I formed a loop, twisted it, and then threaded the remaining wire back through the holes in the top of the Santa.

Here’s what your loop should look like after you’ve threaded the wire back through.

A ceramic Santa Claus ornament with a red and white striped hanging loop rests on a decorative ribbon with white and red stripes and polka dots, offering inspiration for how to make a giant bow for your next festive holiday scene.

7. Cover the wire loop

Now I had a wire loop that was not cute at all, so I had to come up with a solution.

I added a drop of hot glue to the bottom of the wire and then started wrapping the smaller striped ribbon all around the loop. You want to wrap it tightly so it doesn’t end up looking grumpy.

Here’s what my loop looks like after I wrapped the ribbon.

A Santa Claus ornament with a ceramic face, red and white ribbon bow like those made when learning how to make a giant bow, and a skirt of thick red yarn strands, hangs by a red ribbon in front of a window.

A festive ornament featuring a Santa Claus face with a red hat and polka-dotted ribbons—perfect for those learning how to make a giant bow—hangs by a red loop in front of a blurred background.

That’s it!

My tassel was finished and ready to hang.

I threaded red ribbon through the top and tied a boat and hung it on the door knob in the dining room room.

But you could use this anywhere. I think it would be so cute at the end of a staircase on a new post, tied to a wreath on the front door, or even tied on a hook in the mudroom.

So what do you think?

When you look at those salt and pepper shakers, be honest, you saw a tassel too, right?

Now I have to find salt and pepper shakers I can actually use. 🙂

A collection of festive salt and pepper shakers shaped like nutcrackers, snowmen mugs, cardinals, Christmas trees, Santa, Mrs. Claus, gingerbread cookies, white gloves, and star-topped Christmas trees.

Here are some other salt and pepper shakers that I found that would be perfect for a tassel project.

(or if you just need a holiday salt and pepper set, t00)

You can see them here.

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Posted On: December 3, 2025

Written By: KariAnne Wood

Comments

  3. Image for Carrie Carrie

    Oh golly! I want to head to a thrift store to see what other things to make tassels out of from old Salt and Pepepr shakers!!! Your gift of creativity is inspirational !

    Reply
  4. Image for Marilyn Petruska Marilyn Petruska

    Such a cute idea! Would it be easier to use a chenille stem instead of your wire? They are available in so many cute colors. It might be more stable and easier to see when you thread it through the top. It’s great to see a really new twist for the holidays. Thanks for the fun idea💗

    Reply
  9. Image for Jan Jan

    Karianne, this is the best! So imaginative! Thank you for sharing the project and other choices of sets. I really like the reindeers.

    Reply
  13. Image for Trish Rissman Trish Rissman

    You are such an inspiration to those of us out here! Thank you for such fun ideas. I think you are a decorating genius!

    Reply
  18. Image for Jeanne Ann Jeanne Ann

    Please have some crafting Angel make these adorable Christmas tassels and sell in your shop. Some people have problems with manual dexterity and are unable to make them. Just a thought. Be Blessed!

    Reply
  20. Image for Barb E Barb E

    C’mon now! This is one of THE most creative ideas I’ve seen this season! I am planning on making some for gift toppers. Can you please tell me how much yarn you used per tassel? Thank you for sharing this very creative project with us!

    Reply
  25. Image for Gale Eley Gale Eley

    Another super cute project. I've seen some of these tassels on Facebook but yours is so much prettier. Can't wait to try one on my own! Merry Christmas to you and your family.

    Reply
  26. Image for Victoria Victoria

    Gorgeous and you certainly are a master of all types of bow making! Could you thread long loop of wire down from the top, attach it to wires on the tassel, tighten it so connection right on top of tassel. Then pull the loop up and create the stem and ring and start covering it. Did you just form the loop circle or did you arrange a ring of some kind, like a thin washer or small curtain thingies? Any way, I love it. Some of your new Shaker supply of snowmen or even trees could work with white yarn, as a snowy field or the bottom of a snow person. Happy crafting, ye amazing crafter!

    Reply
  28. Image for Nancy Nancy

    I see Barb E asked how much yard is required. My question is how far apart are the posts you are using to make the tassel?

    Reply
  29. Image for Michele M. Michele M.

    You are SO clever, KA!!! And oh my gosh you can find so many s and p shakers thrifting too if that helps the cost of this ADORABLE craft. Well done, really super cute.

    Reply
  30. Image for Rizae Rizae

    These need to be in your shop! They are so cute and whimsical. I'd buy these! Thank You for the tutorial. Big Hugs

    Reply
  31. Image for Shelley Shelley

    Oh wow KariAnne, you are certainly in your Christmas crafting element! You are amazingly gifted. Love all you do! Abundant Blessings.❤️

    Reply
  33. Image for Patricia Patricia

    Oh no I just purchased 3 sets of holiday salt and pepper shakers for hostess gifts. Now I need a Plan B hostess gift ideas because I’m keeping these for meeee!

    Reply
  34. Image for Mildred Mildred

    A long, long, time ago, like back in the late 80s, tassels were very popular. You could find them for sale at many places that carried decorating items. Women bought Salt and Pepper shakers at thrift and antique stores. Yarn, ribbons, anything that would hang down could be used for the loops. Oh, and beads strung on a wire or ribbon as accents with the loops were also added. And, beads were also used on the top where the wire came through the hole, to cover the wire, before making the loop to hang it with. Ribbons were also used to make the hanger. The more you think about it the more the ideas come. Tassels have been out of "style" or "favor" for many years. Maybe you, Karianne are going to be the person to bring them back.

    Reply
  37. Image for LisaH LisaH

    I know it’s just a typing oversight, but on top of admiring your incredible ingenuity while reading the directions, I be laughed out loud when I thought of you tying a “boat” (bow), the visualization just struck me so comically! But seriously, all the many different ways and materials you could use to make these one-of-a kind ornaments is incredible. Well done!

    Reply
  38. Image for LisaH LisaH

    I know it’s just a typing oversight, but on top of admiring your incredible ingenuity while reading the directions, I laughed out loud when I thought of you tying a “boat” (bow), the visualization just struck me so comically! But seriously, all the many different ways and materials you could use to make these one-of-a kind ornaments is incredible. Well done!

    Reply

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