First brush out the hair, and have the dog lay their head down on a top knot pillow or just a rolled up blanket.



For any fuzzies, you can apply a small bit of kolestral or gel (that is #1 All Systems pink gel). I really mean a tiny bit. That is all it takes.



You need bands. The clear ones are the tiny size (med weight) from dog-bows.com. Those blue ones are from lainee. I use the clear ones on top of papers and the small light weight from dog-bows.com (or lainee) if they're going on the hair.



Use a rat tail comb to part the hair that you want to put in the top knot. I usually go up each side slightly in from the corner of the eyes (if I'm putting in doubles, I go a little wider) and then however far back you need...it depends on the dog's head.



Put in the band. Then use the rat tail comb to loosen the hair up and add poof. It is very important that it be loose enough in the front so that they are comfortable and you are not pulling up on their eyelids. I actually skip this step with the band if I'm using papers and don't put any band on the coat.



Papers. Both are from Sally's. They have mesh or regular. These are called end wraps. I prefer mesh. It is just easier for me to work with. It is personal preference.



I take 2 of the mesh papers layered together and fold them in half. Then I wrap it in thirds around the top knot (here is over the band, but normally I don't put a band on the coat and at this point would do the loosening/puffing). The regular papers are a little longer so fold in 1/2 and then fold over another 1/3 and wrap around the top knot.



Fold over the paper. Where you want the hair to go, place it now. Also, the back should be even or slightly lower than the front of the papers when you fold it over. You can fold it over the rat tail comb to get a nice fold. Add a band to secure it (that is the only band I use).



You can add a bow if you like and you're done!