The staple of our childhood wardrobes has made a big comeback this Spring. And we mean big.

Ballooning in size and appearing in leopard prints, the little girl’s accessory seems to have grown up along with us. After all, bows and ribbons have been around for a while: their original function was to be practical fasteners for cuffs and collars. After blending their 50s sophistication with a 90s naïvité, they’re now a modern statement of confident femininity and girl power. Recently taking over the runways and red carpets, bows haven’t been this popular since Blair Waldorf dominated our screens. But, reappearing in all sorts of new shapes and sizes, they aren’t just for preppy Gossip Girls anymore. Here we’ve scanned the latest Spring collections around and gathered all the coolest ways to wear these empowering loops right now.

[Hero image credit: Celine. Feature image credit: Alexis Mabille.]

As a giant backpack:

Large enough to store your Academy Award.

As a sleeve:

Who needs a partner when bows make perfectly good arm candy?

As your entire dress:

Why wear the bow when you can be the bow?

On your sunglasses:

Because you don’t have to be big to be bold.

As a tiny scarf:

And make that in bright chartreuse green, too.

Instead of a top:

After all, they are shaped perfectly for minimum coverage.

As a tiny embellishment to huge platform heels:

Give it a girly kick.

As wings:

Because gigantic bows make us feel like superheroes.

Over the shoulder:

They also make the most stylish sidekicks.

In leopard print ruffles:

The bow really is your ultimate wild card this spring.