I was also wondering this a while ago and came across this link, which shows a stitched effect, although I'd be interested to see if people had any better ways of doing it.
http://www.worth1000.com/tutorial.asp?sid=161039&page=1
As for the ribbon, I think it's a diagonal striped pattern layered over a gradient of the colour and blended, but again, I would be interested to know of better methods.