The banner I am making will have 7 flags and be reversible. And because I always like to save time and money, I will give it different fabric on each side, so it can be used for different occasions just by flipping it over.
What you will need is a sewing machine, very basic sewing skills, a bit of fabric (4 different kinds in this case; 1/4 yard each is plenty), pins, a bit of cardboard, about 6feet of 7/8inch grosgrain ribbon, a ruler, scissors, and a pen. It'll probably take about 2 hours to make your first banner, but it'll be faster with practice. Plus, you can do it in front of the TV. Prevents me from eating chocolate and potato chips.
Step 1: Make a Template
First of all, you will need to make a triangle out of the cardboard in the shape and size that you want your individual flags to be. Draw a straight line, envisioning the top part of your flag. Now find the middle point and move it down until the triangle looks according to your taste. Make a straight line from each end of the first line to the mid-point and voila, you have your template! Well, after cutting it out, that is.
Step 2: Iron your Fabric
Let me start this step by mentioning that I don't like ironing either. However, it'll help a great deal and after messing up my first attempt at making a banner because I was too lazy to iron out the fabric, let's just say I'd recommend it. With steam, until it is nice and smooth.
Step 3: Cut the Fabric
Now you can use your cardboard template to trace triangles onto your fabric. I like to start right at the edge and flip the template 180 degrees for each new triangle, just to save fabric. For this particular banner, I created 4 purple, 4 blue, 3 orange, and 3 zebra triangles. Aren't you glad already that you ironed the fabric? Anyway, cut out all of the pieces and now we are almost ready for sewing!
Step 4: Interfacing (optional)
Since most of my photography sessions are on location, I usually add interfacing to my fabric. It prevents the banners from being see-through and flapping too much in the wind. You can get iron-on interfacing from any fabric store cheaply. You roughly cut it out in the shape of your fabric, press the rough side of the interfacing against the wrong side of your fabric and iron it on. You can do it on all of your triangles, but I usually use one layer of interfacing for two fabric pieces that go together. For example, my banner will have purple and zebra on one side and blue and orange on the other. So now the interfacing will go only on zebra and purple fabric or on orange and blue, but not on both.
Step 5: Sew the Fabric
Now we're ready to sew this thing together! Pick two pieces of fabric triangles and place them on top of each other, so their right sides are pushed together and the left sides are visible. I picked zebra and blue here, because I want the banner to be zebra on one side and blue on the other. Next to ironing, pinning is the other thing I am generally too impatient to do, but even I can add one pin horizontally and one pin vertically to keep the fabric in place while sewing. Now sew the two sides of the fabric together, but not the top side where the ribbon will go. As you can see, I start at the top, sew all the way down, then all the way up and finish.
Step 6: Inside out and... Iron
You can now remove the pins and turn the triangles inside out. A pen or a pair of scissors can be very helpful when trying to push out the bottom edge. You will notice that the fabric is pretty bulky and doesn't lay flat, so we will have to iron it again. I know, trust me, but it'll be worth it. The scissors are a good tool to use to make sure the fabric is straight and exactly on top of each other when ironed. When you're done ironing, you can cut the yarn hanging out of the part of the triangle that isn't sewn yet and create a clean straight line.
Step 7: Add Ribbon
Almost done! All you have to do now is add the ribbon to the top! I have found that the cheapest grosgrain ribbon (you can even get it at Walmart) works best, because you can fold it and it won't immediately flatten itself again. That makes the process a lot easier. You can use satin as well, just know that it'll require more pins. Mine is cut to be 6feet long, which is just a personal preference. Also, ribbon often comes on spools with 18feet of ribbon on it, so picking 6feet enables me to create 3 banners total out of a spool. Find the middle of the ribbon at about 3feet and place your first fabric triangle right on it. Flip the ribbon over the triangle so that an equal amount of ribbon covers each side of the fabric and pin it. 2-3 pins should be enough.
Now add all your other fabric pieces to the left and right of that first middle piece. On each end, some ribbon will be left to hang the banner up later. Doesn't it look great already? You are ready to sew the ribbon! Try to pick yarn in the same color as your ribbon. Little irregularities will be much less visible. Now sew along the ribbon, as close to the edge as possible. When you're done, cut all yarn ends off and get a lighter. Very briefly hold each end of the ribbon into the fire. The ribbon melts and gets sealed that way, so it won't unravel.
DONE! Hope you like your Creation!
No comments:
Post a Comment