Handmade Fabric Pennant Banners

fabric pennant/bunting banners can be a super inexpensive but majorly cute addition to any party, child's room, or event!

i recently made a few for a baby shower and they were a hit and the mommy was able to take them home as a gift and use them in the baby's nursery, since we used all of her nursery fabrics!

they are super easy to do with a sewing machine, or to stitch by hand as a fun project as well!

{the ones for the shower were sewn on my machine, only because i had to bust out a bunch and wanted to do it fast!}

here's how!!

SUPPLIES:

fabric

thread {same color as your bias tape}

needle/sewing machine

1 1/2" bias tape

pins

scissors

cardstock/cardboard

1. make a template!

I used a piece of black cardstock {thick enough to stay in place when you cut your shapes out of the fabric}

I wanted a pennant shape, so I just freehanded a triangle design and used that as my template.

2. layout fabric & cut out your pieces

for each pennant piece, you will have a front piece and aback piece that you will eventually sew together.

to cut out the shapes, fold your fabric in half so the print of the fabric is on the inside. {see above}... cut out your shape and you should have 2 pieces of fabric for every pennant.

3. sew!!

use about a 1/4" seam allowance and sew 2 sides of the triangle, leaving the flat part open. for the photos, i hand used hand stitching, just for an example :)

4. flip the pennant inside out.

Use a pencil to stuff the point of the pennant down. this will give you the defined triangle shape.

{i left the side seam open, just to show you how to use the pencil!}

this is the triangle flipped out so you don't see the seams after using the pencil to make a nice point!

5. iron the pieces.

this is my least favorite part, but it is the most important! this will ensure that your banner will lay flat when hung.

I would advise making all of the pennants you need first, and then ironing them all at once to save time and effort.

6. Use your bias tape to envelope the flat non sewn side of the triangle.

so, position the pennant in the fold of the bias tape and pin each in place. i'd recommend using 2 pins per pennant. give yourself about 18" on each end of the banner to use to tie it in place... so, start pinning your first pennant 18" from one end of the bias tape.

quick note on bias tape: in case you aren't familiar with it, it is simple a piece of fabric that has been pre pressed into a ribbon like strand. so by laying the pennant in the bias tape, you can achieve a finished hemmed look with virtually no work!

7. keep pinning the pennants until you have the desired length of banner. for the shower, i alternated fabrics to make a more eclectic banner since it was a rock and roll shower :)

8. sew one continuous seam along the bias tape using the same colored thread as the bias tape you chose

there you have it!! a super fun easy way to make fabulous handmade banners!

for reese's first birthday party I am going to make a few in the fabrics I used in her nursery and eventually incorporate them into her room!

some fun ones i found online:

hope this helps! :)

xo

j