Flag Bunting Tutorial

Hey everyone!  I have a quick and easy tutorial to share with you today.  One of the things I love seeing in July are those big buntings that are often on old houses or ones with big front porches. So, I came up with a fabric version to hang in my house.  :-) 

Supplies Needed: 

• 1/4 yards red fabric (two 2.5-inch wide x WOF strips and one 2-inch wide x WOF strip)
• 1/2 yards white/cream fabric  (or one 2.5-inch wide x WOF strip + 1 FQ for backing)
• fat 1/8 yard of blue star fabric
• 9-inch paper plate
• Fray-Check & Stitch Witchery (optional)
• basic sewing supplies (thread, scissors, etc) 

Order a Flag Bunting Kit here - includes all the fabric & interfacing needed to make one flag.  Available while supplies last.

Finished flag measures approx 20" wide x 15" tall. 

Instructions: 

Use a 0.25" seam unless noted.

Sew the red and cream WOF strips together as shown to make long pieced strip. 

Then, carefully pleat the pieced strip by making a fold every inch or so and press with a hot iron. 

It should look something like this when you are finished.  Try to keep your pleats straight so the strip seams match up along the whole piece. 

Next, grab your paper plate.  Use a ruler to mark the center of the plate and then draw a line 1 inch above the center. Cut along the line. 

Lay your plate face down and arrange your pleated piece around the plate.

Overlap the lip of the plate, using the bottom as a guide for curving the fabric. 

Then press the pleats really well with a hot iron.

Next, pin the curve in place.  Use a lot of pins - pinning at least on every pleat.

Then stitch around the inside of the curve with a 1/4" seam. 

Next, cut a piece of interfacing a little larger than your plate and trace the plate shape on the non-adhesive side of the interfacing. 

Fuse the interfacing to the wrong side of the blue star fabric.  Cut out the half moon shape using the line you traced as your guide.  (I like to Fray Check the edges, but this is my personal preference.) 

Position the blue star piece on top of the red and white curved piece, centering it.  It should overlap by about 1/2 an inch (depending on how wide the lip is on your paper plate template).  

Use some stitch witchery (fusible web) to tack the piece down. 

Add some pins as well before using your favorite machine applique method to stitch down the blue piece.  (I use a tight zig zag stitch.  See machine applique tips here.) 

It should look something like this.  :-) 

Next, lay the flag face down on a fat quarter of the solid.  Pin heavily all the way around the curve, including on all the pleats.  For now, leave the top open. 

Stitch around the curve with a 1/2 inch seam.  Carefully clip the curves. 

Fold the bunting in half and trim the top.

Then, pin the top leaving about 3-4 inches in the center open so you can turn it right sides out in the next step.  

Stitch across the top using a 1/2 inch seam.  Clip the corners (careful not to cut the stitches!). 

Turn the bunting right sides out and carefully press the edges and push out the top corners.

 

Top stitch all the way around the bunting. 

Now at this point, you're almost done.  I chose to add ties to the top, but you may wish to add a hanging sleeve or leave it as it is for table decor.  Below are instructions for ties. 

Take one 2" x WOF strip of the red print and cut into two pieces (approximately 21" long).  

Fold and press the strip in half lengthwise and then fold the edges to the center and press. 

Open up the strip and fold over the edge about 1/2 and inch on both ends.  Press well and pin.

Stitch the tie closed on the short ends and long folded side. 

Then stitch the ties back of your bunting, hiding the stitches in the top stitching. 

I tied mine up on the blinds the other day (sorry for the funny lighting) ... now I just need to make a few more!  :-)

I also thought about making one but adding another row of cream and red to make it a little bigger and then adding ties for a festive apron.  

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial!  If you have any questions, please leave a comment or send me an email.  If you make one, I hope you'll send me a link or photo to check it out! 

Happy Sewing!  :-)