no-sew fabric bunting

I’ve been quite smitten with all the colorful buntings that seem to be popping up everywhere. It’s such a fun way to add a splash of color. Only problem is that even though I love sewing as much as the next person, my time at the machine is very limited. Still, I wanted a cloth bunting for her “big girl room”. Paper just would not do so I put my thinking cap on and came up with an alternative. This no-sew fabric bunting  is so simple, and apart from one step, can be done just about anywhere.

1. Assemble your supplies:
 – assortment of colorful cotton fabrics (this is a great stash-buster)
 – narrow polyester ribbon
 – pinking shears
 – stapler
 – hot glue gun
 – iron

2. Determine the length of your bunting. Be sure to allow extra ribbon at both ends for fastening. Cut your ribbon accordingly.

3. Using pinking shears, cut out your flags. If you like you can create a paper template to get perfect triangles but I chose to free-hand mine because I didn’t want them to be exactly perfect. Once you cut out the first one, you can lay it on top of your uncut fabrics to use as a template.

4. Once you have all of your flags cut, lay them face-down in a straight line, top corners slightly overlapping, in the order you want them to hang. Lay your ribbon on top of them, along the top edge, also facing downward. Beginning at one end of the ribbon, insert three staples across the top of each flag to secure it to the ribbon.

5. When all your flags are secured, fold each one back, over the ribbon, and press flat with a warm iron.

6. Lift each flag (as shown above) and add a few TINY drops of hot glue on the inside of each fold (I put mine on the top of each staple), using your fingers to gently press it down until it sticks. Be careful not to use too much glue, as it may show through.

Hang and enjoy!

More tutorials, d.i.y. projects, and printables here.

UPDATE: You can see the finished nursery here.

 

UPDATE: 1.12.2010: