College dorms, first apartments, and bedrooms all make ideal subjects for this easy-to-make crafty treatment.
Approximate Time: 3 or more hours
Select your fabric based on the colors and prints you like best. Decide on one or more shapes to make your banners and get started. Decide on the shapes you'd like to use and make a pattern using an empty cereal box. If you want more than one shape, be sure to make patterns for all so that they end up being fairly close to the same size.
Cut 2 pieces of the same or contrasting fabrics and sew them front sides together. You'll probably want to mark a seam line, then pin into place to make sewing faster and easier. Machine or handstitch. They're easy enough to sew by hand and watch TV at the same time.
Leave the top of the banner open. Turn the banner to the right side, and press flat to sharpen edges.
Use wide bias tape to string them together and sew the top sides of each banner into the fold of the tape. Space them so that they are either touching side-by-side or with the same distance between each banner.
Sew the bias tape all the way from one end to the other keeping the seam straight and making sure to capture the tops of every banner in the fold. This is made much easier if you pin everything in place prior to beginning to stitch.
Tie the ends of the bias tape to a screw or nail in the wall or ceiling and you have instant room decor for anywhere you choose to put it.
Source: My great-granddaughter, Bianca, who made all the banners in the pictures. She is a grad student at Carnegie-Mellon in Pittsburgh and will have her Master's in Art Management in May of this year. It's been a long hard 6 years, but she's having the time of her life right now with a first apartment. :-)
By Julia/Pookarina from Boca Raton, FL
By
02/04/2011
Really like the fact that these can be made and saved to be reused in other places when the person moves. Good for party decorations too. Great for a Baby Shower when you have lots of time to make them.
Thanks for sharing it.
Suziq9
By
02/04/2011
Smart grand daughter. These are so cheery and pretty. Would brighten any corner and fill up space that needs some accents.
Great idea. Thanks for sharing.
StarWarsCollector
By
02/02/2011
Smashing idea, and I can think of a dozen places my kids would love them. My mum is always sewing something, so I can go through her leftovers, and get started. This will be a fun thing to do while watching TV. Thank you.
HokeyPoke
By
01/30/2011
These would work very well for a birthday party instead of using the crepe paper streamers that just get tossed after every party. We have a family member's birthday coming up in May, and that gives me plenty of time to make up these all color-coordinated with the party favors etc. Why didn't I think of this years ago? We could have saved beaucoups of money. Just banners and balloons.
The more I think about it, the better I like it. The banner idea could even be carried over to the cake decorations. The banners could be used for a "Welcome Home" party for returning military, and we have one of those coming up in Sept, God willing.
Thumbs Up Pookarina, and thank you for sharing.
Lee
By
01/30/2011
Nice treatment for bare walls too. I'd like to fix up a new baby's room with either pink or blue. Cute idea even if you just used it in corners.
Thanks Pookarina and granddaughter.
Songwriter
By
01/29/2011
How neat! I love it.
I have lots of scraps from dressmaking, and I think I can make my own "bias tape" as well. I watched it being done on one of the sewing class series on TV one day. We have kids in school on the Pep Rally Team who would love to have their school colors in these banners everywhere. LOL
Thanks for a great new craft.
MisMachado
By
01/29/2011
What a cute and clever idea. This is very creative for filling in spaces in college dorms where you often don't have or want to put up a lot of personal things. You could use the school or college colors to boost your team too. It'd work for boys or girls either one as well.
I like! Thank you to Bianca.
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