Tutorial: Fabric Party Banner

Make a decorative banner from your own eclectic mix of fabrics. Liven up any room or occasion. Customize your banner for a nursery, theme party or color scheme. Here is what you need to know, and the 12 easy steps to make it happen.

Tools you will need: a cutting mat, rotary cutters- one with a straight blade and the other with a wavy blade, scissors, ruler, seam ripper, cardboard pattern for the flags that make up the banner, an iron, and a sewing machine. You can decide what size to make your flags, the pattern pictured here is an equilateral triangle with all sides 8 inches long.

Step 1: Begin by picking out 20 or so different fabrics (to use for the flags), into triangles.  Using the wavy rotary cutter (and the ruler if you're feeling wobbly) cut two sides of the triangle. Use the straight rotary blade to cut what will be the top of the triangle. Cut two piece of fabric for each flag, one for the front and the other for the backside. Pick a few stripes, some small repetitive patterns,  and a few larger prints. Think color and pattern when choosing your fabrics.

**This is a smart way to use up fabrics from your scrap bin.

Step 2: Set aside the triangles of fabric.  

**The fun part of making a banner is in choosing the fabrics. It is easy to include fabric that you might have in your sewing stash that you don't particularly love; but in small pieces, really add color and flavor to the overall project. You might even get carried away- and the next thing you know- you have stacks of triangles piled up everywhere. 

Step 3: With the wrong sides of the fabrics together (right sides out), sew both sides together with a straight stitch along all three sides of each triangle, with preferred thread color.

Step 4: Line up your flags in the order you prefer, keep a few extras on standby.  You might need more flags to achieve a desired length. When you are finished deciding the order, stack the flags and set them aside.

Step 5: Now it's time to choose what you will use to string all of the flags together. A few options include ribbon (more expensive), or bias tape (considerably cheaper per yard or foot).  Or let the creative juices flow... large rick-rack, lace, an old dog leash... you get the picture). I like grosgrain ribbon, I've used 7/8 inch wide ribbon on this banner. 

Choose a desired length for your banner and add 12 inches on either end (for versatile hang-ability). For a generic party banner (for use on many occasions), I would recommend making the banner at least 12 ft. long.

**If you use bias tape make sure to purchase the double-fold kind like the turquoise one shown above, both unfinished sides are pre-pressed into the middle making your life a bit easier.

Step 6: Press the ribbon or bias tape in half lengthwise with an hot iron. This isn't essential, but makes sewing the flags to the ribbon/bias tape a lot easier.

Step 7: Get your flags and ribbon ready to sew together. Flags should be organized in the order you wish them to appear in the finished product.

Step 8: Measure out 12 inches from the end of the ribbon. Then using your ironed crease, find the middle of the folded over ribbon and begin by placing the straight-cut side of the first flag into the ribbon crease and sew with a straight stitch close to the edge of the ribbon, and through all layers.  

Step 9: Continue using a straight stitch, sewing the flags to the ribbon. Stitch close to the edge, overlapping the flags about an inch. 

Step 10: It may be useful to use a seam ripper ( an indispensable tool for so many applications of sewing and otherwise, I always have one close at hand) to ease the ribbon through the machine and avoid ripples or creases in the finish product.

Step 11: When you have finished sewing the entire length, carefully leaving 12 inches of extra ribbon at either end, turn the banner over.  No matter how careful you are, there will be places on the underside of the folded ribbon where your stitching missed the ribbon, like the above picture. No worries, simply sew back over the missed places, or sew another straight stitch the entire length of the banner, just 1/8 inch or so away from your first pass.

 Step 12: Now take your completed banner and toss it in the washer with a load of laundry, extra long cycle. When the load of laundry is finished, remove the wet, frayed banner and lay it out flat to dry or tumble dry on low heat.

 After the banner has been washed, the wavy cut edges will be slightly, cleverly weathered. Press with a hot iron or smooth flat with just your hands. You are finished, your banner ready to display. 

Enjoy!

the burden of digital

I'm wallowing in digital photos today- the tens of thousands (and I'm not exaggerating) of digital images in iphoto gumming up my computer, and my life, are getting a sort through today. I  need to get braver, and actually delete the pictures off my computer once they've been moved to the external drive. But, I'm so scared I'll never see them or be able to find them again.  Agh! What a boring day... although-- I've come across some fun pictures in the process. Like these flowers all ready to be sewn to the front of this purse. I know it looks like carpet, but it's really fabric.

Midway Ice Castles

We finally bundled ourselves up and made our way over to the ice castles last night. Right next to the ice skating rink (unfortunately closed for the season due to broken pipes) in downtown Midway. Pretty darn amazing, and ever evolving.

Made from nothing but frozen water, ice infrastructure too, ice artist Brent Christensen works tirelessly, at all hours of the day, and in all temperatures building these castles. Believe me, I've driven carpool, first thing in the morning, and there he is. Returning home late, late at night... still working. Super tiger, I say, dedicated to his work.

Depending on the air temperatures, the ice castles take on different aspects. Last night the ice was crisp and shiny thanks to the below zero temperatures this past week. Pictures on their blog from previous warmer weeks show drippy smooth surfaces.
I need to go back about dinner time, get a view with blue sky and then a sunset. AND if it ever snows again this winter in Utah... I'd like to be ice castle observing that day too.

don't just sit there kitty, get to work

I admit, sometimes I walk past my cozily napping kitty and feel a little resentful... then wish I could trade places. Stephanie, this one is for you.

my pick

I think I'm in love with this Enamelware from Viva Terra. The pitcher comes in blue too, more cup colors as well.
I'm such a sucker for the bright colors, especially in the thick of winter.
The temperature was -18 degrees when the kids left for school this morning- too late, and missed their buses (even with rides to the bus stop) both had to be driven the whole way to their respective schools, separately. But how can you not be the sympathetic sucker... who wants to stand at the bus stop and turn into a popsicle? Let's just not make a habit of it, eh?

I really do love winter, I'm super jealous of Chicago and everywhere else buried in winter storm conditions right now. It's really not fair, it hasn't snowed significantly in Utah since December? really?? Pathetic.

macfrugal

I've been cutting out triangles of fabric for banners from the million various sized scraps my frugal self can't seem to just throw away. This process is way more time consuming than one would imagine but, like folding laundry... it can be done without much thought and is soothing to the soul (maybe just my soul). I'm just happy to finally get my hands on some fabric, after what seems like weeks of accounting and paperwork for taxes and what not, not my cup of tea. I can gulp it down when I must- but I sure don't find it soothing. 

fire and ice

The events of today, in order...

F, our 12 year old competed in the Junior Olympic Qualifier Cross Country Ski race at Soldier Hollow (he's in bib #525, in the middle). He has been skate skiing about 5 times, (remember we just moved to this town...) it's his first xc ski race ever- and he did an amazing job of it.

We finally ventured out onto the frozen lake, Deer Creek Reservoir, to see all of the ice fisherman up close and personal, check out the catch of the day and, well... just because we could, I suppose. Here are F and C looking into one of the abandon holes just before C tested the surface with his foot (to see how frozen the thin top layer of ice was) and fell in up to his hip (with one leg). A mother's worst nightmare, thank goodness the hole wasn't any bigger.

A couple of hours later, we watched our neighbors cute red barn burn nearly to the ground- in less than an hour. The fire restarted 2 more times (I heard there were snowmobiles, RV, horse trailer and lots of hay inside) until there was nothing flammable left. By the time it got dark, the fire department had been working for hours with a little help from a bulldozer. There isn't much left, just metal skeletons and heaps of blackened debris. Thankfully, no one was hurt, no animals harmed.

What a day.

the dirty dash

I've been hearing about this race, and since it is now in my hometown (midway ut) I think I'll give it a try, looks like a lot of messy fun. It's in September, so...I'd better start working on my outfit now.
More Dirty Dash, Piglet Plunge info here.

doin' taxes

I'm enjoying this mashup of a actual Kanye tweet and a New Yorker cartoon. Don't stop now, there is a whole flickr gallery full to keep you smiling. 

Another gem, straight up New Yorker. Their dog cartoons are the best, perhaps only slightly funnier if they were cats.

half puffy

I know it's a little bold, but I fell in love with this half puffy, and made a birthday purchase. Rated at 750 fill, I guess it could be considered a full puffy, but it's super lightweight feeling and looks about half the puffiness of all the coats on the down circuit.
Steve O was shocked and has been calling me 'sugar plum fairy', 'peppermint princess', 'candy cane' ever since, the kids think it's cool and yesterday someone asked me if they could touch it.  It's called "timeless down hoody" by Spyder so hopefully that means I'll love it and want to wear it for the rest of my life. 

between a rock and a hard place

 I belatedly remembered today that I've been meaning to get a hotel reservation in St. George for the upcoming President's Day weekend, (we've got the Ice Breaker soccer tournament going down)- yikes, this is a near impossibility this late in the game. Everything from Mesquite to Cedar City is already reserved by families with sporty youth (a softball tournament is in St. George the same weekend) and everyone else looking to escape winter. Not a one hotel you could book online has even a closet available, so I called the first motel without an online reservation system (this should have been the #1 warning sign) The lady who answered seemed awfully nice and helpful, she had a room- available and super cheap (incidentally, a good location too). She even said she doesn't care if we pile all 6 of us into the room (#2 warning sign...). So, without further ado... I passed along my numbers and booked the dang thing. Only then, did I look at what else (beyond the phone number and motel name) was published about the Knights Inn. Here are just a few gems, and just the tip of the iceberg:

“Filthy Insect Ridden Hovel”
“HORRIBLE MANAGER!! NASTY ROOMS! Call the dept. of health!! Shut it down!”
“Don't even consider staying here!”


So, this is me laughing out loud (and cry a little inside) after my visit to trip advisor. What the crap? I just got us a weekend at the fleabag motel ranked #43 out of 43 motels in St. George. Would we rather camp on the lawn of a church, sleep in the car in the Walmart parking lot? Oh, what to do? Perhaps some very low expectations, our own sleeping bags, pillows, a tarp and a package of Lysol wipes will get us through.
And yes, this picture... also from trip advisors reviews of the Knights Inn.

Sundance 2011

I honor of the Sundance Film Festival 2011 starting today, I'm going to enthusiastically recommend a film from last year's festival- no need to show up in Park City for the next 10 days- just add it to your Netflix queue. I just got around to seeing, sorry to be so not cutting edge. Exit Thru The Gift Shop, recommended by my sis and evidently seen by Steve O at the film festival last year. Not surprisingly, I wasn't paying attention and missed his rave review (with four young hooligans/cherubs running the show around here, I miss lots of things).
Film Synopsis: The story of how an eccentric French shop keeper and amateur film maker attempted to locate and befriend Banksy, only to have the artist turn the camera back on its owner with spectacular results. Billed as 'the world's first street art disaster movie' the film contains exclusive footage of Banksy, Shephard Fairey, Invader and many of the world's most infamous graffiti artists at work.

I did catch this and other Banksy moments on the walls of Park City last year though- and now it's time once again to stroll Main Street- ahhh- Film Festival week, eavesdrop on what could be great "Fake Conversation" iPhone app material and glean winter fashion inspiration from the Hollywood set, quite simply- wear black.

the great outdoors

Today, I ran away from the the dishes, laundry, accounting and all the other duties I need to attend to and went cross country skiing, with a ladies clinic at Soldier Hollow. With about 5 inches of new snow, blue sunny skies, I completely forgot what I could have/should have been doing and got a big hearty helping of winter fun + workout.

It made up for the boringly busy birthday I celebrated yesterday- a day without any fun built in, I admit it- yes- my own fault.  Today, I'm glad I stopped to smell the roses glance at wildlife, watch for woodpeckers and pick up a few ski pointers I'm desperately in need of... and almost right in my backyard.
Incidentally, my 5th grader M, will practice shooting with her classmates at the shooting range this week, in preparation for the upcoming biathlon, how about that?! Perhaps I need to be a parent volunteer for that one...

the big day

C picked this book to read with me last night. Appropriate, because as of today, I have been around for 40 years.

I love this book, and especially this page. I am going to try and internalize all of it as I try and get used to my new number.

Thanks bunches and bunches to Steve O for the (very) surprise party last night- you got me good- it was delightful to see everyone, get all choked up, feel the love of friends and family and mark this momentous occasion- yikes. Thanks everyone!

new curtains

I made these curtains for the new sewing room a few weeks ago, from an Urban Outfitters panel. I was pretty happy with the way they were looking until I came across this fabric...

(sorry, another bad-ishly exposed picture, but I refuse to move old curtains back for another picture, if you know what I mean).

I stumbled upon "Brooke" by Alexander Henry at Joann's, no less. Bonus- I can use my 40%-50% off 1 item coupon for Joann's- all wise crafters and sewers keep in their pocketbook (am I wrong ladies?). 

I can't stop loving the bright colors. I don't know if I'd make curtains out of this fabric for the living room (OK, I might...) but my basement 'honeycomb hideout' was a perfect place.

Lookin' so cute with my 'Noelle O Designs' puffy fabric letters logo my daughter Q made me for Christmas, great present huh?! She's a clever one- came up with the idea on her own, and made one for her Dad too (that says Solpin Films...).

The walls are painted Beehive, Martha Stewart color from Home Depot. Subtly yellow/brown, it works well in a basement- and with curtains this bright.

The other curtains made the move into the newly finished basement family room, looking much better here, if you ask me. The walls are Index Card Green, another Martha Stewart color. This little kitchen has been in storage for a few years, when it came back home the kids were very happy, even though Q and F have to kneel down to make it the right size for them now. It's most often a restaurant (The Banana Boat Cafe) but frequently a vet's office or even a school.

I found this note stuck on the white board easel. Having your big sister act as your teacher and boss can get a little old... and then she rubs it in with this public post-it declaration- like it's your fault.

crosshairs

Found this on facebook today, from Sarah Palin's website... frightening. Crosshairs? really???

Outlander series

I must admit, I just finished listening to the 4th book, Drums of Autumn, in the Outlander series. Our book group read the first book (Outlander) last summer- I was hooked. An epic adventure of amazing characters, history and scenery in enjoyably lengthy descriptions, it lends itself to being enjoyed as audiobook. Many of the conversations in the book are written in early Scottish dialects and are easier to understand when listened to. Most books (all but The Fiery Cross and Breath of Snow and Ashes which are read by Geraldine Brooks) are read by Davina Porter, who does a magnificent job of it. She can pull off just about every accent, really adding to the whole experience. As a multi-tasker, I love listening to books, who knows how many hours of Outlander listening I've done so far, each book is about 800 pages, the series has kept me company driving, painting, caulking, sewing, cleaning- through all the mindless day to day tasks, that deserve to be multitasked- I might add.

There is talk about a movie (of course), it could never be as good as the books as with most movies, but I totally agree with this fan when deciding which actors should be cast:
"Whatever happens with this movie, please, please, please do not cast American actors in the lead roles. No matter how good they are they just cannot do an authentic Scottish accent and, as a Scot, it makes me squirm. There are plenty of really good Scottish actors who could fill the roles."


Amen sister, let's get some fresh Scottish faces up there on the screen, and not Dr. McSteamy from Grey's Anatomy or Gerard Butler, to play Jamie Fraser, heaven forbid. (Not Clive Owen either, all though If I had to pick from the to pick from the three mentioned, Clive would be top tier...)
And so I download the 5th book, The Fiery Cross... (thank you audible app)

Yo Mama

Here's a little Yo Mama joke contest for you- from Xtranormal, the website where you can create your own movies using computer generated voice and animation. The perfect DIY format for many subjects where deadpan comedy is king.
To watch the hilarious deadpan iPhone vs HTC Evo commercial look here-- be aware there is strong language that may offend.

a grim concept, but none the less... reality.

As I was finally putting away all the Christmas goods, I noticed this amendment (made with a post it note) to the advent calendar.  We are realists here folks, no pussyfooting around the truth.

This little tattooed lady, made by Dallas Russell of Easily Amused has been straddling a branch on the Christmas tree this year- even though she's about 15 inches tall, freaking a few people out. For the rest of the year- I hang her on the wall and leave visitors guessing all year long.

Plus, I think she looks a little like me, minus the tattoos.

Here's to a New Year

I can't believe the kids are back in school already, where did the vacation go? It never seems quite long enough-
Here's a Happy New Year smile from our Christmas tree, (that is yet to be taken down)  but we've gotten organized in some other areas, and I got in an epic nap yesterday- so check that off on the vacation 'To Do' the list.
We got in a family 'everyone pile on the bed' movie night, the other night, a completely random turn-on-the-TV-and-see-what's-on moment... basically nothing... so we all watched Titanic, with commercials (so 1999) and all- it took about 4 hours. Four luxurious hours of doing nothing but snuggling with kids (and covering little eyes here and there) in front of the fire and the TV.

2011 is looking good, all the usual resolutions are in place- here are some words I'm going to try and live by:

We should, all of us, be filled with gratitude and humility for our present progress and prosperity. We should be filled with awe and joy at what lies over the horizon. And we should be filled with absolute determination to make the most of it.  -Bill Clinton said that, don't tell April.

Christmas week

Sure hope everyone has has a fabulous Christmas- we've had a great time of it so far. Here's what all that snow looks like at about 9000 ft., at the top of Deer Valley on Christmas Day. We've had a Christmas of ski, ski and more skiing and it's been a blast, we are blessed to live in such a beautiful place.
Now, I'm happily enjoying a quiet house, while the kids ski (some more)- getting organized and putting finishing touches on the basement (a bit more caulking, hanging curtains, putting in door stoppers) and it feels good...

15 hour garage makeover

This was our garage yesterday morning, I've been meaning to get around to organizing it, but it's been way down on the list, especially the week before Christmas.

But then it snow about 2 feet.... and since I wasn't going anywhere (here I am stuck at the bottom of the driveway) I decided the time had come to get the car inside for the winter and the mess organized. By the way, cat litter works wonders for getting 2 wheel drive cars (or Tahoe) unstuck. I think I'll keep a box in the car, as well as a shovel and the chains.

It's a Christmas miracle... my pulley system for the kayaks worked, the bikes (can't see 'em, they are to the left) and skis are hung up- and the car fits into the garage with the ski box on top- hooray! A few more items to list on KSL, a trip of two to the salvation army and the recycling center and we'll be able to fit the other car in as well. It sure will be nice to have a warm, snow free car for the rest of the winter. A beautiful sight.