Here at Love Me Sew we believe in getting into the spirit of summer, even if the weather won’t! So why not get prepared for the bank holiday weekend in style and make your own bunting to decorate your garden, gazebo or home for a wonderful holiday barbeque?

Bunting is quick and easy to make and so effective. You can have spots, stripes, floral print or kids fabric, anything goes. You can even decorate it or customise it with your name or a special celebratory message. It is a great way to use up those scraps of fabric you have lying about the house.

Items you will need:

• Fabric
• Binding (to the lenght you want your bunting to be)
• Flag template
• Chalk
• Scissors
• Sewing machine and thread
• Iron

Other things to mention

• Please allow for 1cm seam allowance when sewing the flags together.
• When sewing the flags onto the binding, leave 20cm spare at the start – this will allow you enough for hanging up your lovely bunting.

Let’s get making…

1. Cutting your flags from the fabric.

• Fold your fabric in half so that the rights sides are together.

• Place your template on the fabric in the corner, making sure you are maximising the fabric you have (ie. don’t just place the template in the centre and start cutting!).

• Pin the template to the fabric and, using your chalk, draw around the template using dashed lines.

• Remove the template and pin the fabric together, in the centre of your flag – this holds the two pieces together while you cut.

• Repeat these two steps above – continuing to draw around the template and pinning until you have three flags drawn on your fabric.

• Cut out your flags, leaving the pins in them after you have cut them out – this makes it easier for the next step.

2. Sewing your flags together.

• With each flag, you should have two pieces of fabric, right sides together, pinned together. Make sure the edges are lined up.

• Using matching thread, start from one top corner of the flag and start sewing sew along one long side to the tip, making sure to use a stay stitch at the beginning. Remember to leave 1cm seam allowance.

• Stop once you get to the tip, but leave the needle in the fabric. Lift up your presser foot and spin the fabric so you can continue sewing along the other long side, again leaving 1 cm seam allowance, repeat the stay stitch once you reach the end.

• Remove your flag from the machine and snip your threads.

• Repeat Step 2 for all your cut flags.

3. Turn the flags and press

• Once you have sewn all your flags, turn them the correct way round and press them flag with an iron.

Tip: It may help to use the end of a pencil to poke out the end of the flag.

4. String the flags together

• Once all your flags are turned and presses you can now attach to the binding.

• First we need to prepare the binding! Press the binding in half length-ways so that the pre-folded sides are together, press.

• Leaving 20cm from one end of the binding (so you can hang it easier!), start sandwiching your flags in the binding and pinning in place.

• Leave approximately 5cm between each flag and continue to pin them along the binding in the pattern that you want. (the spacing of the flags can be changed depending on if you prefer them to be closer or further apart – up to you!)

• Once you have pinned all your flags, you should have approximately 20cm of binding spare at the end.

Tip! Put the pins in so that they are facing away from you so that when you come to sew you can take them out as you go along.

• Once all the flags are in pinned place, you can now start sewing.

• Set you machine on stitch that you wish (I prefer to use zig zag, but it is up to you) then sew along the binding, starting right from the end, and making sure all the flags are in place and tucked into the binding. Remove the pins as you go along. Continue right to the other end of the binding.

Well done! You now have your lovely bunting.

Our online fabric shop is the perfect place to go to buy a range of fat quarters that are great for making bunting. Go to www.lovemesew.co.uk

Here are a couple of pics of some bunting we or our wonderful Crafternoon attendee’s have made to get you inspired…..