WELCOME

Hello! I'm Suzannah, a serious DIYer and mom of two little ones. Follow along with my DIY fixer upper house renovations, sewing and crafty projects, real food recipes, and de-stressing goals.
I believe you can love your home just the way it is, AND have the power to design and make big changes to make it better.
I'm also the author of DIY Wardrobe Makeovers!

Triangle bunting garland tutorial

For a long time I have known I want to do triangle fabric bunting at my wedding!

Here are a few examples... I know I have seen the perfect thing in the past, but don't have the perfect pics on hand.  You know what I mean--triangle bunting garlands, in colors that go with the other stuff at the wedding, strung along the sides of the reception area.
From Ruffled
From Veganbride.com
From 100 Layer Cake
From Ruffled

From Martha Stewart Weddings

We're getting married in a garden, and will probably hang the garlands on the bushes and such surrounding the brick patio area where we'll sit to eat.

So of course I wanted to make my own!!  I know there are lots of great bunting tutorials out there so I don't want to step on anyone's toes, but everyone does things a little differently so hopefully some of you will appreciate seeing my way as well!  Check it out...
  • Make a pattern that's the size and shape you wanted.  I wanted medium-sized triangles, so I made a triangle and doubled it.  Double your shape so you can fold it back on itself.  I taped my triangles together.
  • Cut out the diamond shapes out of all your favorite crazy fabrics!  I had a lot of fun going through old fabrics and pulling them out again.  You don't need much to do this!
  • I found it was easiest to trace the pattern with a fabric marker, then cut out along the lines.
  • Cut out a bunch.  I also used some triangles when I ran out of fabric for diamonds--you can sew them back to back and make them work, too.  I sorted all my pieces in pie pans.
  • Lay out all your piles of triangles in the pattern you want.  I planned to make a lot of garlands, so had 3-8 pieces of each color and make several garlands with the same or similar order.  I used a lot of yellow and sort of alternated yellow and other colors.
  • Press each diamond in half, folding wrong side to wrong side, and put your ribbon through.  You can use whatever kind of string or ribbon you want, as long as it's strong enough not to break with the weight.
  • Pin along the ribbon, to keep the triangle in place, and pin on each side.
  • Measure the same distance between each flag.  Some people put all the flags next to each other, but I wanted about 6" between them all.  Makes the garlands longer with fewer flags!!
  • To the sewing machine!  Sew along the diagonal sides of each flag.  I recommend a straight stitch about 1/4" from the edge (the width of the presser foot).  Do this for all the flags!
  • Now, get our your pinking shears and pink the edges.  Lots of scraps fall off...
  • You can also use a pinking blade on your rotary cutter if you like.  It's a little easier if your shears are sort of dull like mine are!
  • They're done!  I wrapped mine around an old fabric bolt, like how we store Christmas lights, to keep them from tangling.

They'll look a bit like this at the wedding!

Yay!  One more thing to check off the to-do list before the wedding in August.

The fun thing about all these banners, too, is they'll be great decor for another party in the future, or for a kid's room sometime (in the way future!).  What else could I use them for??

(If you did any other DIYs for your wedding or for a friend or loved one, I'd love for you to share them in the Adventures in Dressmaking DIY Weddings Flickr group!!)

P.S.  Here's how they looked at the wedding!


15 comments

  1. Stash bustin' on a grand scale!
    Great looking bunting and I love the different colors and patterns.
    Leaving 6" between the triangles gives them a relaxed and laid-back feel.
    Very nice!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Cool idea especially for a summer wedding. I'm sure it will look awesome! You already have some nice summertime colors.

    xo katie elizabeth
    ohheyylife.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Looks great/like a lot of work. I did tons of stuff for my wedding and after I wished I had skipped on some of the little details people didn't even notice.

    ReplyDelete
  4. so cute! i did this at my wedding too but i apliqued our names into the flags.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous6/22/2011

    Love your bunting! I literally blogged only yesterday on making the bunting for our wedding. I used a slightly different technique as I don't own any pinking shears, so raw edges not allowed! http://lifeinlists.typepad.com/blog/2011/06/flying-the-flag.html

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'd have a bonfire with the side scraps when you're done - kind of as a send-off!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm going to do a paper bunting very similar to this for my baby shower all in pinks and greens. I even found an invitation with bunting on it! So cute!

    ReplyDelete
  8. oh.my.gosh. this is just amazzzzzzzzing!!!! you are crazy talented lady! (& i love your style!)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks!!
    @Melinda, I have seen invitations with bunting on them before... SO cute!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Lovely! My monthly craft night is making garlands this weekend, but with paper instead of fabric. These are still wonderful inspirations shots.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thank goodness - so happy to come across your bunting tutorial. Such a good idea to use a rotary cutter! I'll have to invest in one for my wedding craft day.

    ReplyDelete
  12. YES THANK YOU! I am making one today! BOOYAH!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous6/10/2012

    Did you make those doughnuts? They look delicious!

    And I remember reading somewhere that you asked if anyone was still looking at your wedding posts. Yes, yes I am. Thanks for all the inspirations!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha, cool, glad you're still reading. We definitely did not make the donuts, they are from a Portland landmark, Voodoo Donut. Classic Portland-ey thing and they come in all kinds of weird toppings! =)

      Delete
  14. Wow this is really good. I recently used some great cotton bunting at one of my parties and it looked really nice. I would highly recommend it to others.

    ReplyDelete

Search

© Create / Enjoy • Theme by Maira G.