Sew Your Own Appliquéd Christmas Bunting Tutorial
Deck the halls with boughs of holly, tra la la la!
There’s still time to top up your bank of Christmas memories & sew some fun festive bunting for the family to enjoy year after year…
This easy project is a brilliant little scrap buster. We’ve provided some cute (and FREE!) appliqué templates for you which can can request here
We’ve gone to town with the applique shapes & you can choose from Rudolf, a Christmas tree, present, a stocking, some holly, a bell, a gingerbread man, a bauble, a star – will you use them all?!
We’ve also suggested 2 finishes for your flags – pinked & stitched or turned & top stitched… choose whichever tickles your festive pickle!
We have used calico for the bunting flags- it’s economical & a great neutral background to showcase any colour scheme to help your scraps sing!
You Will Need:
- A print out of the Christmas appliqué templates which you can request here
- 50cm calico (140cm wide)
- (at least) 2 Co-ordinating cotton fabrics for appliqué
- 3m of 25mm bias binding
- Co-ordinating thread
- Bondaweb
- Tailors chalk or fabric marker
- Small scrap pieces of ribbon for the stocking & Christmas bauble applique shapes
Make life easier with:
A sewing project for : Beginners
Approximate sewing time: Sew it in an afternoon!
Important Notes:
- ¼” (0.5mm) seam allowance throughout, unless otherwise directed.
- For steps using machine sewing, straight stitch, backstitching at the start & end using stitch length 2.5 unless otherwise stated.
- When topstitching – use a 3-3.5mm length & stitch approx 3mm from the seam
- Prepare your fabrics as per manufacturer’s care advice
- Read through the instructions fully before starting
Request the templates:
[mailerlite_form form_id=5]
Sewing Equipment You Will Need:
- Sewing machine
- Fabric Scissors OR rotary cutter, mat & ruler
- Tape Measure or ruler
- Pins or Clips
- Temporary fabric marker
- Basic Sewing Kit
Make it easier with:
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Important Notes:
- 1.5cm seam allowance throughout, unless directed.
- For steps using machine sewing, straight stitch, backstitching at the start & end using stitch length 2.5 unless otherwise stated.
- When topstitching – use a 3-3.5mm length & stitch approx 3mm from the seam
- Prepare your fabrics as per manufacturer’s care advice
- Read through the instructions fully before starting
Sew Christmas Bunting
The template pieces we have put together can be downloaded above.
If you have a laminator laminate your template pieces as it will make it easier to trace around them. Cut out your template pieces.
- Cut a 25cm strip of calico and mark your flags as shown in the photo. Cut along your marked lines to create your flags.
Top tip: Use a pinking blade in your rotary cutter for an attractive rustic finish.
2. Prepare your appliqué pieces by tracing round your appliqué shapes on the smooth side of the Bondaweb paper ensuring you leave a few millimetres around the outline when you cut them out.
3. Iron your Bondaweb shape to the wrong side of your fabric and then cut along your drawn outline line.
4. Score the paper of your Bondaweb with a pin and carefully tear off the paper revealing the adhesive
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5. Iron your appliqué pieces onto your fabric flags taking care to place the layers of the appliqué in the correct order.
6. Carefully stitch around the edge of your appliqué. Popular choices of stitch are blanket stitch (pictured) zig-zag stitch and running stitch but you could use others depending on the look you are after.
7. Decide the look of your finished flags and choose the appropriate next step.
8. Turned & topstitched: With right sides together stitch your flag with a 5mm seam allowance. Closely trim the point of your flag and turn the right way. Press and topstitch.
Pinked & Stitched: With wrong sides together stitch your flag with a 5mm seam allowance.
9. Iron your bias binding in half which will make stitching it easier.
Place your flags at equal intervals along the bias binding (ours were approx 10cm apart) placing the flags within the fold of the bias binding and pin or use Wonder Clips (which make this part *much* easier) and sew.
And you’re finished, well done!
We hope you enjoyed this tutorial and have a wonderful Christmas!
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