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Flag Making Tips Flags Hanging
   
Tracing and cutting pattern pieces
When you trace a pattern piece on to the fabric, never cut out the piece on
the trace line. Always leave at least 1/2" extra fabric outside the line. This
makes it much easier to handle and makes a stronger flag. After you have
stitched on the line, you just trim away the excess on the outside of the
stitch line.
Poofing" or Shadowing on double Appliqué
We use polyester fleece for "poofing" ( 3 D effect ) or to stop shadowing in
Double Appliqué. If the fleece you use has fusible backing, place it "glue"
side towards the flag back. Although we don't need the fusing in double
appliqué, sometimes when you are pressing your flag the heat will activate
the glue. Our experience has shown that the fusing may leave an undesirable
"waffle" pattern on the front of your flag if the glue side faces out.
Pinning your appliqué pieces before sewing
Linda has always said, "You can't use too many pins to secure appliqué
pieces for sewing. More pinning means less puckering !" You all have been
stuck at one time or another when sewing with lots of pins and we all know
that blood spots on a flag were not in the directions. We started using a Quilters
trick of using safety pins instead of pins. It takes a little longer, but doesn't
hurt as much.
Correcting Mistakes in Satin (Zig Zag) Stitching
Sometimes you make a mistake or need to go over a zig zag stitch to cover up a
pattern mistake. ( we know it couldn't be a tracing or cutting mistake ) When you
go over the previously zig zagged area, lengthen your stitch a little to help keep
the thread from bunching or knotting on the bobbin side. This saves frayed nerves
Tracing Patterns
When we trace patterns at KarLin we use light boxes. A light box is simply a
wooden or metal box with a glass or acrylic top and a light inside. You lay your
pattern and then your fabric on top and the light shining up helps you to trace
your pattern. Commercial light boxes are expensive, so here are some tips using
household object.
If you have sliding glass doors you can tape your pattern on the inside and tape
or hold your fabric on top, using sunlight to help you trace. This works well in the
daytime however I know many of you sew at night. Weather permitting, tape your
pattern on the outside and use the interior light to achieve the same results.
Definitely not for the mid west in the winter!
Some of you have windows big enough to do the same thing. If you have small
panes of glass, you might raise the window and use the storm window.
Another method is to remove a storm window or use a piece of glass or acrylic
left over from one of your significant other's project, and place it over two chairs.
Then take a table lamp and place under the glass.
Home Made Light Boxes
We make our own light boxes and they are fairly simple to do. At most of your home
supply stores you can get a single tube fluorescent light in the $ 10 to $12 range. These
fixture measure about 24 or 25" and are fully wired so all you have to do is plug them in.
We use two fixtures in a box that measures about 29" x 21" x 5" deep. The fixtures are
fastened to the inside bottom of the box about 7" apart, tubes up. The cords are pulled
through a hole cut in the side of the box to be plugged into an extension cord.
For the top we use double weight window glass with one wooden support running
across the center. You can then tape an opaque pin able rotary cutting mat to the top and
you have a combo light box/cutting mat. ( don't press too hard when cutting )
We use two of these boxes for teaching.. In our shop we made a large one
( approx 40" x 53" ) using two twin tube shop lights ( about $ 10 each ) in the same
manner as above
Tracing on dark Fabric
When tracing on dark fabric, we recommend the Quilters Silver Marking Pencil.
Black Permanent Marker
We use Black Fine Point "Sharpie" permanent marker to cover up colors that sometimes
"peek" through the satin stitching. Just dab carefully, and make sure your marker is permanent.
It is also very useful when doing cutaways or hang-offs. Here you usually do your satin stitching
and then trim away the flag back. This leaves the flag back color showing. Just dab with your
marker and it has a nice finished look.
Scotchgarding Your Flags
We and most flag manufacturers recommend spraying your flags with Scotchgard. We're not sure
just how long each coating lasts or how much protection it gives, but we feel it does help your
flags last longer.
Lettering Tips
Putting letters on flags is sometimes a very frustrating experience. We have heard of a lot of
different techniques and here is our way of doing it. First, do not cut out individual letters. We
trace or design our letters on paper, in the exact size and spacing we want for the flag. This
way you can arrange them exactly the way you want on your paper pattern.
We then trace the letters directly on the fabric that will be the letters. Then we pin the whole
piece to the flag, carefully measuring to insure they are straight. Straight stitch all of the letters
at once. and then cut away the fabric between the letters and your letters are secured and ready
for satin stitching. If you are doing single appliqué, you would cut away the flag back to show
the letters before satin stitching.
We don't recommend single appliqué lettering. One alternative is to do the lettering directly to
the flag back as above but don't cut away the back. Instead do a second set of lettering identical
to the first on a rectangle of fabric the same color as the flag back. You could then stitch this to
the back of the flag. A liner may be required to stop shadowing. The only way to have the lettering
readable on both sides is to actually have it on both sides. Another way is to sew two flags, insert a
liner between them and then join them. Any way you do it, it's a lot of work!
Garden Flags as Wall Banners
Scotty's mother, Mary Scott of Accomac, VA gave us a great idea. The small size of the garden flag,
( approx. 13" X 17" ) makes it a perfect size to hang on a wall in your home. Mary suggested that you
get a small wooden dowel about 15" long and put some small notches near each end. Then you can
put the dowel in the flag casing and tie a string or decorative ribbon to hang on the wall. Use your
imagination. These would make wonderful gifts as not everyone can use or wants an outside stand
Hanging Flags/Banners Inside
One way to present decorative flags inside is to use adjustable curtain rods. This way you can rotate
your creations whenever you want. Small curtain rods are the least obtrusive to see the flag only,
however large brass cafe types can add a statement of their own. Be creative!
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