DIY Ribbon Flag Tutorial

This DIY Ribbon Flag is one of my absolute favorite DIY door decor projects I’ve ever done. Now that we are just a couple weeks away from the 4th of July, I want to share the step-by-step tutorial!

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I was recently wandering around Hobby Lobby, trying to get inspired for a new 4th of July wreath or door decor when I saw the blue fabric with white stars. I thought about sewing a flag together, but I have not yet had a chance to learn my new (from Christmas) sewing machine. We’ve been just a tad busy.

Then I happened by the ribbon, saw the thick red and white striped version, and it all came to me. I figured this one out as a I went and figured out one BIG MISTAKE I made along the way. I’ll share that towards the end, so make sure you check that out if you want to make your own ribbon flag!

Step 1: Gather Materials

If you want to make this exactly like I did, you will need:

a long paint stick (for 5-gallon buckets, Home Depot often gives them out for free)
paint/brush to cover the paint stick–I used white acrylic paint
glue gun and glue sticks
scissors
fabric with blue and white stars
ribbon: different colors and textures, different shades of white and red.

Step 2: Paint Your Paint Stick

You can use anything for your top support, the part that you glue your ribbon and fabric to. However, Home Depot often gives out the longer paint sticks meant for 5-gallon buckets or you can get one very inexpensively. This worked perfectly for me.

I also considered using a wooden hanger, either just for the bottom part, or for the whole thing and using the top hook as the flag hanger.

Either way, I’d still paint it a neutral color so that it isn’t distracting if you can see it through your ribbon.

Step 3: Cut Your Ribbon

DIY Flag made out of ribbon and cloth: cut ribbon

I measured about how long I thought the flat should be and cut that one piece.

Then I used that piece as the guide for all others. I cut them all at once so they were consistent.

Mine were about 3 feet long.

DIY Ribbon and Fabric for DIY Ribbon Flag

Step 4: Lay Out Your Ribbon

DIY Flag made out of ribbon and cloth: lay out ribbon

I did this project while watching TV and it just so happened that my ottoman is about the exact width of the paint stick/flag. It worked out perfectly.

I decided to plan out where the ribbon would go since some would be layered and so they’d need to be glued in order.

I placed the widest ribbon first and then worked backwards by size. The thinnest ribbon was always up front and, therefore, glued last.

I made sure I varied up the order that the ribbon overlapped in so it didn’t look so uniform.

Step 5: Glue Ribbon to Stick

I folded the tops of the ribbon I laid out back and pulled forward the ribbons I meant to be glued first. Those were for the most part, the widest ribbons.

I put hot glue on the back of the stick as well as the side that was the part pointing up. Then placed the ribbon over the glue, making sure it’s straight and draped the ribbon over the front.

Since I planned to overlap ribbon, I glued the middle of the ribbons initially so I could pull each piece in front or behind as needed.

Step 6: Add the Star Fabric

I doubled up the star fabric because it was thin and likely a little see through. Then I draped it over the corner of the ribbon to find what looked like the right proportion.

I cut it dow to size, glued it to the back of the paint stick on top of the glued ribbon pieces, and let it fall over the front.

Step 7: Add a Ribbon Hanger

I took some scrap ribbon long enough for the flag hanger and glued each end of the ribbon to back of the flag on the far end of each side.

You can make a loop by making a knot in the middle if you’d like and then either hang it from that loop or from under the knot.

DID YOU KNOW??

When the flag is hung vertically on a wall, window, or door, the Union (blue section) should be to the observer’s left. When the flag is hung either horizontally or vertically against a wall, the Union should be to the observer’s left. Read about that here.

Learn more about flag etiquette/regulation HERE.

This means I did it wrong…the stars should be on the other side. I wasn’t thinking of flag etiquette or regulation, I was thinking about where the stars would physically be if I moved the flag from being hung horizontally to vertically.
But now you know and can fix yours!

So what do you think? Easy enough? Do you think you want to make one of your own? Make sure you fix my mistake and put the stars on the left and not the right.