by Beth Watson

The Fourth of July is just around the corner and I have been seeing quite a few rag flags posted on social media. Most are very vintage in feel and color palette, which is just not my style. I wanted to create and fun and happy Patriotic Felt, Ribbon and Lace Flag to highlight and celebrate Old Glory! The bright red, white and blue Kunin Eco-fi^® Classicfelt™ is the perfect background for the rich pattern and texture of the ribbons and lace!

Here’s What You Will Need:

• Kunin^® Classicfelt™ 9” x 12” Craft Cuts – White (2); Red (1) and Blue Cadet (1)
• Blumenthal Lansing Buttons – Assorted Stars (24)
• Beacon Adhesives Felt Glue
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
• Cotton Twill Tape – 1” wide by 10” long White
• Ball Fringe – 10” long – White
• Assorted Ribbons and Lace – White and Red
• Pencil; Ruler; Eraser; Permanent Marker; Scissors; Pinking Shears; Scallop Shears

I always begin my projects with a sketch. Nothing fancy or hugely artistic, but a basic layout of what I want to create. I then add notes and comments about size, materials and color. This time since my subject was the American Flag, I added red and blue to my drawing which really made my sketch come to life!

Here’s How to Make it

Step One:
Measure and cut a 4 ¼” by 6 ¼” rectangle from Kunin^® Classicfelt™ Blue Cadet. Now, I had multi-colored stars in my craft stash, so I used this technique to make them match my project. Run a few lines of removable adhesive from a runner on a scrap of cardboard, then attach the buttons (or other small items). Paint with several coats of white acrylic paint, letting dry between coats. The adhesive keeps the tiny pieces in place while painting!

Step Two:
Measure 1” wide strips down the 12” length of Kunin^® Classicfelt™ Red and White. Cut the Red Felt stripes with Scallop Shears and the White Felt stripes with Pinking Shears.

Step Three:
Hot glue the Kunin^® Classicfelt™ Craft Cuts White Felt to the cotton twill tape along the 9” length.

Step Four:
Hold each felt stripe by the ends and stretch slightly to make the strips longer that the white background. Layout six (6) red stripes on top of your white base, then layer five (5) white stripes UNDERNEATH the red stripes.

Step Five:
Remove the red strips and set aside. Measure down ½” from top edge and hot glue the white felt strips to the background. I used hot glue for this project due to the bulky texture of the ribbons, lace and trims. Hot glue random lengths of white ribbon, lace and rick rack to the five white stripes. Attach the six red strips on top of the white strips with hot glue. Then adhere random lengths of red ribbon, lace and rick rack to the six red stripes. TIP: Use a glue, like Beacon Adhesives Felt Glue on the cut edges of your ribbon, lace and trim to prevent fraying.

Step Six:
Hot glue Blue Cadet rectangle to top right edge of flag. Then attach the white ball fringe across the entire 9” length with hot glue. Trim ball fringe and twill tape, secure ends with Beacon Felt Glue. Attach four rows of six stars to Blue Cadet rectangle with Felt Glue and let dry. You could also sew the star buttons on with embroidery floss.

I hope you will use my Patriotic Felt, Ribbon and Lace Flag as a jumping off point to showcase your Kunin Creativity to re-create a project that you have seen on social media and have been crushing on! Felt is an easy, versatile and forgiving medium which allows you to create affordable but trendy projects to incorporate into your home decor whether you are a beginner or an expert crafter! Since you only need 12” of each type of ribbon, lace and trim this is the perfect project to use up those scraps!

You can now find an expanded color line of Kunin^® Classicfelt; Kunin^® Premiumfelt and ShaggiChic non-wovens fabrics in cut by the yard at your local Walmart; please inquire as to what is available in your area.

If you like this project, make sure to visit my blog for more inspiration.

Thanks for stopping by! -Beth