I’m excited to be a part of a fun Christmas Ornament Challenge today! 20 bloggers are sharing their DIY Christmas ornaments using vinyl, and YOU guys get to choose your favorite! Expressions Vinyl is giving away $100 to a lucky reader who votes, so make sure to vote and enter here. No pressure of course, (wink wink!) but if you love mine then please vote for me! If I win, I’ll get a brand new Silhouette Cameo 3, and that will just allow me to share more creative projects with you guys. Okay, let’s get to the ornament I created — a mini version of the trendy fabric banner signs!
I was inspired to make this mini fabric banner ornament last week when I created a larger version for my own Christmas decor:
For this version (11″x18″), I used vinyl as a stencil on my fabric, then painted the lettering so it would have a more handmade look. For the ornaments, I knew I would need something much smaller. I used the vinyl for the lettering this time, and it worked great! Isn’t the mini version so cute?
Here’s what I used to make the ornament:
- small piece of duck cloth cotton in white (mine was about 7″ x 10″)
- wooden craft dowel
- twine, ribbon, etc.
- hot glue
- red removable indoor vinyl (mine is from this Expressions Vinyl Christmas pack)
For my vinyl design, I purchased this adorable “sleigh rides & hot cocoa” svg file from this Etsy shop. I sized it down to about 3.5″ wide and 3″ tall, then cut and weeded the vinyl. I applied it to my fabric (which I had pre-ironed to make sure there weren’t any wrinkles) using transfer tape. When you are applying the removable craft vinyl to fabric, it’s much easier if you use a transfer tape that isn’t super sticky. In the end, I ended up getting my transfer tape “dirty” first by sticking it to my pants a few times to gather a little bit of lint. It worked great because it didn’t stick to the fabric as well and it it didn’t pull up the vinyl when I was pulling it off my design.
Next, I measured the width of what I wanted the finished banner to be, and folded the seams on the sides (approx. 5 inches.)
I trimmed the bottom and folded the sides into the center to create the point on the bottom of the banner. The duck cloth fabric is so heavy that it makes great seams and looked awesome even before I ironed them down!
Next, I carefully ironed the seams at the back of the banner and secured them using some Heat N’Bond hem tape. Just make sure you don’t iron to close to the vinyl design! Next time, I would probably do this step first before I add my vinyl.
Adding the wooden dowel is super easy. I had a 12″ craft dowel, you can find them in packs of 8 or 10 for a couple of bucks at a craft store. I cut it in half with a small hand saw and miter box, then sanded the ends. Fold over the top of your banner and that creates a pocket for the dowel. I glued the fabric in place on the back with hot glue. No sewing required for this project! Then tie a piece of twine or string to hang your banner, and that’s it! I added a strand of mini pom pom ribbon across the top for a little extra embellishment. So simple and so cute!
Now it’s time to hop over and see all of the other entries and VOTE on your favorite!
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