diy projects

DIY: Backyard Party Decor

diy party decorlemonade and garland

As I mentioned on Friday, I recently was inspired to turn some old fabric into backyard party decor.  The idea came to me as I was cleaning my apartment and had some old pillowcases and linens I was about to get rid of, but found myself hesitant to part with them.  So, I decided to upcycle the fabric and create some coordinating party decor.  Taking inspiration directly from the design of the pillowcase, I scanned the pillowcase and used elements from it for the straws and labels on the drink table.  I also used the fabric to create a little pennant banner.  Using just a little bit of extra and old fabric, I was able to create an entire coordinating set of party decor for a drink table and since I had all of these materials around my house already, I didn’t spend a dollar!  With summer parties in full swing, I thought this would be a great DIY to share.  Click below for the full tutorial.

pennantbannerlemonade drinktable

click here

Materials Needed – For Pennant Banner:

  • Old Fabric (pillowcases, napkins, old sheets…anything!)
  • Card stock
  • Ribbon – about 11′ for a banner 5′ in length
  • Thread (to match fabric and ribbon colors)
  • Scissors
  • Sewing Machine + Sewing Pins

pennant banner DIY

Directions for Pennant Banner:

Step #1: Choose your fabric.  For mine, I used a 1970s pillowcase and some linen cocktail napkins that complimented the colors of my pillowcase.

Step #2: Use card stock to cut out 7 or 8 pennants, all identical in size. Use one of the patterns to trace the pattern onto your fabric, leaving an extra 1/2” at all of the sides. Cut out your fabric pennants.

Step #3: Pin 2 pieces of the pennant pillowcases together w/ backside of pattern on the outside (you will turn it inside-out later).  Then sew the 2 sides and the 2 angled sides, leaving the top open.

Step #4: Turn your sewn triangular pennant inside-out and place your card stock inside.  Fold 1/4″ inch of fabric over, pin to secure and sew top to close.  Repeat this step for all of your individual pennants.  Note: I had 3 napkin pennants and 4 pillowcase pennants total.

Step #5: Take at least 11′ feet in ribbon and fold it in half. Sandwich your pennants in between the ribbon, pinning to secure.  Make sure to leave about 2.5″ in between each pennant and alternate between the fabric if you’re using more than 1 pattern.

Step #6: Using a basic stitch, sew the ribbon banner. Work slowly to ensure you’re sewing both the ribbon and the fabric at the top of your pennant, as well as keeping your 2 pieces of ribbon (the bread of the pennant sandwich) even.

lemonade label

This part can be tricky if you don’t have Photoshop or aren’t familiar with how it works.  However, don’t worry…if you’re not too savvy with digital design, you can still make the coordinating decor. Here’s what to do: Taking your pillowcase, scan and make color copies of the design.  Make sure to print different sizes so that you’ll have a range of sizes of the pattern. Then cut out the flowers (or whatever the pattern is) and glue them onto paper to make your straw and drink labels.

But, if you are savvy with Photoshop, you can follow the steps below.

Materials Needed – For Matching Straws and Labels:

  • Old Fabric (pillowcases, napkins, old sheets…anything!)
  • Extra Ribbon from Banner
  • Scanner, Printer, Computer Paper (glossy and matte)
  • Photoshop

straws DIY

Directions for Straws and Labels:

Step #1: Scan your pillowcase pattern.  Open the scan in a Photoshop document.

Step #2: Using the lasso tool, select one flower at a time and drag it into a new document.  Use that new document to paste in your flowers and then play around with them (add text, find some complimentary colors, etc.).

Step #3: Once you have your labels ready, print them on matte paper.  This might take a few tries until you’ve found the best size for printing.  Once you’re set with that, cut out each label.

Step #4: Use a glue stick to glue your labels around your straw.

Note: For the “Lemonade” label, follow steps #1 and #2, and then add your preferred text. Then, print the label (I recommend glossy photo paper).  Use some extra ribbon from your banner to tie around the drink jar or pitcher. 

straw label