The secret to successful fall decor isn’t really a secret at all. You see them when you’re driving through town, when you’re walking your dog, or even when you’re cupping a pumpkin spice latté in the window seat of your favorite café.
That’s right: the secret to fall is leaves, leaves, leaves!
The fiery oranges, bold reds, and deep ochres of changing leaves are where we get our decor color palette, and the crisp look of a sun-burnt leaf is where we get our homey fall vibes. Heck, I’ve even been known to haul bags of leaves themselves to the crafting table since they’re so enchanting this time of year!
If you’re as fanatical about leaves as I am, then you’re guaranteed to adore this gloriously leaf-inspired Autumn Bunting. With cute trees blazing with warm-toned leaves, this bunting will be your new favorite decoration to hang when September rolls around.
Autumn Bunting
Anna Wilson | Tea and a Sewing Machine
Materials
- 3 fat quarters of plain cotton fabric (I used Kona Solids in Stone, Eggshell and School Bus)
- Scraps of other cotton fabric in autumnal colours (I used Orange Leaf Spray from Makower Island Batiks, Windblown Mustard and Branches Mustard from Valley by Moda, Dots Orange from Lost and Found Halloween by Riley Blake and Bow Tie Plaid Burgundy from Michael Miller’s Christmas at Brambleberry Ridge)
- Brown felt
- Fusible interfacing
- Bias binding
- Pencil, paper and ruler or the templates (download here)
- Usual sewing supplies
Making the Templates
If you don’t want to make your own, you can download the templates I used here.
If you are making your own, this is what to do:
- Draw a line 20 cm long. Find the middle.
- Draw another line from the centre of the first line and at right angles to it.
- Join the end of this line to the ends of the first line to make a triangle. This is the template for the bunting.
- Inside the triangle, draw a simple tree shape. Remember that you will lose a cm off the triangle all the way round, so don’t make the tree too big. For inspiration, you could search for retro trees on Pinterest.
- Onto the tree, draw some branches.
- Take a second piece of paper and trace the tree, then the trunk and branches. Cut them out.
- Cut out the triangle. You might like to glue it to a piece of cardboard to make it easier to draw round.
If you don’t want to do any of this, you can download the templates here.
Cutting Out
- From each of the fat quarters, cut 8 triangles.
2. Cut 12 triangles from fusible interfacing.
3. Fuse interfacing to the wrong side of the fabric you are using for the trees, then cut out 12 trees.
4. Cut 12 trunk and branch sections from brown felt.
Making Up the Bunting
1. Take 4 triangles from each colour. Fuse a triangle of interfacing to the wrong side of each one.
2. Arrange the triangles in the order that you want them. Then place a tree on each triangle, considering which trees look best next to each other. You might want to mix up stripes and spots, patterns and plain.
3. Check that each tree is in the centre of each triangle and pin in place.
4. Sew around the main part of each tree. Don’t worry about the trunk at this stage.
5. Place a trunk and branches piece on each tree and pin. Sew in place by sewing up the middle of the trunk and along the middle of each branch.
6. Take the other plain cotton triangles and pin them to the triangles with the trees on, wrong sides together.
7. Sew along the sides, leaving the tops free. Trim the seams and turn out. Trim any bits of side seam that are protruding out of the top.
8. To attach the bias binding, it is easiest to leave it on the roll and unwind it as you go. Unwind some of it and fold it in half length ways. Press with your finger. Sew along the edge of the bias binding for 10 – 15 cm.
9. Take the first of your flags and slip in in between the folds of the bias binding. Continue sewing until the top of the flag is enclosed within the bias binding.
10. Slip the next flag in between the folds of the bias binding and sew in the same way. Keep going until you have attached all the flags to the bias binding. Unroll more bias binding as you need to and fold it in half as you go.
11. Once all the flags are attached, keep sewing the bias binding for another 10 – 15 cm. Cut the bias binding.
Did you fall head over heels for this awesome autumn decor? Looking for even more sweet sewing crafts? You can follow Anna’s blog, Tea and a Sewing Machine, right here!
How does autumn inspire you? Let us know below in the comments!
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