Pennant Flag Making

Pennant flag making is a craft where you design and build your own pennant, a long triangular flag, usually from felt. You cut out letters, shapes and symbols, layer them onto a felt base and fix them in place to spell out a motto, a name or a motif. The finished flag makes a colourful keepsake to hang on a bedroom wall.

It's simple enough for young children and creative enough to keep teenagers and grown-ups happily busy, so the whole family can make one each.

A pennant is a flag that is wider at one end and tapers to a point at the other. Ships have flown long, narrow pennants for centuries, and they're still used at sea today. On land, felt pennants became a classic way to show which team, school or place you love, and they're often collected as souvenirs of special trips and holidays.

A pennant made by hand at Camp, with your Patrol (the team you join when you arrive) or a special memory on it, is a lovely way to remember the adventure.

Start with your base: a long felt triangle in a bold colour. Then plan your design. Use templates or draw your own letters and shapes on contrasting felt and cut them out carefully. Felt is perfect for this because the cut edges stay neat and don't fray.

Lay everything out before you stick it down, so you can move pieces around until it looks just right. Fix it all in place with fabric glue, or add a few simple stitches for extra strength. Fold over a strip along the wide end and you can slide in a stick or dowel, ready to hang with a ribbon or string.

Yes, it's a wonderful family craft. Younger children love choosing colours and sticking on shapes, and older kids can take charge of cutting letters and planning the layout. It's a gentle way to practise spelling, scissor skills and design, and everyone goes home with something they're proud of. Making them side by side is half the fun.

Short and bold works best. Try a single word, a name, a family motto or a Patrol cheer. Pick one strong picture to go with it, like an animal, a tree, a star or a tent. Choose colours that stand out against the base, keep the letters big and leave a little space around each one so the design is easy to read from across the room.

You might also like Patrol Masks, Block Printing and Tie Dye.

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