DIY Fabric Garland

Here is a simple and gorgeous DIY that I helped Steph make for her wedding. We made long garlands for her day, and Rob and I had spiral ones for our day. Either way they are easy to make, and make such a beautiful statement. They can be personalized to your wedding or party colors and you can make them for a bargain, or you can splash out and they will cost a little more.

Like I said, these were for a wedding, but you could use them at a baby shower, hens night, birthday party, or truth be told, I just want one for above my head board of my bed!

Here is what we used,

A couple of yards of 6 different fabrics. Three accent colors from their wedding color scheme, a crepe chiffon, creme lace and white embroidered cotton.

Base for the garland, we used a heavy duty twine (see notes below for alternatives).

Here is what we did,

Cut fabric into strips of varying thickness, the thickest were one inch across, the skinniest were half and an inch. 

The fabric was one yard in width, and I cut it lengthways. 

When you have a pile of each colored fabric, start by deciding if you want a pattern or just a whimsical mix. 

One color at a time, I tied the fabric strips along the twine, mixing them along the length of the garland. To make a longer strand you can tie the strip at one end, and to make a fuller looking and shorter garland you can tie them at the center.

The lace strips have a sweet vintage feel while the chiffon sparkled in the light.  

Options - 

Now, Steph bought her fabrics and splashed out. They were stunning colors, and a beautiful lace. We did another set with ribbons too. If you wanted to go that route, the advantages are that you can get the exact colors you want, and you can get the exact amount you want. The ribbon one needs a lot of spools to fill in the garland significantly so can get really pricey fast. 

If you want to get a bargain, I suggest you try looking at second hand and thrift stores for fabric scraps, sheets and old linen. Or, I had great success looking through the scrap and clearance bin at Spotlight (Aus, NZ), in the US you could try Joanne's, Michael's or Hobby Lobby. 

You can change the length, fullness, and shape of these garlands. For spiral ones, which hang in a large circle, I used a dog frisbee (odd I know), but it was basically a large plastic ring. For Stephs day we used heavy duty twine so they could be hung from trees and tables.