As I mentioned, I am a member of Alpha Phi Omega, the national service fraternity. Earlier this semester, one of my "brothers" was looking for people that knew how to sew to help make flags for each "family" within the fraternity. After the sewing I did this summer, I decided I probably was experienced enough to help out.
These flags were SUPER easy to make. Each "family" has two colors, a primary, which became the flag body, and a secondary, which is the color of the letter. There are 24 families, each one with a corresponding greek letter. My fraternity "brother" had purchaced all the materials and had the sewing machine at school, and I was able to use it at my leisure to work on these flags. When I started, eight flag bodies had been made.
Making each flag is a lot like making a pillow case. These are the steps I took:
1. Iron fabric flat, then fold, matching short sides together (hamburger style!).
2. Sew along the three "open" sides of the fabric, leaving a quarter inch seam allowance. On the side opposite of the fold, leave a 1 1/2 - 2inch gap. This gap will help you to turn the flag inside out and also serve as the opening to the sleeve for a flag pole.
Sewing along the dotted lines.
3. Turn the fabric inside out. Iron seams flat.
4. Sew around all four edges, leaving a half inch seam allowance, and not sewing your opening shut.
Sew along the dotted lines.
Flag "right side" out.
The body of your flag is now done!
For the letters, one of my fellow brothers drafted the greek letters onto iron-on transfer paper. I ironed the transfer paper onto the appropriate colored fabric and cut out the letters. The transfer paper peeled off, leaving adhesive on the fabric of the letter. I centered it on corresponding flag body, ironed it on and then sewed a zig-zag border around the letter.
Iota, my family flag in blue and silver.
They turned out looking great and serve their purpose well!
Theta family flag in black and gold.
