DIY Picnic Heart Napkin Rings & Customizable Banner + Pinwheel Craft Tutorials (+ Free Printable Templates)

Craft your own colorful indoor picnic party quickly and inexpensively with scrapbooking paper, ribbon, and dimensional stickers! Use them to create your own customizable banner and pinwheels with my free printable templates, and then make DIY heart napkin rings to up the ante…. taking your picnic from average to outstanding!

My heart napkin rings utilize dollar bin dimensional chipboard stickers that were decoratively crocheted (which I actually purchase half-price at Le fidèLe Design’s affiliate Michaels). The scrapbooking section of your local craft store always has items such as these which are made with sturdy materials, whose pretty looks belie their price points.

Find coordinating colors of wire ribbon and bias tape to tie together the set of differing stickers. (It’s like using different photos with matching frames to give a cohesive look to a home gallery.)

Cut 6 inch lengths of both the ribbon and bias tape. (Bias fabric tape is a sewing product, but makes a beautiful trim for this project. You can also use a thin ribbon in its place.) Pull the sticky dots off of the sticker backs. (Place them on plastic packaging to reuse for dimensional card-making later.)

Glue the bias tape across the center of each wired ribbon strip, making sure the tape doesn’t have a flap open… if so, glue it down too. Next, glue one end to the other by laying down a thin line of glue onto one short-side edge, and then press the other end onto it. (Press it down hard… using silicone finger cots if utilizing hot glue. I’ve use hot glue, fabric hot glue, fabric glue, tacky glue, universal glue… and it all worked beautifully.)

Take advantage of the wired ribbon’s staying power to form perfectly round circles for your rolled fabric napkins to slide right into. (Wired ribbon is the perfect base as it has a clean finished edge without needing to fold and glue.)

I made a set of 8 different heart napkin rings to mix and match according to my tablescapes (and it only cost me a few dollars).

Here they are featured in my Colorful Indoor Picnic Party Tablescape Perfect for Rainy Days or Texas Temps, because in my world, a picnic is the perfect excuse for crafting! (Note the heart stickers were also placed on the drinking jars.)

Make your own banners quickly using my free printable template to cut perfectly precise pennants from any scrapbook paper matching your theme décor. Finish them of with chipboard stickers like those I used on my heart napkin rings.

Print the template by first clicking on the picture above. Next right click on the image and select print. Choose a text or black and white setting to conserve ink. Cut out the two triangles.

Trace around the triangles with a pencil onto the back of the scrapbook paper. (Use them to conserve paper by flipping them until you maximize the number of triangles per sheet.) Now cut out these triangles. (Save the leftover bits for card-making later.)

Glue a smaller triangle to the center of a larger one of a contrasting color. (A permanent glue stick works beautifully with less mess.) Punch a hole next to each top point of a glued pennant.

Place a dimensional sticker onto the center of each pennant. (Try to use contrasting colors to make a more visually interesting combination.)

Use any variety of string, twine, yarn, or ribbon to run through the punched holes. Knot each end into a loop to hang them by. (To do this, form a loop then make a simple overhand knot.)

For additional flair, tie small lengths of thin ribbon in between each pennant. Hang it up for an extra dose of cheerful festiveness!

Next, let’s make matching pinwheels for décor or children’s play.

Either fold over an edge of scrapbook paper to form a box that can be cut out, or… print a template to quickly churn out pinwheel bases. (The templates are great to enhance a young kiddo’s tracing skills.) Click on the picture above, then right click on the resulting image and select print. Choose text or black and white settings to conserve ink.

Cut out a single square from double-sided paper, or cut 2 squares of the same size for single-sided paper.

If using single-sided scrapbooking paper, glue them back to back with a permanent glue stick. Or, you can do as I’ve done here by cutting one piece, gluing it to the plain side of another, and then cutting around the box… which I think is easier.

Next use a ruler to draw a line with a pencil, from one corner across to the other. Cut along this line, but leave a half inch or so at the center making 4 flaps.

Take the right corner of each flap and glue it onto the center. Decide if you want them to be functional or just décor. For décor, use cardstock and hot glue the whole thing onto a paper straw then glue a paper flower onto the center… and call it a day. For functional pinwheels, use thinner paper and weaker glue. Push a tack into a thin wooden dowel cut about a foot long… not pushing it in all the way in order to leave some room for the paper wheel to turn on.