Tute Sweet: Create a Cake Banner

This year our calendar was crazy wild so we decided for the very firstest time ever to combine Sassafras and Mr. Conductor's birthday parties into one. Not including Leap Year- the two celebrate their birthdays eight days apart. 

8 days- and I never combined a party before.

Such a special two-fer party demands a special cake and Mr. Steady always delivers on the cake specialness. That's right- my hubby the good Mr. Steady is the family cake decorator. No he's not a professional, he never decorated a cake until Ms. Book's first birthday- but the man has talent and I'm glad to delegate and let him go at it. We have a tag team system- 

I bake the cake, he decorates it.

Until this year- Sassafras baked the cake and I helped the Mr. with the decorating by creating this banner.

I'd seen some pictures of wonderful banners on Pinterest but being the impatient perfectionist that I am I just went with the picture in my head.

Here's what you need:

a frosted cake

scrapbook paper

string

scissors

scrapbooking adhesive

2 bamboo kabob skewers

optional: florist foam

1. Cut scrapbooking paper into inch wide strips.

[I pulled paper from my stash of scraps that was already about an inch wide. 

A great way to use up my scraps. Yay me!]

2. Cut each strip into 3 inch sections.

3. Fold each 1x3 inch strip in half lengthwise. Here I am using a Pampered Chef scraper to create a crisp folded edge- you could use a bone folder or even the flat end of a butter knife for the same results.

4. Arrange your folded strips in a pleasing pattern.

In this photo you see 8 papers in a row with two extras up top. Always make more than enough.

And always make sure your end product is an odd number- it's more pleasing to the eye.

My final product uses only seven strips.

5. Using your scissors, cut a "V" into the paper.

You can measure this to get it precise but I just eye-balled it.

A little imperfection makes it unique. 

(make sure you are not cutting the crisp folded edge but the opposite edge!)

Also- Don't forget to keep your "V" cut papers in order.

6. Here is where the florist foam came in handy. Mr. Steady was still icing the cake and I didn't want horn in on his concentration. This block of florist foam was the same width as our cake pan (I checked) so I used it as a cake "stand in". Stick your skewers in your cake at an eye pleasingly slight slant.

7. Cut a longer than necessary piece of string (you could measure this but I was too impatient- just eye-balled it and cut). Tie one end of the string to one skewer.

8. Apply scrapbooking tape/glue to one side of the inside of one little pennant paper. Place your still unfolded paper on the string and pinch to glue shut.

Note: I applied my glue just above the inverted "V" leaving space at the top. This is so when I placed it on the string I would still be able to slide it back and forth on the string for adjusting.

9. Keep gluing and placing pennant papers on until your string is eye-pleasingly "full" (once again making sure you end up with an odd number of pennants on the string).

Tie off the other end of your string. Trim as needed on each end.

Arrange your pennants by sliding them back and forth on the string until you're happy with it.

10. When you are ready to place the banner on the cake, take a damp soapy wash cloth and wash the ends of the skewers that were placed in the florist foam to remove any foam residue.

11. Place banner on cake.

12. Stand back and admire your handiwork!

This stinkin' cute banner can be made bigger or smaller and doesn't even have to be for a cake!

Think of the possibilities... a sweet paper banner across the top of a framed photo or a collection of photos, swagged across your daughter's dresser mirror, attached to a bookshelf....

Oh the fun you'll create!

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