Hello, Ribbon Lovers! It’s time to blog hop with Really Reasonable Ribbon! You should have come here from the always fun and fashionable Jenn’s Blog, and if so you are right on course. If not, you can always go back to the Really Reasonable Ribbon blog and get back on track.

It’s May…and all those great summertime patriotic holidays are right around the corner: Memorial Day, Flag Day, and the Fourth of July…so we are thinking Red, White and Blue this month. Take a look at the fabby May Ribbon Club Assortment.

Just looking at these ribbons made me want to throw a party. And thinking of throwing a party made me want to decorate my house. And decorating my house made me want to make a banner! So I did!

Then, when it came time to photograph said banner, I felt like kicking myself, because banners are soooooo hard to photograph. Ugh. But I looove to make them. And in real life, hanging on my mantle, it’s super cute. So, I’ll just show you the individual panels, OK?

Each panel measures 4″ x 6″ and is matted on a slightly larger piece of red or blue cardstock. My papers are Authentique “Seaside” and I just love all the little prints and retro images. I stitched the panels onto 1.5″ wide Red Gingham Ribbon, which is not in the ribbon assortment, just so you know! I used the Red, White and Blue Grosgrain Ribbon to create streamers on each end of my banner. I love the shimmer of the bow I tied with Electric Blue Satin with Silver Metallic Edges Ribbon!

This is one of my all time favorite quotes, and I was thrilled to find it in the paper collection. I ran Tiny Electric Blue Stars across the top and added a jaunty bow made with Patriotic Plaid Ribbon.

And, I believe this saying with all my heart! After putting down a layer of Electric Blue Satin Ribbon with a Grosgrain Edge, I topped it with another layer of Tiny Poppy Red Stars Grograin Ribbon, and a perky bow tied with the help of my Zutter Bow it All.

This beach babe is doing exactly what I want to do…just soak up the sun and relax! This Poppy Red Satin just sizzles against the navy blue paper and looks great with the Tiny Electric Blue Stars Grosgrain Ribbon accent.

Isn’t this what we’re all waiting for? Fun & Sun!! Yes, please! And the Poppy Red Satin with Silver Metallic Edge Ribbon and Molly White Crochet Lace are the perfect finishing touches for this patriotic, beachy, summery banner.

A couple of things to remember when you are making a banner like this: keep the color palette simple! Red, white, blue and a touch of grey are all you need with bold ribbons like these. A little tiny punch of color here or there keeps things from getting boring, but too much color confuses the eye. Tiny prints work great with bold sentiments and ribbons, too.

While you are reading this, I’m actually at the coast, soaking up some fun & sun myself! But you can slip on your sandals and go grab some fun ideas from Cherry’s amazing blog. When you’ve finished there, head on over to the Really Reasonable Ribbon blog and let Bonnie know that you visited all the blogs and answer her question of the month….and maybe you’ll win your very own May Ribbon Club assortment! Woo-hoo! If you’d like to sign up for the Monthly Ribbon Club, you can do that HERE…and get fabby ribbon delivered right to your door each month! Now that’s something to party about!

I’ll throw a shell in the ocean for you!