All You Need To Know About Buying Banners and Garden Flags

Banners and garden flags are a great way to display your personality as well as add color to your yard, porch or garden. These cute decorative flags are made for every season and holiday as well as everyday themes. This guide will help you to make the best possible buying decisions by discussing important flag features, display options, construction and how to care for your flags. After reading this guide, you will be well-informed on the specifics of decorative flags and ready to start or continue your flag collection!

The Difference Between Banners & Garden Flags

Banners are large sized decorative flags.  Typically, a banner will measure somewhere between 27" - 32" wide and 37" - 54" long. Banners are also called decorative flags, house flags or just plain flags. Banners are most commonly displayed off of a flag pole and bracket that has been screwed into the owner's home but can be displayed in other ways as well.

Banner Sized Flag

Garden flags are just like a banner but in a smaller size. Garden flags are also called mini flags and can measure anywhere between 11" - 15" in width and 15" - 18" in length. These smaller version flags are most commonly displayed on a garden flag pole in the owner's yard or garden. Like banners, there are other methods to display these cute mini flags.

Garden Sized Flag

If your space is limited, it is important to measure the area you intend to display your flag prior to making a purchase. When taking your measurements, make sure to account for the pole or display unit that you have in mind to show your flag. The measurements you take should make it very easy to determine if you have the room for a large flag or a small one.

How Flags Are Constructed

Banners and garden flags are constructed in one of three ways:

• Heat Sublimation
• Silk Screening
• Applique

Heat Sublimation Flags

Heat sublimated flags are also called art flags as they begin with an artist's drawing. The artist's drawing is then printed using sublimation inks and placed on the fabric being used to make the flag. The ink is heated up and "sublimates" from a solid into a gas and permeates the fabric, dying the color all the way through the fabric. The process is so finely detailed that every single brush stroke of the artist's original drawing is captured! Heat sublimation provides a level of depth and accuracy that is not possible with other printing methods such as silk screening. Heat sublimation makes beautiful flags that look just like the artist's original work.

The downside to heat sublimated flags is that any words that are displayed on the flag are usually only readable from one side. The picture displayed on the flag is usually viewable from both sides...just reversed on the back. There are flags that are exceptions to this, but they are few and hard to find.

Silk Screened Flags

Silk screened flags are created by printing a design on top of the fabric. Unlike heat sublimation, the silk screen process does not dye the fabric all the way through. The silk screening process provides less depth of color, less color accuracy and is not as detailed.

Like heat sublimated flags, the words on silk screened flags are usually only visible from one side. The picture on a silk screened flag is usually visible from both sides, but is often paler on one side than the other.

Appliqued Flags

Making an appliqued flag is much like putting a puzzle together. Appliqued flags are made by piecing together various shapes and colors of fabric to create a picture. Each piece of fabric is sewn to the next with a tight zig zag stitch on a sewing machine.

Unlike heat sublimated and silk screened flags, appliqued flags are usually readable from both sides of the flag. The picture is also clearly viewable from both sides of the flag.

Regardless of how the flag is made, if it's important to you to have the words readable from both sides of the flag, you should email your seller prior to purchase just to be sure!

Flag Poles and Other Display Units

Banners and garden flags require different types of flag poles because of their significant difference in size. There are multiple options for each type of flag that will work for just about anyone!

Poles and Display Units For Banner Sized Flags

60" Wood Flag Pole                  All Purpose Flag Pole Bracket

The most common way to display a banner sized flag is with a 60" Flag Pole that attaches to the owner's home with a flag pole bracket. The flag pole normally has a clip attached to the top end to secure the banner. This display option is best for people that have an appropriate place to attach the bracket...such as a deck post, porch post or another wood surface. These brackets can be screwed into siding as well, but it's a bit more complicated.

To use, simply slip the banner's sleeve over the pole and attach the clip to the white tab that's located on the inside edge of the banner's sleeve. The flag pole bracket will need to be attached to your home with the screws that came in the package. Once the bracket is attached, just stick the flag pole into bracket and you're done!

3 Pc. Stand Alone Banner Sized Flag Pole

Another display option for banner sized flags is a 3 Pc. Metal Banner Flag Pole. This type of pole does not require a bracket and is not attached to a post or house. To set up this type of flag pole, you just step on the base to drive the bottom stakes into the yard or garden, slip the banner's sleeve over the horizontal pole at the top and you're ready to go! This type of flag pole works well for people that can't attach a pole to their home, but do have a yard, garden or grounds that will accomodate the ground stakes.

Banner Dowel

A third option for hanging a banner sized flag is a wood banner dowel. This type of pole does not require a bracket, but instead would be hung from a hook or nail. The ends of this pole screw off so that you can slip the sleeve of your banner over the pole and replace the end. Then, just hang the pole from a hook or nail and your banner will be beautifully displayed! This display option is best for people who don't have yards or gardens or a place to attach a bracket. It's also a great option if you'd like to hang your banner indoors!

Poles and Display Units for Garden Flags

Stand Alone Garden Flag Pole

The most common way to display a garden flag is with a stand alone garden flag pole. These poles have attached stakes at the bottom that allow you to simply step on the base to drive the pole into the ground. This type of pole is easy to move and display elsewhere if you so desire. The garden flag slips onto the horizontal pole at the top of the garden flag pole. This garden flag pole is best suited for people that have a yard, garden or grounds.

Garden Flag Window Hanger

For people that live in an apartment or other locations where there is no yard or garden, a garden flag window hanger is ideal. This display unit has a plastic bar with a suction cup at either end to display a garden sized flag in any window. This hanger also works great in cars, RVs and offices! To use, remove one of the suction cups from the ends of the pole, slide the garden flag's sleeve over the pole and replace the suction cup. Wet the suction cups and stick the pole to any window.

Adjustable Mailbox Garden Flag Pole

Another way to display a garden flag is with an adjustable mailbox garden flag pole. This type of garden flag pole is typically screwed to the post of a standard type mailbox, however, it can be screwed to a house, deck post or porch post. To use, screw the pole into your desired location and slide on a flag!

Caring for Your Flags

Care for banners and garden flags is exactly the same. Here's some helpful hints to care for your flags:

• To help slow the fading process, spray your banners and garden flags with a light coating of Scotch Guard or Armour All. Either product will help slow the fading process, but unfortunately no product will completely prevent fading.
• Most banners and garden flags can be machine washed and air dried. Balloon banners and garden flags as well as any flags with embelishments such as beads, metallic thread or any other special "extra" should be hand washed only and air dried.
• Decorative flags can be ironed on a low setting, but again, stay away from the balloon part of a balloon flag as well as any embellishments with the iron.
• Make sure there is nothing that will tear or damage your flag in the area that you hang it. When the wind picks up, the flag will blow back and forth so it's important to check a couple of fee in front of the flag as well as behind it.