How to Build a Homemade Fabric Kite
Bring your whole family kite flying. This outdoor hobby provides exercise and works best practiced in wide open spaces on a windy day. Encourage your child to express his creative side by making his own unique kite. Use a lightweight fabric which will float more easily in the air. Add embellishments using leftover gift accessories or Christmas decorations such as bows, tissue paper and swirly ribbons.
Things You'll Need
- Sewing machine
- Thread
- Carbon fiber rods, 1/4 inch diameter
- Duct tape, 2 inches wide
- Cotton fabric
- Reel of kite string
- Crepe streamer roll
- Pencil
- Metal tape measure
Instructions
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1
Cut a 26-inch by 26-inch piece of fabric. Measure 13 inches across the top edge, to find the middle, and mark the point with a cross. Do the same at the bottom and both sides.
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2
Place the start of the tape measure on the top cross and pull out to meet the cross on the right-hand side. Draw a diagonal line on the fabric, using the tape measure as a guide. Put the tape measure on the right-hand side cross, drawing another line down to the bottom cross. Repeat this process on the remaining sides until you have the shape of a diamond. Cut the fabric out.
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3
Fold the edges of the diamond ¼ inch over, all the way around, and sew. Cut a 4-inch piece of duct tape. Fold in half so that the sticky sides are together. Fold in half again to create a rectangle. This is the first of four pockets which will attach the rods to the kite fabric.
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4
Lay the rectangle at the bottom point of the kite, on the back of the fabric. Make sure the open edge is at the top, and sew down the left and right sides of the rectangle to secure it to the kite. Repeat this process on the right-hand point of the kite, making sure the open edge of the pocket is facing toward the centre. Make two more pockets.
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5
Cut a 23-inch length of carbon rod and insert one end into the bottom pocket. Take one of the loose pockets and place the opening over the other end of the rod. Lay it on the fabric and sew in place so the rod lies along the length of the kite. Cut another 23-inch length of rod and repeat the process so it lies horizontally, from the left and right points of the diamond, creating the shape of a cross.
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6
Tie the two rods together, with thread, in the middle of the cross. Attach the length of kite string at this same point, fixing it securely.
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7
Cut three 20-inch strips of crepe streamer. Place the strips on top of each other at one end and sew on to the bottom point providing the kite with a colorful tail.
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Tips & Warnings
Make kites using a variety of materials such as paper, plastic, newspaper or silk
Never fly a kite near electricity pylons or overhead cables, which risk electrocution
Make sure you fly the kite in an open space, away from trees and roads.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit George Doyle/Stockbyte/Getty Images
