Making Banners
The Process
We affectionately call our business Two Mom’s in a Basement! Great things come from humble beginnings. We have truly started at the bottom!
This is where we start. At the drawing board. Or truthfully the soaking room. The presence and mind of God are very necessary! Each design is hand drawn. All the lettering hand drafted. No computers or silk screening here!
I attempt to simplify my visions into line drawings. I make templates. Sometimes the Holy Spirit just makes me take brush in hand and I follow orders. As an artist I can tell you that there is nothing more intimidating then a blank sheet of paper. God has allowed me idea after idea, vision after vision. And we have learned to die to our own perceptions and ideas.
We align our templates under the stretched silk. There is our handy dandy blue pen. It erases with water ( Thank GOD!). Sometimes we will just sketch over a mistake but we have to communicate since one never knows which line to follow….
See those little blue thingys with rubber bands? They hold three needles a piece. We shed blood for these banners!! OUCH!! My husband lovingly made the frames.
Before the silk even gets to this place, we have to prepare it by washing it in a special detergent and ironing it dry. Did you ever try to iron 50 yards of silk in one sitting? It takes about 4 hours to iron and cut it into pieces. The children are coming in handy since they are old enough to iron!
Tools of the Trade. Alcohol, Cotton Swabs, Chinese brushes, Blue pens
Distilled water, masks, funnels, gutta applicators, measuring spoons and cups
Kosher salt ( what else LOL!) Rock salt and sizing come in handy for special effects. Or should I say unpredictable uncontrollable, pray hard, results!
Lot’s and lot’s of dye! All Custom mixed.
I am always saying we need another color. Deb thinks I am nuts!
Some of the colors have solids in them when they cool. We need to heat those colors to almost boiling to apply them!
Our technique flies in the face of traditional silk painters. They said it could not be done. God has managed to find us the most inexpensive way and all water soluble without harsh chemicals! We have the most vibrant colors ever!!
Our previous set-up and dye cart. Medium banner and scarves.
Our dye cart fully loaded and ready to go! We pray there are no dye accidents today!
Gutta in action. A Victory Lion banner in progress
Gutta a very sticky situation!
Gutta applicators, and anointing oil!
This gutta barrier is working perfectly!
The serti method of silk painting involves gutta. Pronouced Goo – ta. It is made from a tree and you have to have ventilation and dry clean it out. We use a water soluble kind, that leaks at times, but it is easy to get out in the wash. It is a little like white glue in texture and feel.
The dye spreads very fast and the gutta works as a barrier. We have that breakthrough anointing and sometimes it shows on the silks!! Water soluble gutta does not hold a line as well as the original kind.
Each banner is drawn again with gutta. Our hands get very fatigued after a day of gutta application. The white lines you see on the finished banners are the drawn gutta lines.
Here are the silks after we are done painting. We wait until the silk and gutta dries and then we wrap them layer by layer in muslin and steam them at boiling point for three hours. It is at this point everything can be ruined with one drop of water. One splash of water can put white spots and discoloration on the silks. That is not a good day when that happens.
The Blood scarves
Lions drying.
A steamer that my husband and I designed. The muslin rolled silk hangs from a hanger on a open screen tube from the top of this contraption. Boiling water is in the bottom pot. We steam for three hours typically it depends on the load. Silk has to reach 210 degrees to set. As soon as it reaches that point it is done. It takes many hours for it to reach that temperature will many silks rolled onto the tube.
After steaming into the wash it goes for another round. Here you have to be careful not to let that wet silk sit. Color will leech onto other parts if you are not careful. So right away we take them out and lay them out and then…. IRON…. yes IRON again. The silk needs to be wet to get it perfectly smooth.
Then to the sewing station. Only one of us knows how to sew (me, Kelly). I truly need to give Deb lessons. This is my least favorite things. Although I have learned it is easier to sew 10 banners at one sitting than 100. The hard way… Procrastination does not help things get sewn!
This is why He choose you because He knew that you would take dominion over the enemy for the sake of the kingdom!
I am a textiles major at NC State and I was looking up scripture-images on Google and somehow mangled my way to this site. Looking at the pictures of these banners, I am amazed. They’re beautiful and very creative.
Blessings!
I would want to know if you make banners in spanish.
Hi Miriam!
I would say to you that I do not know any foreign languages. If someone would provide the correct spelling for any of the banners we offer. We can arrange it!
Kelly
Today I was thinkin about how I would love to paint on silk and I was just looking somethings up on google and got to your page and there it was. I was like wauw God is awesome.
Keep it goin it is amazing.
Bless you
Yvon
“Accidentally” found your site on google. What detail! May He continue to strengthen your hands & heart for this work.
May you be thoroughly blessed, and much more, for being willing to share your trade secrets. Wow, what creativity and the faithfulness you demonstrated.
Thanks everyone! Hopefully this information will help someone!
its realy amazing and i am so much happy to see ur all work.i want to tell u me also aa artist and i like to paint silk,shaphoon etc etc.maybe i get respons from u.i will send u my hand painted fabric pics
I love to worship with flags and have always loved His Banner over me! I was looking from Google for things on Healing and was drawn to your site! Now I know why! This is absolutely amazing! I love each part that I’ve read but your process description blesses me to appreciate these Glorious Banners to the Lord even more!
I inserted your Healing banner but not without connecting to you! I hope you won’t object! It
really blesses me so…God bless you and prosper you…you are marvelously artistic and I hope
you continue with your creative minsitry. I’m returning to learn more…and check out this scarf deal…Blessings Kelly and Deb and a very Blessed Mother’s Day!
Found your website “by accident”. I felt God’s peace as I read through your information. We need a breakthrough in our community from poverty and satan’s curse. Looking for help and understand the power of Jehovah Nissi, (the Lord is our Banner).
I am interested in your power and dominion flag. please tell me how to order. Also you used to have a covanent flag. My husband teaches covanent and I would love to get him one.
Hi Cynthia
Email me at kelly@breakthroughbanners.com
I am redoing out website and store. We have a new covenant flag design coming out. I can invoice you through pay pal or you may call me.
I am a Pastor here in Cape Girardeau Mo, The Lord spoke to me during on e of our prayer meetings to make some banners, and he said to start out with a souls banner. I have been doing some research on banners and I would like to know what would it cost to have one made.
The Lord is a mighty God
Hello Bishop
We do not make custom banners, they don’t work out well.