Julie Finn
If you’ve got a fun collection of patches, you don’t have to a) hide it away in a drawer, or b) pay a professional framer to display it for you.
Instead, check out these DIY version for patch displays. With this many ideas, there’s sure to be something here to inspire you!
1. Backpack
If the patches are ones that you’d be proud to display while out and about, why not make a special backpack especially for them? This DIY backpack is made to display a kid’s Junior Ranger badges and patches while the kid explores–and earns another badge!
Of course, you don’t have to sew a special backpack; you can sew patches onto any backpack that you already own. Be wary if you want to iron on your patches, though, as some backpacks are made of a polyester fabric that doesn’t take well to ironing.
2. Cloth Book
Let’s say that you want to keep your patches organized, and you want to be able to look at them, but they don’t need to be mounted to your wall. How about making a cloth book to display them?
Velcro and felt would make them repositionable, and sewing them on would let you keep them forever in place, perhaps adding embroidered embellishments or captions or even photographs.
3. Felt Banner
This is very similar to a SWAPS banner that I made for my Girl Scouts, but here the patches are very carefully ironed onto the felt. If you don’t want to iron your patches, here’s how to sew them on. This is a great display for a children’s area because it’s a soft display and keeps the kid’s evidence of all their hard work accessible.
4. Flag with Fussy Cut Wooden Hanger
I love that the wooden hanger for this patch display is cut to fit the theme of the patches. You’ll need a jigsaw or Dremel to handle this project, but it’ll be worth it!
5. Framed Cork Board
Did you know that you can paint cork board to give it a completely different, non-cork look? Try it sometime! Without a glass front to the frame, this display is as quick and simple as it gets.
6. Model Hide Rack Display
A kid could probably make this display, intended to resemble a hide rack, almost independently. It’s a good way to practice those fine motor skills with hole punching and knot tying!
7. Poncho
A poncho is one of the easiest projects to sew, and because it’s usually made of wool felt or a similarly warm and sturdy fabric, it’s a suitable surface to sew patches onto for display. Just make sure you use a heavyweight needle and thread–I’d recommend tools that are used for sewing denim, to be safe.
8. Poster Board and Hot Glue
I can’t imagine a simpler solution than a poster board backing, a store-bought frame (pro tip: I get all of my frames from thrift stores and just refinish them if I don’t like them), and hot glue to mount the patches.
If the patch has a plastic backing that’s intended to make it iron-on, the hot glue should easily peel away from it later. If it doesn’t have a plastic, iron-on backing, gently iron a piece of freezer paper to the back of the patch and use that as your attachment point for the hot glue.
9. Quilt
I actually have one of these in progress (shh! Don’t tell my girls!). A patch quilt is especially good for a kid to take to camp, if you’ve made it from her old Scout patches, or to keep in your RV if you’ve made it from travel souvenirs. The patches add a lot of heft, so the quilt is warm and sturdy and travels well, although it’s heavy.
10. Shadow Box and Pins
A shadow box is plenty roomy enough to display patches, even if you insert an extra padded backing so that you can easily pin your patches for display. Look for stainless steel pins, as thin as you can find.
11. Tote Bag
If you like to sew but still want to keep your display simple, this might be the easiest option: a simple canvas tote bag! Sew each patch on by machine or by hand and move on with your life!
12. Velcro Display
Some patches come with a Velcro backing, and for the ones that don’t, just add a small strip of Velcro, yourself. This DIY Velcro display frame uses a special display fabric, but you know what? Regular old felt also works with Velcro!
13. Vest
This vest is the same concept as the backpack, above, and is also meant to be worn to show off your patches. I made a vest for each of my kids to display their Junior Ranger badges and patches. They’re pretty well full now!
Do you have a special way that you’ve displayed a fun collection? I’d love to hear about it in the Comments below!
I was thinking about sewing my collection onto a wool blanket… do you think this would work? And if so, do you have any tips? 🙂 thank you!