How flags are made

Many flags are dyed all the way through, so the back is the mirror image of the front.

stations: 6
things upstream: 63
raw sources: 21
steps from the ground: 8

The short version

Most flags are polyester or nylon cloth that is printed or dyed with the design, cut to size and stitched at the edges. Many are dyed through so the reverse is a mirror image. Better American flags have embroidered stars and sewn stripes instead. A canvas header with grommets goes on the pole side.

Weave the flag cloth

Nylon or polyester yarn is woven into a light, strong cloth. A flag has to survive wind, sun and rain, so the cloth is tightly woven and tough.

Goes in
Nylon Polyester
Print or dye the design

The design is printed onto the cloth with dyes, or screens lay down each color in turn. A through-and-through print soaks the dye in so the reverse side is a mirror image. Premium American flags skip the printing: machines embroider each star and the stripes are sewn from dyed strips.

Goes in
Ink
Fix the color

Heat sets the dye into the fibers so it stays in sunlight and washing. Printed rolls are steamed or run through a hot press.
Cut the flag to size

Rolls are cut into flags of a set ratio, such as two units tall to three wide. A little extra cloth is left on each edge for hems.
Stitch the fly edge

The free edge of the flag is hemmed with several rows of stitching, using lockstitch seams where two threads interlock. Stress points such as the corners get extra reinforcement, because this is the edge that whips in the wind.

Goes in
Sewing thread
Attach the hoist

A double or triple thickness of canvas is sewn along the side that meets the pole, spreading the pull of the wind. Brass grommets or a pole sleeve are added so the flag can be tied or slid onto a pole.

Goes in
Brass Sewing thread

End of the lineFlag

Worth repeating

Motorized sewing machines in the 1860s cut the time to sew a flag at Annin from a day to an hour.
Annin sold 1.5 million flags during the American Civil War.