Introduction: Rough Banner Stand

About: I'm a graphic designer -- I do websites and print material!

We're getting ready for "Rally Sunday" at our church, and the kids will be making some banners. I picked up some full-round moulding to use as banner poles, and then needed to build something to hold them. These simple stands can be used to hold a pole vertical. Use it for whatever you like -- holding a banner, standing up Halloween decorations, or as feet for anything that needs stabilization.

Step 1: Assemble Your Materials

For this project, you'll need a tape measure, a pencil, a saw of some kind, a miter box (optional) a drill, and some screws. I wound up not using the miter box because the wood I have was too wide to fit.

We just finished building a deck, so I had some leftover 1x6 decking (see how it matches the background?) with a nice rounded edge. Since kids will be around this, that's a nice thing. For each stand you'll need four equal length pieces. The length will depend on the type of wood you're using and how high the pole is you want to support.

Step 2: Make Your Measurements

For each stand, you'll need four roughly equal pieces. If you want this next to a wall, you could do one shorter, or whatever. I measured out my boards and figured I'd cut to about 15 inches for each piece. This wound up being more than sufficient for my purposes. The taller you're going, the wider your base should be.

Measure your boards, and use a T-square, or in this case, the edge of my miter box to draw a nice straight line.

Step 3: Cutcutcut

Get yourself situated and cut away. Again, if your wood fits in the miterbox, definitely use it, as it will make the finished product look nicer and be more stable. As mine didn't fit, I just went to town on the thing.

If you're doing this in South Florida in the summer like I am, you may die. Drink lots of water. Also, get a circular saw.

Step 4: Assembly

Lay your boards out to make sure everything fits like you want. Eyeball the edges of the boards and use the best ones in the middle, so everything fits tight. Measure the hole in the middle and adjust according to your needs. My pole is 1.25" diameter, so I made the hole just a little over that. Mark where everything will go, and get out your drill.

Get the screws started through the side of the board, then drive line everything up and drive them into the end of the next board. Repeat. Make sure as you go that everything stays nice and square. If you're using anything thinner than one inch boards, you might need to drill pilot holes. Test that out on a scrap before you get cracking (literally).

Step 5: Test It Out

Now that everything is assembled, test the fit on your pole. Honestly, I hope you didn't screw it up. I didn't.

Now you've got a nice stand for your banners/etc. Some ways to dress it up would include sanding down the cut edges, and cutting the ends of the legs at an angle. Since I don't have any sandpaper, I didn't do the first, and since the wood didn't fit in the miter box (and it was 100 degrees outside) I didn't saw the ends.

I hope you enjoyed this simple Instructable!