Style your home with pennants and camp flags.
You might have spotted our little collection of felt flags and wondered where they originated. They fill our shop in Windermere, UK with colour, texture and a bit vintage-inspired cool.
Pennants and camp flags are a great way to add some personality to your space. They look great as part of a gallery wall, in a bedroom, office space or in your camper van.
Our pennants – long, narrow, triangular flags – are inspired by the great outdoors and based on the flags that 20th-century sports fans would fly to show support of their favourite team. But pennants have a long history that stretches way beyond the 20th century.
Going to the mountains is going home - pennant
Hanging in great halls in castles or attached to medieval knights' armour, pennants were originally used to show allegiance to a king or celebrate victory in battle. You might recognise them from Robin Hood films or Game of Thrones! The word "pennant" comes from the Latin word "penna" which means "feather."
Camp flags are a bit different and their origins are more obscure. These flags are often found in outdoorsy settings, such as summer camps in the US or national parks. They were often used to mark a specific location, such as a trailhead or a campsite.
Comfort is a slow death - camp flag
The style of the flags harks back to the early 20th-century with vintage fonts and illustrations. The Boy Scouts of America, for example, have been using camp flags since the early 20th century. They would create flags with their troop number or logo and use them to mark their campsite. Today, camp flags are still used in the great outdoors, and they are often used as a way to show off a love of nature or outdoor activities.
We source our camp flags and pennants from The Oxford Pennant Company which is a Buffalo-based company that specialises in creating high-quality, American-made pennants and banners.
They use traditional techniques to create their pennants, including screen printing and felt appliqué. The result is a product with a timeless design aesthetic invoking themes of adventure, celebration and classic camping trips.