Economical Gonfalon Pole Kit

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Our parish is taking part in a diocesan procession, so we’re (I’m!) putting together a banner. You know those nice gonfalons… yes, I’m an artsy-crafty snob, and I took on the project so that we wouldn’t end up with something that looked like a 1980’s felt craft! 😛 (NTTAWWT, but our sacristy is already full of other felt craft banners, and I’d like to give us something that’s a step up!) (Wish me luck…)

Anyhow, I was trying to figure out my sizes, and what to hang the darn thing on. It’s my understanding the Diocese is going to provide stands, for the banners to be placed in during the Mass, but I don’t think they’re actually providing the gonfalon pole itself.

(It should look something like this—

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Anyhow, in addition to being a snob, I’m also a frugal snob. 😉 I’m finding a couple of gonfalon pole kits with crosses on the top, and they generally retail around the $300’ish range. We’re a poor, rural parish, and we’re funding this out of our own pockets. I’d like to make it as economical as possible. All my usual go-to links for economical vestments and church supplies aren’t bringing up this kind of thing… does anyone have any good links for something like this, but more at the $100-$200 price point?
 
Well, I just learned something new. I never knew that was the name for them. 😊
 
Librarian power for the win! 🙂

Just to show a cool example of some nice parish banners…

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from Eloquent Vestments

Some nice satiny ones with embroidered lettering and applique imagery–

I-couldn’t-even-begin—
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Snazzy!

And a nice look at the back, for those of you who want to craft from home…
 
What exactly do you need it to do? It’s just a pole with a cross piece to hold a banner, right?
You could buy a couple pieces of PVC and join them together and paint them an appropriate color.
 
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This is the tricky part I’m having trouble visualizing how to imitate.

Obviously, the gold cross is a separate piece that gets attached to the other stuff, but how the silver vertical bar fastens to the part of the pole beneath it, and how it provides structural support to the crosspiece without wobbling— I’m not thinking of anything I’ve seen at HD or any of the other big box stores that could be pieced together into a decent imitation.
 
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That’s the easy part if you use off the rack curtain rods with ornate finials. Just pick a cross that goes with the finials, and vice versa.

The more difficult part is going to be the base stand. You can look for cheap ornate standing lamps at Goodwill or thrift shops, and use that base.
 
I thing you could find some parts in the plumbing department and the curtain rod section and make something.
 
Uh oh, now I am going to want one for seasonal banners at home. 😏
 
Try calling your diocesan office to see if they have a pole they could lend you, give you or sell you cheap, or tell you where to get one cheap. They might have some on hand from a closed church or school.

I’m glad you are doing a quality banner. I have seen a few nice modern banners, including one of St Maximilian Kolbe, but I was at a Cathedral Mass recently where they processed some banners that were just the most awful late 70s felt things. They may have actually dated back to the late 70s for all I know but they looked out of place and cheap.
 
Quality banners are all about the fabric.

And felt ain’t quality. 😏
 
Someone with very basic woodworking skills could make one. If you do not have access to a metal cross for the top, it could be wood that is painted.
 
I have seen this site before. It could be so dangerous to look at it. Too many good things…
 
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