~Curtains Made Easy~
One of my favorite things about any room is curtains. I love gorgeous window coverings! I recently showed you my new home office curtains and today I wanted to share how to make them yourself.
The Rule of Thumb on Curtain Width
Take the window’s width and multiply it by: 1- for a tailored look, 1.5- for a standard look, 3- for a full look.
For example, if your window is 50 inches and you want a standard look, you would multiply 50 x 1.5 = 75 inches. Each panel would be 37.5 inches wide giving you a total of 75 inches of fabric.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My window is about 45 inches wide from window edge to edge and I knew I would be hanging the rod about 3 inches outside the window frame. The fabric was 54 inches wide, so I decided to do two 54 inch panels. That was a little more than 2x the window width, which was great. Therefore I’d have no seams and a nice amount of fullness.
I decided to do simple drapes using clip rings. These are very easy to make. My first step was to hem the sides. I folded the edge over 1/2 inch and ironed the edge. Then I folded it over again 1/2 inch and ironed once more.
Be sure to pin the fold for sewing the hem.
Next, I finished the top. I created a rod pocket even though I knew I would be using clip rings. To create the rod pocket, I folded the raw edge down about 1/2 inch and then I created a fold of 3 inches.
I ironed and pinned the fold to prepare for sewing.
Finish the hems with a simple straight stitch.
For the bottom hem, I decided to hang the curtains and then pin the hem to the desired length.
Once I had the curtains hung, I really liked the look of them “puddling” a little. I normally have my curtains just touching the floor. I wanted a little “plusher” look, so I decided to leave them a little longer than usual.
For the bottom hem, I got a little lazy! Instead of taking the curtains down and having to re-iron, etc, I decided to use Heat n’ Bond Iron On Adhesive to do a no-sew hem. It’s so easy to use! You simply iron it on the fabric, remove the paper backing, fold the hem and iron again. I pulled my ironing board up to the window and created my bottom hem.
I love the result.
Viola! Quick and easy curtains!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You are always Welcome at My House!
Stay informed of new inspirations, projects & exciting news.
Click below and subscribe to House on the Way…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Linking to:
I LOVE that you pulled the ironing board up to the curtains to hem!
The curtains are gorgeous, and I love the fabric!
Jules@fyimodularhomes recently posted…Sunburst Mirror
Thanks Jules! Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do!
I didn’t know the rule about the width of the fabric for curtains. Thank you very much. The fabric you chose is awesome.
Magali@TheLittleWhiteHouse recently posted…Where Does Water Come From?
It’s just a great way to ensure you get the right amount of fabric for the look you want. Thanks so much! Have a great week!
I love the way these turned out! I am going to pin for future reference. Curtains are nearing the top of my list of to-do’s! I would love for you to come by and link this or another project/recipe at my brand new link party!! Hope to see you! http://domesticsuperhero.com/2013/03/07/domestic-superhero-sharing-thursday-1
Thank you Allyson! I’ll stop by and pay you a visit! Thanks for the party invite! Feel free to link up to my Twirl & Take a Bow party anytime too!
These are GORGEOUS!!!!! Don’t you just love no sew drapes! That fabric you chose is such a beautiful compliment to that stencil you did. I just love it! So happy to see the room really coming together.
Christina @ Floridays Mom recently posted…Wood Palette Headboard
Thank you Christina! I fell in love with that fabric as soon as I saw it! It is slowly coming together…
Have a great weekend.
Leslie
I love your curtains! Beautiful job and great tutorial!
Laurie @ House of 34 recently posted…Wednesday Wisdom
Thank you Laurie! I really appreciate that! Have a great weekend.
Wow, Leslie! These turned out great! I love the pattern play on the wall and the fabric. Well done! xo Kristin
thriftykristy recently posted…HAPPENINGS
Thanks! So glad you stopped by! I love what you’ve done with your blog! Have a great week.
Leslie