I hope you had a great weekend! I know its Tuesday, but since my husband and kids had off yesterday for Presidents Day, it feels like the first day of the week for me. In spite of having a no-plan weekend, the 3 days flew by and we were majorly busy (new projects, photographing others, food shopping, car buying, etc.). How does 36 hours fly by that fast? Anyway, since showing you my newly created home office / family room last week, Ive got a slew of DIY projects to share. First up
A how-to on how I hemmed and created the thin-striped curtain panels (I know a few of you have excitedly been awaiting this tutorial). I was surprised how easy they were to create and they look like they cost alot of $$$ (but they totally didnt).
When the royal blue walls were complete last Summer, I knew white curtains would be a great, striking complement. Thankfully, I had an extra pair of panels from my sons room that were purchased from Ikea 5+ years ago.
I wanted to jazz up the white panels a bit though, and at first thought of a leading edge similar to what I created for my daughters room. As more ideas developed, I had seen this living room and pinned it a while b ack. The thin-striped lines stuck in my head and I knew they would be just the touch to add interest to the stark white panels, yet not overwhelm the room. Ive seen many striped fabrics in window panels lately, but I wanted something softer and thought thick horizontal lines would be too heavy for the space since the dark blue walls are dramatic enough.
The area for where the new curtain panels were to go, started out like this
To begin, I hung the white panels on the dark wood rods that were already in place.
Nope they didnt work.
The dark rod blended in too much with the wall, and the panels looked so low and squat. It totally went against my rule of thumb on how best to hang a curtain.
Onto the idea 2.
Because of the window height, I couldnt put a decorative rod above (there wasnt enough room), so instead I bought a $3 basic metal pocket curtain rod.
I created the pocket at the top of the curtain (fold over top edge, sew or use fusible tape to create a pocket of about 2 for the rod to slip throug h). Then the panels had to be hemmed at the bottom because they were too long.
Heres my quick tutorial on How-To Hem a Curtain
1. With your curtain hung on the rod, loosely pull the bottom of the panel and add 2-3 pins at the spot where the panel hits the floor plane.
Hint: Dont pull the panel tawt because if you pin and sew at that point, your panels will result too short. You want to leave the panel(s) loose, so it just grazes the floor (this is how I feel a curtain panel looks professional. Its not a must, but its my opinion).
2. With the 2-3 pins indicating the line for which to hem the panel, I used a measuring tape to keep the same length and added more pins all the way across the width of the panel.
O, and did I tell you the good part about this project I didnt use a sewing machine. I was totally feeling lazy that day! You can of course, but its not a must. Thats a major plus for my non-sewing friends!
3. Using fusible tape, I folded the bottom edge underneath and hemmed at the line of the pins.
Heres the result
Yes, much better!
A perfectly tailored window curtain panel that just grazes the floor. Super easy!
Ok, so now on to the 2nd part of this tutorial
How-To Add Stripes Using Paint
FYI you could totally skip step one if you have already have the perfect length curtain and you can skip this step if you have no interest in adding stripes. Just thought Id share that tid-bit ;)
For this part of the project, I used the following materials:
1. To start off, I determined how many stripes I wanted and the width of the stripes.
4 stripes and 1 wide.
I layed my curtain panel on the floor and using a little math (big UGH), I determined my stripe placement. Using painters tape (because its easy to remove), I marked the 4 stripe locations.
2. Then I added the painters tape and my measuring tape to create the 1 wide stripe.
3. * Important part!
Once the tape is in position, its important to press hard on it like youre burnishing it into the fabric. You want to make sure the tape is sealed so the paint doesnt seep underneath. I burnished the edge with my nail.
4. Then using the wall paint that I used in the room (Benjamin Moore Van Deusen Blue), I painted on the stripes using a craft brush. I did not add anything to the paint to make the medium different. Its straight paint on fabric!
Once all four stripes were done, I took off the tape. Some of the areas werent completely dry, and thats okay.
5. When setting up the stripes for the second panel, I layed both curtains side by side so they were perfectly aligned. Then, by eye, I created the stripes on panel 2.
Once they were completely dry, they were ready to hang, and admire! happygal
O, and if y ou like it, would you pin it or share it? Thanks a bunch!
Have questions? Dont be afraid to ask Id be happy to help!
Want to see more drapery projects?
Then you might want to check out this post on Adding Decorative Leading Edge Trim to Curtains
Or this project on How-To Make Curtains from Scratch and Line them with Drop C loth
Of course youll want to know How-To Best Hang Window Drapery Panels, right?
Thanks for checking out my 2-in-1 tutorial! What a great Tuesday!
Via: DIY: How-To Hem (no sew) and Add Stripes to Curtains Using Paint
