How Wide Can You Go?

I want to start off by saying...this was really hard.  I mean really hard but I think it was well worth it in the end.  Not much story here for you just straight into the instructions.  If anything here doesnt make sense please let me know and I will be more than happy to try and articulate myself a little better, I feel like Im rambling a little today.

Remember yesterday when I showed you how to make a curtain longer?  Well if you dont remember just click here and you can see that post.  Today Im going to combine yesterday's post and add on to that.  I have curtains in my bedroom that I dont love, I liked them but the valance was throwing me off.  The picture below sucks but its hard to get a good picture when the sun is shining in through the window.

I decided to get rid of the valance but modify the curtain panels.  I wanted to add width to make a more lush look and then move the curtain panels up to where the valance was, which means I was going to have to make the curtain longer.  First things first, I had to cut the panel in half.

 Cutting the panel did need some help.  I dont have a large enough flat surface to cut on so I had m husband hold one end while I cut the other.  Be careful if your curtains have lining and make sure you cut the curtain and the lining at the same time so everything is the same size for hemming purposes.

**Side note, please note that the panels I am working on dont have the traditional pocket for the curtain rod but belt loop esk loops, so if you have the traditional pocket make sure you follow the instructions from my first curtain post found here**

 Remember from yesterday the hemming we did to the edges, but on this cut curtain you only have to hem the cut edge so that the fabric doenst come unraveled or anything on your seam.  Make sure its even all the way down, pin it in place, then iron it down, then hem it down.  Since I had a lining I actually had to hem the lining down then hem the fancy fabric down.  Honestly this probably would have been better to sew to save on hem tape but i cant sew in a straight line and thought that would be tackier than a lot of hem tape.

 Truth be told this took a lot of time...like 2 hours per panel...so I forgot to take some of the pictures because my back was hurting and my knees hurt and blah blah blah sorry!!!  So the above picture is all the pieces put together so let me explain what I did.  After I had the two sides of the original curtain hemmed.  I went on to the addition fabric.  I hemmed the top and bottom at the length to match the original panels.  Make sure it matches 100% so it doesnt look off when you hang the curtain, which means leave enough for a 1 inch hem but the rest should match up.  The 2 edges I hemmed to each panel one at a time the same (so back to back with the hem tape in the middle).  I didnt hem the unfinished edge of the new fabric because it was going to be covered in the seam.  After you hemmed the fabrics back to back, flip it over and iron out the seam.  Then on the front put a piece of hem tape where you ironed the seam, flip the curtain back over and iron the hem tape in place.  Repeat the same thing for the other side of the curtain.

For the bottom, thats going to be the easiest.  Measure your piece to be same length as the new curtain panel and to the width you want, then follow the instructions from yesterday's post (here)

I know a lot of steps with like no pictures to go with it and I have failed you!  I am sorry.  But if you are going to attempt this and want some extra help just email me!

The next step is to make the loops to hang the curtain from.  From the scrap fabric I cut 2 pieces on the edge of the fabric so the top was a loop.  I them hemmed the bottom edges together, then hemmed the top and bottom edges to the top of the curtain in line with the other loops.  This doesnt have to be an exact science just make the width you think works best and space it at what you think is best.  Make sure you let that sit for about 5 minutes before you hang it so it has time to set.

Now comes the most fun part, is hanging the curtains!!

 Wow looks cool right?!  I was pretty impressed that it looked better than I thought it was going to.  Oh and a side note I am going to paint the walls gray so there wont be so much purple soon!

Here is a longer view for you, I love these now they are much more what I had imagined and that makes me happy...now what to do with the valances?!

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Quick Curtains

As you know from yesterday, I love my bathroom...finally.  I love the fresh green and white colors and the accents I added to the room.  One of those accents is the curtain.

Originally this window had blinds on them and I just dont think blinds belong in a bathroom.  So we frosted the window (frost film you can buy at lowes and slap on the window, takes 30minutes, seriously you should do this) and then I KNEW I needed to add a curtain or SOMETHING on this window, it was just so bare.  I found an article in "Decorating Shortcuts" (2011) on how to make this curtain and tried my hand at it.  So without further ado, here is how to make this lovely curtain.

Supplies:

• Fabric (I used outdoor fabric because its thick and heavy, but you can use whatever you love most)
• Fusible Hem tape ( I made the mistake of getting the ribbon hem tape not the kind that goes inbetween the seams, it works but is not as nice to look at)
• Ribbon
• Tension Rod
• Embelishments (you cant really see them but I have crystal tassles hanging from the ribbon)

Instructions:

1. Measure the inside of your window frame and add two inches to the width and three inches to the length.  I bought extra just in case I messed up a cut, but I always buy more fabric than I need, which is sometimes a good thing, I have used this fabric twice more from this curtain.
2. Cut fabric to your measurements
3. Fold each long side over 1/2 inch, then fold again another 1/2 inch (see why you need the extra inches, this makes for a much nicer hem in the back if you do it this way).  Press with an iron, insert hem tape in the fold and iron over again.
4. Follow the same method for the bottom side but on the top side fold over 1/2 inch then 1 1/2 inches to make the flap for the tension rod.  Insert hem tape and iron.
5. Insert the tension rod into the pcoket and hang.
6. Cut two equal pieces of ribbon, about 1 1/2 times the length of your window.
7. Accordian fold the bottom of the curtain to the desired length and tie the ribbons into a bow.  Note here, you will probably want help with this, I had a really hard time holding the curtain and tying the bow at the same time.  You may be more skillful than I, but holding the according fold just right and trying to tie a bow was frustrating the heck out of me.
8. If you have embelishments you can add them now, I always like to wait until the end and add them, you can do whatever order you like but I prefer the end.

(Here is the side view of the curtain and a better view of the bathroom, more to come later on that)

Well that was easy right?!  I hope you had fun making a curtain, I cant wait to make more for my media room and laundry room!  Share yours here, I would love to see the awesome fabrics you find.


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