It's About Time... for New Basement Curtains

There are quite a few things in the basement that we still haven't touched since we moved in almost 3 years ago. But we finally checked curtains off that list! And let me tell you, it was time. Not only were they outdated, but they were pretty gross and just kind of thrown up there. Take this guy for example. The curtains are hanging on a piece of elastic that's tied to a few nails. Nice. Not to mention some of the curtains were shorter and only covered half the window so people could totally see in when I did laundry in my underwear. No. I was not deterred. But I'm glad to have full coverage now.

The rest were hung on springs! Seriously, long springs stretched across the window. They at least hung straighter. But still they weren't too pretty and I'm not sure if these had even been touched since the house was built. They were pretty nasty. They came down and went straight to the garbage. Then after a good sill-vacuuming and window-washing, I was ready to get some new curtains up there!

I finally got motivated to check it off our list when I stumbled across a pretty set of sheets in the Wal-Mart clearance for only $5. Yeah, I can work with that.

For the Love of Stripes

I know I've talked before about how much I love stripes. And how badly I want to get some in our house. Well, I finally found a way to bring some in without the commitment of painting the walls (for husband's sake). :)  I took the plunge and painted the curtains in the guest room! Which is a little funny, since the curtains are made of drop cloths (you can see how I made them here). I've been thinking about painting them for a while now but I kept putting it off because I was worried about how they would turn out - would it look cheap? Would it be splotchy in the light? Would it be super stiff? But desperate times call for desperate measures (husband sometimes thinks I'm a bit dramatic. I don't see it.) so I decided to go for it! And I'm happy to say I've been really pleased with the results!

I started by laying out the curtains and using a tape measure and pencil to mark every foot up both sides.

Then I took a long piece of painters tape and stretched it out between my arms across the curtain. I lined each end up with the bottom mark and pressed the ends down first. Then I pushed down the middle of the tape. That worked out best for getting a straight line between the marks. (if I had a wider curtain I would have made another set of marks down the middle of the curtain to help keep it straight, but since these are so narrow I could easily reach across and keep them straight)

B showing off his prize for being a good helper - his own piece of tape!

Curtain Master

Here is the final post in a week full of curtains. You can see my tips for hanging curtain rods here, and for making your own curtains with drop cloths here. Today is just another example of homemade curtains, this time in my master bedroom. After living here a year and a half we finally have curtains up and it makes such a difference!

We started by putting up a curtain rod, just like in the office. I already love the contrast of the dark hardware against the light walls.

For the actual curtains I had a few thrift store sheet to choose from. I decided on a soft, pretty floral one that I bought for $3, which is great for a set of curtains! I cut it in half and hemmed just like I did with the office curtains. Then clipped it up with my ring clips. It turned out so pretty and was a really easy way to get unique curtains.

Then I slid the furniture back into place to finish it off. And wowza, it really looks more like home now!

 

Although I think I'll go with the rocker here instead. But a slip cover may be in order. :)

Here is the best shot I have of the color of the curtains. You can also see how well they work together with the colors of the walls and wood. 

And that's all I have for our last curtains day. Just a little inspiration to keep your eyes open because you never know what could be your perfect curtains!

Final thought for today - I got this new toy on craigslist, and I am so. excited. Now, who wants to thread it for me and show me how to use it? :) I'm thinking about making my own cloth diaper once I get it running!

Drop Cloth Curtains

Time for more curtain fun! Today we'll be looking at some easy ways to make your own curtains, and be sure to check out my post about how to hang curtain rods as well. Let's start with a look at curtain lengths. I usually prefer floor length curtains, but if you want something shorter your curtains should end either at the sill or apron of the window, as shown in this illustration. Try to avoid stopping in the space between the wall and the floor. It will give you a cleaner, more professional look when you stop at a clean visual line.

 source

Once you decide what length you want your curtains to be, you can go ahead and hem them if they are pre-made or make some curtains of your own. That's what I did in the office recently. I actually bought some drop cloths at Lowe's as a cheap alternative to traditional curtains, but you can use these instructions to make curtains out of just about anything. I bought two 6x9' cloths (one for each window) for about $15 apiece. I plan to cut each cloth in half in order to have two panels for each window, but you could put it up as one panel to cut out some steps if you want.

I started by washing my drop cloths to preshrink them and get rid of the funky Lowe's smell. Depending on the size of your drop cloths, they could be ready to to put straight up with ring clips. However, mine need to be cut up and hemmed so I had some work to do. I started by cutting along the seam that ran down the middle of my drop cloths to split it into two even panels.

Then I cut the middle seam off the the other panel too because it was just too bulky.

I folded the unfinished long sides in about 1/4", then 1/2" and sewed close to the fold to finish them. I also did this on the on the other long sides to make them match.

Then I was ready to hem them. I started by cutting off the thick seam at the bottom of the curtain. you don't have to do this but it was too bulky for me. You can leave the top seam if you are putting your curtain up with ring clips.

Then I hung the panel backwards so I could hem the length. You can see how much slack is at the bottom to be hemmed. Since I hung it backwards I could fold them bottom up towards me and pin it in place to mark the length. I folded it up to just above the floor, about 1/2 - 1", because I find that curtains will stretch over time and if you make them all the way to the floor they will start to drag. I find it's easiest to start by pinning the hem on each side and then work on the middle. It also helps to put your pins at the top of the folded fabric instead of near the bottom.

I didn't get a picture of this while they were hanging, but here you can see the hem folded up.

Next I folded the raw edge under to create the hem. I like to leave a tall hem at the bottom because I think it looks really spiffy, and also because I'm cheap and if I ever want to use it again somewhere else I will have plenty of room to let out the length instead of having to buy new curtains and start over. I also like it to match on all my curtains, so I measure up 6 inches from the bottom and fold the raw edge under that far.

Then I sew close to the folded edge.

That's it for the sewing. Before you hang them iron your curtains, at least along the bottom to get a nice crisp edge. This will help your curtain hang better. Then you can clip them up with ring clips (you can get them anywhere, mine are from Ikea and my rods are too). I like the ring clips because they are easy, they are safe for Baby B (if he pulls on them they should unclip instead of pulling down the rod), and because I think the dark rings and rod look really sharp against the wall. I'm actually thinking about converting all of my curtains to ring clips!

Now stand back and admire your work! Drop cloths were a great, affordable way for me to get the simple, off-white curtains I wanted in here. And it's a bonus that they are made of a heavy canvas with lots of texture. I have a plan to dress them up a little that will hopefully happen soon!

I did the same thing for the other window, too. I find it's easiest to do it assembly line style when I have several panels to make. First do all the cutting, then finish all the edges, then do all the hemming.

If you don't like to sew, you could complete this whole project using iron-on hem tape instead. Baby B "organized" my while I worked on these. So helpful. ;)

Do you ever make your own curtains?

Hanging Curtain Rods

I'm working on (finally) getting some curtains up in the office so I thought I'd do a quick "how-to" post about placing the rods.

But first, a disclaimer. I've had a couple people ask me how I find time to do these things because, through the wonder of the internet, projects pop up all done and written about in a nice a concise way. But this is not how they go down. This is a perfect example. A timeline of my curtain hanging endeavor:

Early November: buy curtain rods from Ikea
Late November: buy drop cloths from Lowe's
December: trip over curtain rods laying in front of windows waiting to be put up
Early January: put up curtain rods
Mid January: wash drop cloths
End of January: cut up drop cloths to make curtains
February: hem sides of curtains 
End of February: hang curtains, hem curtains, rehang curtains, DONE.

And there you have it. The cold hard truth of a "simple" curtain hanging project 4 months in the making. For the record, I could have easily had this all done in one day... if I didn't have a baby and take naps and play on pinterest and work on other projects and change diapers and watch the entire series of Psych on Netflix and whatever else occupies my days. And just so you know - this is typical. Most of my projects are drawn out over months because I work on them so sporadically (um, kitchen progress? anyone?....no). And I generally have about 5 things going on at any given time so I hop around from one to the other instead of finishing what I start. It's just how I am. And it's okay.

So, if you are up to month 3 of hanging your curtains, here's the run down of how we do it. This is just the way that has been easiest for us (and there is a fair amount of "close enough" and very little exactness) so if you know a better way please let me know! :) Also keep in mind this method works if you are planning to hem your curtains later. If you curtains are a fixed length (or too short to hang high) you need to measure up from the floor instead to get the right height.

1. Measure and mark how far out from the frame you want your rod to reach. I like to have mine out far enough that when I open the curtains they don't block any of the window or glorious sunlight. The curtains in this room are narrow & lightweight so they bunch up pretty tightly (plus I'll be using ring clips to hang them. curtains that use a pocket won't bunch up as compact.) so I marked out 8" from the frame, which was more than enough. (My living room curtains are much bulkier so I went out a whole foot in there. If in doubt, go ahead and scrunch the top of your curtain together to get an idea of how much space you'll need.)

2. Measure down from the ceiling how far you want the rod to sit. (I like to hang them well above the window to make the room seem taller and the window seem bigger. I usually hang them about 2" down, but this time I decided to give 4" a try to see how I like it with a little more breathing room above. I like it.)

Repeat steps 1 & 2 for the other side of the window. If you have a center bracket, find the center of the window and mark 4" down from the ceiling as well. Check these marks with a level and adjust as necessary.

3. Line your brackets up with your measurements and mark the screw holes.

4. Drill holes where you marked. I like to use anchors when I hang curtains. You can find packs of anchors and screws at Lowe's or Walmart or just about anywhere. It will say on the package what size of drill bit to use.

Pop in the anchors. You might need a hammer.

5. Use the screws to put up the brackets.

6. Set the rod in the brackets, and you're done!

Unless you have more windows. Then you have to do it all over again. ;) If you're using ring clips, you can go ahead and put those on too.

Now go take a nap to recover from your strenuous endeavors.

Later this week we'll look at making and hemming curtains, so stay tuned! We're well on our way to getting our windows dressed up. Do you have any rooms that could use a curtain facelift?