Making Sheer Curtains

I started making curtains for the front of the house over the summer, but ran out of time before the honeymoon, and left them hanging (literally). I just got around to finishing them up this week.

Where we last left the curtains- with the old dusty blinds and the cheap white curtain rod.

Step 1 - Take Down Old Nasty Hardware. I have discovered that a solid rule of demolition is that whoever had the house before you did not install things in a normal way. They either a) barely attached the thing, so it's a true miracle the house hasn't collapsed yet or b) supported, reinforced, glued, nailed and bolted it in so securely, that the thing can never be removed. My curtain hardware was the later- those suckers were in with 3 inch screws that were also glued in place (the blinds maybe weighed 3 pounds). Taking them down took more effort and strength than any other part of this project, and made me a little worried about bigger projects ahead.



Holes and pealing paint after the old hardware is removed

Step 2 - Patch and Paint Windows. Because the original hardware was installed so super-duper well, removing it left some pretty big holes in the window frame, so I had to add an unexpected step by patching and painting the windows before moving on. The nice part is that the windows are now a fresher, brighter color, and this gave us a good opportunity to swing by our local Octoberfest celebration while the paint dried.

Patched and Freshly Painted

Step 3 - Install New Fabulous Curtain Rods. I got some help with this part from R, while I took a break. The new brackets went up, then the rods just sit in them. The only trick was the far right rod, which can't fit because the window is squashed up against the wall. We just removed the finial, which seems to work so far.

New hardware for double curtain rods

Step 4 - Measure, Cut and Wash New Fabric.  So if you remember from my last curtain experiment, the pre-washing step is important but risky. I measured the height of the windows from the floor (95 inches) added 5 for hems (+5) and then another 6 for shrinkage and then rounded up, for 110 total. I cut four panels and threw them in the wash. After the wash was done, I had a ratty, tangled mess. Yipes! Clearly my shear fabric was much more delicate than my previous curtain fabric, which didn't have any fraying problems. I carefully pulled the mess out of the washer and let them air dry.

I just rolled the fabric out on the floor next to a locked tape measure.

Step 5 - Iron and Hem on Sides and Top. Once they were dry, I took each panel and trimmed the loose threads. I ironed and pinned a 1 inch hem along the sides and sewed them. Then for the top, I ironed a 1 inch hem, pinned it, then folded it another 3 inches for a pocket for the curtain rod, and sewed it.

1 Inch hems being measured, ironed and pinned

Step 6 - Hang, Pin and Sew Bottoms. Because I wasn't sure how much they would shrink, I opted not to sew the bottom hem until they were hanging. So I put up the new curtains, pinned them so they just brushed the floor, and then sewed and trimmed the final hem along the bottom.

Pinning the curtains so they just touch the floor

Step 7 - Rehang and Bask in New-Found Skillz. Once the final hems were sewn, all I had to do was rehang my fabulous finished curtains. They provide a nice privacy screen while letting in the light. Because they are super light, they billow in the breeze when the window is open, which is just super relaxing. I love my made-to-fit, interesting fabric curtains that actually touch the floor.

A quick reminder of how far this room has come from move-in day-- before (above) and after (below).

Total Time = 7 days

Active Time = 10 hours

Total Cost = $90 for sheer fabric and curtain rods