Curtains are without doubt one of the biggest features in any room. Depending on your décor they can offer extra light, shade or darkness and create atmosphere and mood. However, choosing and buying them can often be a costly business and with home and handicrafts becoming ever more popular, why not think about making your own? It’s actually a lot simpler than you think, not only that it can be an enjoyable way to spend your free time and save you lots of money too! Here’s how you can do it.
To make your curtains, you will need:
- Curtain fabric
- Sharp fabric scissors
- Measuring tape
- Pins
- Thread
- Heading tape
- Curtain hooks
- Sewing machine
- Iron
Prepare properly and start by measuring your window. Think about the effect you want to create and whether you want to let light in or block it out.
Choose your fabric carefully. Make sure it can be machine washed if necessary and also whether or not it is fade and shrink resistant. This is important if you are having the curtains in a room with a particularly sunny outlook or one that gets hot in summer.
In simple terms, each curtain that you make will need to be roughly one and a half times the width of the window you’re making them for. All in all therefore you’ll need around three times the amount of material for the actual width of the window. Make sure you also buy enough material so that it covers the length of the window too.
Measure your chosen fabric. Then take the side of the curtain that hangs ceiling to floor and fold in inward to create a 2.5 cm hem. Tack the fabric into place. Repeat with the other side of the curtain material so you have a pair of evenly matching hems.
Now add your heading tape to the top of the material. Heading tape should have your gathering cords incorporated into it at either side. It should also come ready prepared with the small pockets in it, into which your curtain hooks will go. When these are pulled, this is what ends up creating the stylish pleats.
Use a machine to sew this in place. This will save time and means that you don’t have to create an extra hem. On the final raw edge at the bottom of the material, you’ll need to create another hem. This one should be larger, between about 5 and 7 cm. Sew all your hems into place, using a machine and then press the curtains with an iron for a smooth and crease free finish.
Next you need to put your curtain hooks evenly into the heading tape. Once these are in place you can then start to gather your curtains. Pull the gathering chords and spend some time adjusting the material through the heading tape.
Now you can hang your curtains into place on your curtain track! Once they’re in place you can start to adjust them properly and get a feel for how they lie. This may take some time so be prepared to perhaps take them down and readjust once or twice.
To hang up your curtain rod follow this simple measurement guide below.
A good point to remember is never to throw your off cuts of curtain fabric away after you’ve finished making the curtains. They are worth keeping for the future in case you want to make some matching accessories to go with your curtains like for instance cushion covers or tiebacks.
This post was written by Matthew who is a UK based blogger that enjoys guest posting on property blogs and is writing on behalf of Poles Direct, a curtain pole and window furnishings supplier.
Great post on handmade curtins,