Practical Tips on How To Design Lined Curtains

Practical Tips on How To Design Lined Curtains

Designing and making your own curtains is easy-peasy, and making lined curtains is just one step up from the plain ol’ kind (and lined curtains last longer, provide a better screen for hot sunlight, and probably have some other benefits I’m not thinking of right now).

One side-effect I didn’t really expect is that making your own curtains is also very gratifying. I would recommend it on that point alone, although I also very much appreciate the economical points as well. In my world of work that is constantly undone, it’s so nice to have something that I can look at that I can think to myself, “Yeah! I did that! And look! It’s still done!” Kind of hard to wrap my mind around, come to think of it. Anyway, as I go from changing a diaper to washing the dishes, it’s nice to have a reminder that some of my efforts stick around for a bit longer.

When buying fabric for curtains, I recommend splurging and buying the fabric that you really want, not just whatever is cheapest. I know it’s sometimes hard, (it is for me anyway) to buy the nice upholstery weight fabric when just yards away (heehee! get it? – sorry, I’m a bit punchy tonight) is sitting a perfectly “alright” fabric for half the price or less. But this curtain is going to make a huge impact on your room. So go for the stuff you really like (if you’re watching your pennies, you can wait for a sale or coupon). Buy your liner fabric based on the intensity of the light you are trying to block. They sell “black out” liner, good especially in bedrooms where you want to block out the maximum amount of light. I just bought the regular stuff; perfect for my purposes.

For this tutorial, I’ve used the measurements I used to make floor-length curtains for my own window, which is 67” wide x 49” tall, with the curtain rod about 87” off the floor. However, you can easily adapt these instructions for any size window. Also, please read through the instructions before you start – you may find something I did that you would rather do differently and need to adjust accordingly.

1. Cut your fabric. I want my curtains to be a little long so I cut my decorative fabric (hereafter referred to as “DF”) 94” x 55”, and cut the liner 92” x 47” (2” less than the DF at the bottom, and 4” less on either side), leaving room for a 7” hem at the bottom of each, and 4-6” for the rod pocket at the top.

UPDATE: A handy rule of thumb here – figure out how long you want your finished curtain to be, then add the extra inches you need for your rod pocket at the top and your hem at the bottom (in this case, my “formula” for the DF looked like this: fabric length = finished length + 4”[rod] + 7”[hem]). Then you can figure out the measurements for the liner fabric based on that.

Now you get to start the fun part – sewing!

2. Hem both the DF and the liner. With the wrong side facing you and the edge of the fabric intended for the lower edge of the drape pointed toward you, fold the bottom edge up 2” and press, then 5” more and press.

3. Now you are going to do something called a “blind hem”.

Here’s my hem, all set up for me to sew it up with my super-special blind hem stitch (Actually I have a very basic machine, so I imagine nearly all machines have this stitch or something comparable or better. But don’t tell my sewing machine. It thinks that it’s a super special blind hem stitch, and we might as well let it. It just makes my sewing machine so happy.)

If all this nonsense about blind hems just makes your head hurt, just do a regular hem – follow step 1 as directed, and then just go ahead and sew a straight seam across. I do encourage you to try, though – it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, and it gave me a great sense of accomplishment. And I learned how to sew a blind hem!

4. Now, sew up the sides with a 1/2” seam allowance. This isn’t tricky at all – just turn both your DF and the liner right side together (as if you were making a pillow), and sew up both sides. Make sure you match up the edges of the fabric from the top down.

 

You will end up with extra DF at the bottom and center. This is okay. It’s all part of the plan. I like lots (okay, 2”) of extra DF at the bottom (I think I saw a hanging curtain like that once – I don’t know if there’s a reason for the extra fabric), but if you prefer less, you can plan accordingly (cut more liner, or hem it up less).

5. Turn everything right side out, and press. You will have extra DF; make your crease with 2” (on either side) of the extra DF. This is where the extra 2” in the cutting guide image above comes in handy. Take a look at it if you’re confused.

6. Next, you want to sew a seam all the way down both sides, to hold the crease you just made in  place.

7. Lastly, make the pocket for your curtain rod. Fold the top (both the liner fabric and the DF) over 1” and press, and 3 more inches and press again. Sew along the bottom of this tube, making a tube that is about 3” tall.

 You’re done! Hang your curtain and step back and admire your brilliant (and lasting!) handiwork!

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Some Practical and Creative Ideas for Curtain Updates

Decorate your home with custom curtains. Borrow these ideas to dress up ordinary curtains for a unique window treatment.

Create a unique look for your windows with easy style upgrades for custom curtains.

1. To create a custom-looking valance easily and quickly, measure the size of your window, fold a scarf panel in half twice (they come 6 yards long), bunch the panel and place clip-on rings at even intervals.

2. Add a fringe to purchased curtains with fabric glue for a more elegant look.

3. Add tassels to existing curtains for a quick accent with tons of possibilities. With tassels, when in doubt about the size, go bigger.

4. To fashion a semicircle drape effect, mount drapery tiebacks and fold a single drapery panel over them. Add tassels to the tiebacks if desired.

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10 Easy Steps to Hang your Home Curtains

10 Easy Steps to Hang your Home Curtains

You will often hear a decorator or interior consultant comment on how well a curtain has been dressed, the is referring to the appearance of the drape or curtain and basically gets back to the original installation. If you are installing your own curtains follow these easy how to hang curtains tutorial. There is nothing worse than a drape installed incorrectly and not having enough time spent on the dressing of the drape.

How to hang curtains is primarily taught to acredited installers and it is definately an art that is achieved over many years of individual homes and many installations on various types of curtain windows.

1.  One of the most important starting points when learning how to hang curtains is  to ensure that you have a clear area to work in and a set of steps that allow you stand comfortably above the height of track or rod that you are installing on. This is often referred to by installers as their cribbing area – normally if space provides you require  1.5m either side of the window and 1.5m back into the room from the window.

2.   If you are installing on an existing rod or curtain track then it is equally important that you ensure that the rod is clear of dust and grime, its of no use putting new curtains on dirty rods or tracks, just wipe down the tracks with a little bit cleaning fluid and use a silicone spray on the back of the track or rod to allow it run smoothly

3. When you are learning how to hang curtains remember its not a race for the quickest to finish, take your time and use a methodical approach to everything you do.

4.  If you are hanging your new curtain on a curtain track make sure that you have the correct hooks, curtains tracks and curtain rods have totally different hooks. If it is curtain hook you will generally use a 2074 setting hook, this will allow the curtain to sit approximately 2cm’s above the track and will completely hide the curtain track when closed. If it is on a rod you will probably need a 2071 hook setting which allows the curtain to sit just below the top section of the ring. This keeps the rods fully exposed at all times.Another little trick when learning how to hang curtains.

5.   Many clients of mine are always intriqued and want to know how to hang curtains like an installer, as I said earlier this is basically an art that is built up over many years of experience, but these simple steps will allow you to have your new curtain looking nearly as good as a qualified installer.

6. If you have purchase ready-made curtains take the time to press and iron them, i usually allow 45 mins per set for ironing, this will help them hang alot nicer and straighter on your window , dont be in such a rush to put them up with out pressing or ironing them, this is one of the most important tips regarding how to hang curtains.

7. Now that you ready to hang the curtain , count how many hooks you have in your and make sure that you have the same amount of runners for your track or rings for your rods, this is very important as you dont want to stop , once you have started the hanging process.

8. You will see that many installers drape the curtain over their shoulders when hanging the curtain, this is to basically take the pressure off the hook when you put it into the track, so lay the curtains over your should that will be closest to the window and use your other hand to feed the drape onto your track or rod. Repeat for the other curtain, remembering this will be on the opposite shoulder.

9. Learning to how to hang curtains is an acquired form of perfection, once you have hung the curtains now push them back to each side of the window, starting from just below each pleat , use your 1st and 2nd fingers to run up and down the length of the curtain, repeat this for each step, this forces the curtain to trail down in a nice roll finish. You have basically begun the process of training the material to hang in a nice roll.

10. Thats it you have completed your first how to hang curtains tutorial, I also get many of my client to take a photo on day 1 of when the curtains have hung and then take another photo 4 weeks laters, you will be very surprised at the transformation from one photo to the next. Remember the longer a curtain or drape hangs the nicer it will look and will allow you to very quickly learn how to hang curtains

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How to Make and Design No-Sew Scarf Curtains

Tools and Materials you Need:

fabric
 scissors
fabric pencil
tape measure
pencil
sewing pins
iron-on tape

Steps to Follow:

1. Select fabric that is at least and 1-1/8 to 1-1/2 yards long and 54 inches wide.

2. Cut the fabric down the center so that you have two pieces of fabric that are 27 inches wide each.

3. Place a pin in the center of one of the pieces to indicate where to place the corners.

4. Fold two corners to the center to match the pin. The fabric should be in the shape of a triangle. 

5. Place the iron-on tape underneath the two seams.

6. Run iron over fabric to cause the iron-on tape to adhere. The heat of the iron depends on the fabric. Be sure to test it on a scrap piece of the fabric before starting this project.

7. Continue placing iron-on tape between top edges from left to right.

8. Apply hot iron to top edges until adhesion takes place.

9. Mark a line down the center of the second piece of a fabric with a pencil. A piece of soap also works for this.

10. Cut along the center line to create two pieces.

11. Flip up the fabric 1-1/2 inches at the bottom and on one side.

12. Use iron-on tape to hold the edges down.

13. Fold the bottom up to the edge of the other side that also has the 1-1/2 inch edge.

14. Use iron-on tape to seal these two edges (the bottom and side) together, creating a triangle.

15. Place iron-on tape to the top, then apply hot iron.

16. Follow steps 12 to 15 for the other piece of fabric.

Mounting the Window Treatment

Materials you Will Need:

1 by 4-foot pine board
white fabric
sewing pins
staple gun
scissors
L brackets

Steps to Follow:

1. Cover the pine board with white fabric.

2. Place edge of small triangle on the board and pin it to hold it in place.

3. Staple firmly into place with a staple gun.

4. Repeat steps for the other side using the second small triangle.

5. Cut the excess material off the top.

6. Using the large triangle, place the pin--from earlier measurements--in the lower center of the pine board. Draw a line on the fabric to mark the spot.

7. Staple fabric to the board. Straighten fabric out across the rest of the board.

8. Fold the ends of the fabric under and pin to hold it in place.

9. Attach the ends and center with the staple gun.

10. Mount onto wall with L brackets.

Important Tips:

·                          If a fabric pencil is not on hand, a small bar of soap can be used as a marking tool.

·                          You can use upholstery fabric to match furniture.

·                          Do not use sheer material because this will cause the iron-on tape to seep through and   burn.

·                          Iron temperature settings will vary, depending on the type of material used.

·                          Frayed edges will bond with the iron-on tape.

·                          Measurements of fabric will vary with the size of the window.

·                          Use pine board as the mount because pine is a softer wood.

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