One of my favorite projects in my son’s room makeover were his drop cloth drapes. I thought they turned out great (pat, pat), and hanging them so high really opened up the room and showcased the large window:
Now I’m making over Babygirl’s room, and curtains are definitely on the To-Do list. Unfortunately, she does not benefit from a large picture window.
She has a single, narrow window that faces west. So she gets great afternoon light, but it’s pretty dark the first half of the day. I thought white curtains would help to brighten things up, and hopefully if I hang them high and wide enough, the eye will be tricked into thinking it’s a grander window.
Drop clothes aren’t white, so I splurged for the Lenda drape panels from Ikea. (I kid, they’re $25):
118″ long?!? That is a serious amount of fabric for only $25!!! And you know this girl doesn’t sew (didn’t stop me from making this), so I cut the excess fabric and ‘hemmed’ them with the iron-on hem tape included in the package. (Don’t forget to wash and dry them first, they’re cotton and will shrink that’s what she said.)
I love the clean lines of a basic, straight trim, but her new room doesn’t have a lot of pattern, so I’m hoping to bring a little in on the drapes. Using 1″ wide black grosgrain ribbon, I played with designs and patterns until I settled on something I liked. And I’m always a sucker for Greek Key:
I laid the ribbon out in my desired pattern, then cut equal length pieces needed to create it in all four corners. This assured everything would be aligned and perfectly symmetric.
Then I just used more hem tape to iron the ribbon on to the curtain panel.
This is when Mr. Smartypants-9-year-old walked in and proclaimed that it looked like a bank logo.
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| he has a point
Once I completed the first panel, I realized a potential problem and decided to come to you guys before making the other one. Since the window is so narrow, and these curtain panels are so wide, when the drapes are open will you even be able to make out the pattern…or does it look like a hot, jumbled mess?
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Babygirl wanted in on the picture action. Yes, those are her pants tied around her waist.
I’ve cropped the bottom out of the picture because I want you to notice only the pattern at the top (not the massive amount of fabric pooling at the bottom), and what happens to it when the drapes are open. I plan on moving the curtain rod almost to the ceiling height, so the Greek key portion will be much higher.
What do you think…do you like the pattern, or should I do a simple trim similar to these:
 I wanted to get your fabulous input before slaving over the second panel.
Again, open:
 And closed:
 Someone got bored with my back-and-forth
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Hmmmmm…..can you hear the creaky, frazzled gears working in my brain?! I think someone is going to need a secret nook in her new room!!
Weigh in on the curtains please…you guys have great taste and ideas and I’d love to hear what you think!
Hey there, Hi Sugarplum! I wanted to tell you that I LOVE the design!! It is so cute and sophisticated. I think, though, that the scale of the design may be too large for that window… Maybe a design like the one you showed us at the bottom would work better? Good luck!!
These turned out so beautiful, but I do think you will miss out on the beauty when they are open. 🙁 Stripes might be the way to go here.
Not sure what you are thinking for her bedspread, but that design would be really cool! 😉
While I love the design, I do think it gets lost when the drapes are closed. Could you maybe add to it? Maybe play with adding more lines with the ribbon before deciding, or adding another color ribbon?
I do love the design, and I'm always impressed with what you can do with ribbon and scissors. 🙂
It does seem like the design will get lost though, so I'd have to agree that stripes might be the way to go.
I have this exact same problem in my master bedroom, except their is a second window on the wall to the right. It's a decorating nightmare and I've tried everything to make it look normal. The best thing I've figured out so far was to cut a curtain panel in half and use it split on one window. You could probably do that with your bank logo curtain so it completes the design when it's closed. I can't wait to see what you decide on and how it turns out!
What about doing that design on a pelmet/cornice and then stripes on the curtains? Then you can see the design. Here's what I did (towards the bottom of the post), although it never occurred to me to CUT the darn ribbon. Would have been so much easier than folding it over on itself. (There's a link to the pelmet tutorial I followed in the post.)
http://trappedinnorthjersey.blogspot.com/2010/06/before-after-bathroom.html
My inspiration was this bedroom:
http://www.plumcushion.com/2010/06/01/its-all-in-the-deatils-part-two/
I prefer the Greek key design – I think it looks great, even when they're open.
LOL @ S's pose with her pants tied around her waist. That's mah crazy girl!
I like the design, too, but I think the simple stripe would do better in the curtain format! Keep up the good work!
So funny- your daughter is like "I'm done with you!". I love what you did with the drapes as far as the greek key design, but it is getting lost when you hang them up. That's a bummer!!
Thank you so much for visiting my blog and your sweet comment about my profile picture. I absolutely ADORE those curtains you made for your little girl! They really look fabulous with the pink. It looks like you might have your hands full the way she is standing there with her hands on her hips and her pants tied around her waist. haha. Too cute! It is nice to meet you!
http://ashleyanderic.blogspot.com
This is my first visit to your blog and I must say you did a wonderful job w/ your son's curtains. He is so lucky to have that amazing window in his room!!
p.s. I am having a photography giveaway if it interests you! xo
I am quite impressed w/ your no-sew curtain abilities 🙂
I've always wanted to try the drop cloth drapes somewhere in my house. Hmmmm…..
I love the idea (and it turned out great), but think the design is getting lost when the curtain is open. What about scaling it back a little bit or trying greek key trim instead (like this http://www.sohautestyle.com/2009/06/diy-draperies.html)?
And your daughter is too cute!
I also feel like your hard work & creativity get lost when the drapes are open!
I am amazed at how crafty you are WITHOUT sewing! You do great work! Love reading your posts!
I love, love, love the curtains! I am so inspired! Just found your blog and adore it! Can't wait to follow and read more!
http://designerbagsanddirtydiapers.blogspot.com
I love, love, love the curtains! I am so inspired! Just found your blog and adore it! Can't wait to follow and read more!
http://designerbagsanddirtydiapers.blogspot.com
I'm over here from Honey We're Home and love the simple trim!
I, too, think they would look better with a more simple design. They are beautiful on the floor…ha ha. But the design does seem to get lost hanging up.
So cute pics!!!