Jan 31, 2012

DIY Striped Curtains Tutorial


I really wanted striped curtains in Oldest's Star Wars room. Really, really.

In my head that is what went best with all the bedding, the gray, black, and navy blue color scheme, and of course our favorite villain Darth Vader.


However, with all the room redo-ing lately, I didn't want to spend a lot of money and time. So I came up with a cheap, creative way to make my own striped curtains for his room. These curtains took about a day to make and cost me less than $20. A-whoo-hoo.

Since they turned out so well, and because they were easy and affordable I decided to share with you guys how to make your own.

DIY Striped Curtains

What you need:
1 flat sheet-mine came from The Mart and were SUPER cheap
1 pkg of 84" length curtain panels-again they came from The Mart
coordinating thread
rotary cuter



The first thing that needs to be done is to prepare the curtains and the sheet to cut the strips from them. I laid out each lengthwise and folded them in half (hot dog style...yeah I am technical like that) and ironed.


First I cut out strips of the sheet. I cut out 5- 8 1/2"x 30" pieces for each panel. That made 10 total.


The bottom strip will need to be bigger since you will have to hem the bottom. So I cut out 2- 12 1/2" x 30" pieces out of the navy for the bottom strip.


Next I started with the curtain. Start with the top and cut off 7 1/2". Keep this strip. All of the curtains strips you will use will be cut at 7 1/2 ". I cut one strip at a time because the curtain material was a little temperamental.


Take the first cut curtain strip and lay right side up. Lay one of the 8 1/2" strips from the sheet with right sides facing. Pin at the raw edges. There will be excess on each outside edge.


Sew with 1/4" seam to attach the strips. Iron seam when done. Then open and press stripes again.


Here it gets a little tricky, but next you want to cut off a 8 1/2" strip of the curtain and just throw it out...you won't be using it. Then cut a another 7 1/2" strip. Pin that strip to the sheet strip, right sides facing. Sew again a 1/4" seam along the raw edges.

Repeat pressing.

Repeat this pattern until just after the last 8 1/2" sheet strip is sewn on.


When you get to the bottom of the curtain, you will forgo the last 8 1/2" discard cut of the curtain and just cut another 7 1/2" strip to use. Then discard the bit of the bottom of the curtain.


Sew on the last curtain strip like before. Then sew on the 12 1/2" strip of sheet to the last curtain strip.

All the strips should be sewn together. Whew...a lot of work. Almost done.


Hem the bottom by first ironing a 1/2" from the bottom. Then fold to 4" hem and stitch hem in place. Hemming the bottom should achieve the last 8 inch strip.


The last step is to fix the overhang of each sheet strip to match the side hem of the original curtain. Can you notice the extra special treat in the photo below???


Okay, back to finishing the curtain. Fold in the excess once and iron. Then fold again to match the curtains original seam.


Then sew the side hem in place. Repeat with both sides of each strip.


Then repeat the whole sewing process with the other panel.

After that you can hang those beauties up and admire your hard work.


I am super happy with how they look in the room. Nothing better than a DIY set of curtains...and these look super polished because of the pretty-precise ( I wouldn't dare say uber-precise) stripes.

Now I just need to add all the stuff on the walls. Imagine it with me.


Until I get all the pictures/posters up, I will just stand back and admire my DIY striped curtains. Woohoo! Ehem...sorry I still get excited about them.


Hopes this helps you guys with all your striped curtain dreams...I mean I assume, like me, you have had them.

Linking up:
Ta-Da Tuesdays: Mommy by Day, Crafter by Night
Share Your Awesomeness: The 36th Avenue

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Fantastic job!!

Adrienne said...

wow, those look great :-)

Amanda said...

You did awesome! That sounds like a hard project to get just right.

Loopy Loop Creations said...

Thanks for stopping by and commenting on my man cave pillows, your comment made me lol! Love the curtains and am your new follower!

Donna

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...