Curtains, they just brighten up a room, don’t they? Depending on the color they can draw the eye up higher…AND as a crafty home decor tip…if used correctly, they can create an optical illusion and make a smaller window appear bigger — it’s like magic! Well, in order to compliment some of the throw pillows I created here, I chose this fun chevron print from Mood Fabrics to create a focal point for my room that’s sure to stand out. Simple, bright, and oh-so-essential. Tell me about the first pair you created, below.
SUPPLIES: chevron fabric, rotary cuttery, straight pins, straight edge, an iron, and a sewing machine
HOW-TO:
1. Measure out the size of your window(s) — mine was 90×80 inches, so I cut it for 96×82 inch to allot for hemming and a “sleeve” area where the rod would enter.
2. To create a finished edge along the two sides, I turned the fabric back a quarter of an inch and then folded it back again. After that, I pressed these two edges down with an iron to hold it for sewing, and then used the sewing machine to sew them.
3. Next I pinned down my top edge that would serve as the sleeve for my rod.
4. Lastly….sew up that top sleeve, and hem the bottom, and you’re all set!
Brandhyze Stanley is the chief voice of the award winning blog, Frugal-nomics.com; a platform designed to share with women how to live and look fabulous on a dime. A DIY girl at heart—Brandhyze has been featured on The View, The Early Show, The Today Show, InStyle Magazine, Essence Magazine, and MTVStyle. A Wilhelmina Model for over a decade, with a Business Degree from Loyola University Chicago, Brandhyze provides DIY content to the popular How-To Site, eHow; and has been a contributor for the Huffington Post, Yahoo Finance, Super Money, Good Housekeeping, and Newsday Westchester, to name a few. Brandhyze is a huge thrifter and a lover of all good deals, follow her on Twitter @MyFrugalnomics and on Facebook at Facebook.com/Frugalnomics.
2 comments
Hi there! Very cute. I got upholstery fabric from Yardage Town in San Diego awhile ago and love it. I had extra to reupholster a chair (still need to do two more chairs…). I had a question if you know of the answer or could direct me to it, I would appreciate it! So, as you know, there are far more pretty prints in fashion fabrics. I want to take some fashion fabrics, such as a jersey I have, into upholstery weight style fabric, but without it stretching. What do you recommend to do? I plan on making a tote bag and usually make mine out of upholstery fabrics for its’ strength, but…upholstery fabrics are generally ugly, very old looking (but not vintage!), or too large of a print/design on it. I was lucky in finding the upholstery fabric for my curtains but that’s not going to happen often. Many thanks!! ~Jocelyn
Hey Jocelyn, are you saying you want to make your OWN fabric from a Jersey print? Because I think the jersey knit would stretch quite a bit and may not be as useful for reupholstering. But, Mood does have some great upholstery prints in the heavier weight you’ll need for your chairs and totes (feel free to double up layers too for added weight), and they are adding new stuff (especially here in NYC) everyday. Hope this helps.