After much deliberations, I settled on decorating my son's room with a robot theme. I found some great fabric (Cogsmo by Cosmo Cricket from Andover Fabric), but I was only able to get a yard of the cogs and 1 robot panel. To cover 2 full windows, I had really had to stretch the yard of fabric!
My windows are 32" wide by 55" tall. Window trim is 4" wide
Your valance should be close to 2 times as wide as the window, the curtains should be 1.3 to 2 times as wide as the window.
To make Valances (set of 2)
These are double thick on the fabric, it looks more professional than a single fabric valance.
You need:
1 yard printed fabric 45" wide (Cogsmo Cogs P0260 4025 B )
2 yards coordinating fabric 45" wide (Symphony Broadcloth 5468 DST GR)
1 spool thread
2 cafe curtain rods
Other Items:
Sewing Machine
Cutting mat
rotary cutters
Straight Edge 12" with cutting guides every 1/2"
Scissors
Cutting:
Print Fabric. Cut into four 10.5" strips perpendicular to the selvage edge (will be 36" wide)
Plain Fabric. Cut into 2 22.5" strips, perpendicular to the selvage edge (will be 72" wide)
Sewing:
I use a 3/8" seam allowance
Sew 2 strips of print fabric together (right sides facing, make sure the pattern runs the same way) to make a strip 10.5" by 71.5". Repeat with other pair of print fabric.
Sew 1 strip of print fabric to 1 strip of plain fabric along the long edges (right sides together). Unfold.
Trim to even edges (plain fabric is probably longer than print).
Hem short edges of fabric 1 turn.
Match remaining long side of print fabric to long side of plain fabric (right sides together). Sew. You now have a tube of fabric.
Sew edges of the tube together along printed portion only (leave plain portion open on edges).
Turn tube right side out.
Carefully sew along edge of plain portion so that it turns an equivalent amount to the print portion you just sewed. Be careful to sew through front and back separately so that the ends remain open for the curtain rod.
Sew front and back together following the top edge of the printed fabric.
Make another seam 1.5" from the top edge of the valance.
You've finished the first Valance. Repeat with remaining fabric.
To Make Curtains (set of 2)
You need:
3.3 yards coordinating fabric 45" wide (Symphony Broadcloth 5468 DST GR)
1 spool thread (same spool as valance was just enough)
2 tension curtain rods
Other Items:
Sewing Machine
Cutting mat
rotary cutter
Straight Edge 12" with cutting guides every 1/2"
Scissors
Cutting:
Cut the fabric to length, should be 5" longer than the window. My curtains fit inside the window fram of a 55" window, so I used two 60" lengths fabric (one for each window). The 45" wide fabric was just wide enough to get by with on my 32" windows.
Sewing:
I use a 3/8" seam allowance
Turn the selvage edges of the fabric over 1/2" two times and seam to make a nice finished edge for the height of the window.
Turn the cut edges over once each.
At the top, turn the edge over 2" and seam close to the turned edge to make a pocket for the rod.
Measure the fabric and hem the bottom edge to fit the height of the window. In this case, it should be 2". Repeat with second curtain panel.
Congratulations, you're done!
Difficulty: Curtain = very easy. Valance = moderately easy
Time: 3 hours total
Cost: $8 Cogsmo fabric, $11 plain fabric on sale, $3 thread. Total Cost = $22
You are a sewing goddess.
ReplyDeleteI'm still trying to figure out how you made Kate's cute elephant blanket. She still uses it, by the way, and my babysitter has taken it home so she can copy the scalloped edges to use on baby blankets she sews.
I'm afraid I cannot be a contributing member of this site, but if that changes, I'll let you know. Love seeing what you have made!