Thursday, April 19, 2012

Sunblock

My gracious mom has offered to sew the curtain panels for the baby's room for me, since I don't know how to sew and I don't think '8 months pregnant' is the best time to learn. 
I was sure that I wanted blackout liner for the curtains, so I went to Joann and got this Roc-Lon Budget Blackout liner during a half off sale, for $3.50 a yard.  Then we cut a 90-inch length of the fabric and a slightly smaller panel of the liner to get started. 
I got cold feet on the blackout liner as soon as we started cutting it, I happen to love the look of light filtering through curtains, so we decided to pin up one with liner and one without to see what I thought the next day. 
The blinds are closed, and clearly there is just too much light coming through the fabric alone.  The two windows on that wall are east-facing so the light in the morning is crazy bright.  Not a good thing when mom wants a little extra sleep, huh?  And, there is a south window that could sabbotage afternoon naps while mommy is having a drinky.  Noooooo!
The lined curtain is much better.  I suppose a better test would have included blocking off the other two windows in the room, but OH WELLS. 
Another thing to decide....this fabric is a whopping 57 inches wide.  Even with side hems, that is a ton of width when you combine 2 panels on 30 inch windows!  Should I cut some width or just hang them wide and embrace the full look?
We are planning to do 'tabs' on the back of the curtains to make them fall nicely and avoid creating a rod pocket, like Kim did....so I'm considering making the tabs out of strips of fabric I cut off the sides.  Send me all your curtain-making posts, friends!  I sure need them.     

23 comments:

  1. ooh i love that fabric! it is awesome!

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  3. No advice, you guys are way more talented than I am at curtain-making. And I marvel at your curtain-pinning skills. First the kitchen and now this?

    The fabric is really so very cool!

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  4. I'm with Elise - last time I used a sewing machine someone got a needle through their finger so I have no suggestions. The fabric is so fab though that no one will notice if they are too full or not :)

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  5. I know jack about sewing, but dude that fabric is amazing.

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  6. use curtain rings, the curtains will drape in a narrower band of fabric. (I've done this with several homemade curtains.) Also, take it from a woman with three children, use blackout liners on all the curtains. ;-)

    I love how the fabric looks with the painted walls! I bet it picks up the yellow of the campaign dresser fabulously.

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  7. I love that fabric! Do you have a name for it? :)

    I also love the idea of curtain rings. No fuss, no muss!

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  8. We put up blackout liners in the nursery too. This mama wants to take advantage of all the nap time/wine time she can! :)

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  9. Standard rule of thumb for curtain width is 2-3 times the width of the window. If you were using a rod pocket I would suggest cutting the panels narrower. You can probably use the full width if you use Kim's method or use clip rings.

    Looks great so far!

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  10. Great fabric! Aren't moms who sew the best?!

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  11. The fabric is so pretty. I think once you add the back tabs to the drapes the curtains will hang how to want them and not look 'over full' for the window if that makes sense?

    When I made drapes last year for my dining room window, I used ribbon to create my back tabs, the result was super fast and much less sewing. Months later they are holding up perfectly :)

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  12. Love that fabric and love the blackout option!

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  13. I'd cut some of the width and use the extra fabric for fun projects that you - I mean Grandma - can sew up. My curtains are all 1.5x width of the window and I find its enough to look full yet modern.

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  14. I LOVE the curtains, Sara - and love the whole nursery, as a matter of fact! Definitely don't cut any width; they'll look skimpy. Blackout lining always adds more bulk than you expect, but I really think that's fine. Hang in there, and loved catching up!

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  15. Go ahead and use the full width, you and your mom are doing a GREAT job!

    I agree, instead of rod pockets, just use the clip on hoops, and then they are more easily adaptable anyways, just hand the curtains a little higher than you would have if you go to the clips.

    Great job, and I love the fabric too!

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  16. I like the idea of the curtain rings, but I hate the clip-on rings; so, when I did the cafe curtains in my kitchen, I found some at Home Depot (had to order them) that you sewed on.

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  17. About the start the same process and having the same blackout/non-blackout and width decision issues! I think I'm going to go with the iron on hem tape and clip method since my sewing machine is still in it's box. Whoops...you're right, this late in the game is not the time to learn how to sew!

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  18. I just have to say: SO happy you went for the black out lining!! I discovered that was one of the secrets to successful sleeping for Quinn (her nursery window is south-facing too). Something I was never told while prego!

    LOVE these chevron drapes to the moon & back. Baby boy's going to love his room (when he's not busy pooping/crying/sleeping).

    P.S. We're not only sexy kitchen gadget twins--we're sexy celeb fantasy twins too. Thx for playing along!

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  19. I love the fabric you chose - the colors are great. I think you'll be happy you chose the blackout liner. I don't get as much light in our room, but the blackout works miracles. A friend was visiting the other night and she couldn't believe how dark it stayed in the room.

    Also - you got an AWESOME deal on the blackout liner. I paid a small fortune for it and now I'm kicking myself.

    As for the width, I think I'd probably just stick with the width of the curtains, but that's because I'm lazy and the lines are already straight. For someone who is less lazy than I, a little width off the ends wouldn't hurt. Or you could just make extra wide "hems" to take off some width.

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  20. First, I adore that curtain fabric! It's so lovely!

    I prefer adding clips to the tops of my curtains (so I just end up sewing a straight panel with a hem on each edge) but I think tabs would look great here.

    I would opt for shorter width and would cut maybe 20" off of each 57" panel (pillow potential?).

    Good call on the black out material! I lined our nursery curtains in what I thought was total blackout material but it filters light... and now I'm looking at roller shades to help fix that.

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  21. Oh wow, I love the fabric!!! Can you share the designer?

    I did the same technique as Morgan and used the clip rings from Home Depot so I didn't have to make a rod pocket.

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  22. I love that fabric too! I would love to find some in girly-er colors for my daughters room. I am a new follower of your blog, and I am so happy to see what you are doing. Congratulations on your soon to be family addition!

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Thanks so much for reading....your comments mean a lot to me!
Sara