a drop in the bucket: tutorial

Sunday, September 18, 2011

chevron curtains- a tutorial

okay, so do you remember this post about my new curtains that i absolutely adore? well i promised a tutorial and that was like 3 months ago. i basically suck, i know. here it is nevertheless. this project definitely take patience and persistence, but the end result is SO worth. the money you save, and the drama these curtains bring to a room is amazing.

you'll need:

drop cloth

painters tape

ruler

about a quart of black paint (or whatever color you choose)

small sponge roller

hanging curtain clips

i started with a huge drop cloth from home depot. i wanted my curtains to brush the ground,

so i bought the 9x12 size.

lay your drop cloth out. you'll need a big space where kids can't get in the way. don't forget to put a tarp or something underneath when you paint, bc the paint will go through. don't cut your drop cloth yet, you'll do that after we're all done painting.

now you need to figure out your measurements. this was the most difficult part and i made my husband help with the math and stuff. here's a rough sketch of how i did mine. if you want bigger or smaller chevrons, you'll have to adjust.

i started a foot in from the left and 5 inches down from the top. mark a dot. mark another dot another foot in from the first one and 5 inches from the top, and so on till you reach the other side. these make up the points of the top chevron.

for the dip of the chevron i did 6 inches in and 11.5 inches down.

then for the bottom part of the chevron, i marked my dots just 6 inches below the top ones for the point and the dip. did i confuse you yet?

after you have all your dots measured and penciled, you can start taping. to make a perfectly pointed edge with painters tape, look at these next two pictures. hold a straight edge over your tape at the angle you want your edge and rip the tape towards you. works every time.

after tons of patient work and hopefully a helpful partner, you'll get something that looks like this.

(i know it looks like my "white" chevrons are smaller than the black ones will be, but it's

just an illusion bc of the edges of the tape.)

now is when the fun part comes in. i used flat interior paint and bought a cheap small sponge roller.

just roll that bad boy on like there's no tomorrow.

and keep rolling and rolling. you'll have to put it on pretty thick for it not to look blotchy.

once it's dried, you can cut it as you like for whatever window you're using it on. i cut mine straight down the middle and trimmed some off the bottom once i hung them. i also left he edges raw, but you can choose to hem them.

attach your curtain ring clips and your done! $30 vs $150?

yes please!

i hope someone finds this tutorial helpful. and if you choose to do them, please send pics!

good luck fellow dyi-ers!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

layered ruffle curtain tutorial

first things first.

i. love. ruffles.

for paisley's curtains, i wanted to re-create something like these land of nod curtains.

so i went to target and picked up some cheap gray sheets.

BUT, then i saw these and changed up my game plan before i started cutting.

this gorgeous curtain is from urban outfitters and retails for 80 bones!

it was pretty darn easy to re-create.

and so much cheaper.

here's how mine turned out:

(the girls' room is still a work in progress)

here's my first attempt at a tutorial.

here it goes folks:

i picked up a twin size sheet set from target for $15, the cheapest rod i could find, and

ring clips to hang the curtains.

1. take the fitted sheet and cut off the elastic edge.

2. then i cut the fitted sheet into 6" strips. they don't have to be perfect,

especially since the style of the curtain is a little sloppy.

3. after i cut the strips, i sewed them together to make loner strips.

4. then i ruffled them. there are many different techniques to do this. because i'm lazy, i just run my strips through my sewing machine, and as i do so, i gather or pleat the material. the messier and more uneven, the better. i did this with about 1/2 inch allowance.

continue to do this till you have long strips of ruffly goodness

5. now get your flat sheet out and cut it down the middle length ways. i wanted two panels, and the twin sheet covered my window perfectly. you might have to cut them down more for a skinnier window. or you could choose to do just one panel. after you make the cut, fold over and hem the raw side.

6. once you have some ruffles ready, you need to mark your lines on the panels. i started from the bottom and marked a line every 4 inches. do this 7 times. i did 7- 6" ruffle strips. then i tapered them towards the top. more on that later...