DIY Curtains

 As a designer, I have to say that the most impactful/important things in a room are draperies and rugs. People will notice both of these items way before they will notice a sofa or chair. Most of the time these can be the most costly pieces in a room. In the field that I work, most of my clients will spend anywhere from $1500-$5000 on a single window. That is just not in the budget for our house right now so I have come up with some budget saving drapery alternatives:

These buffalo check panels have a silk look to them but are not silk. I bought these panels from Wal-Mart for approximately $15 each. I love them because they have almost every color in my house on them (green box for my green kitchen, red for the front living room, and a green/blue for our master bedroom).

My big splurge lately was on our dining room/front living room panels. I have had my eyes on these for quite a while. I bought these puppies on sale for approx. $89 per panel from Pottery Barn.

I took it as a sign that I was suppose to have these beautiful draperies when I saw them on one of my favorite shows..."Modern Family."

Here are the curtains in our master bedroom. They are from World Market (one of my fav stores). I love them because they have a burn-out pattern on them and they are very light and airy.

Then I started getting crafty and making my own curtains. For our guest bedroom that has twin beds, I had just finished (and when I say finished I mean that everything has been purchased but not yet made) making duvet covers out of sheets. So I took some ready-made, tab top panels that a friend gave me ($0). Then I took the pillow cases that I had left over from the sheet set that I used to make the duvet covers and made these curtains. I took the stitching out of 2 sides of the pillow cases and then cut it into 3 strips. I then gathered them to create the ruffle and attached the pieces to the ready-made curtain. I love the way they turned out:

The other guest bedroom still does not have a definite design direction. I have an awesome antique quilt on the bed with a white linen duvet cover. I had hoped to incorporate some yellow into the room, so when I saw these table cloths at Target I decided that these will work for now. I haven't even invested in a curtain rod yet...these have been put up with push pins. Definitely this is the room that is still a work in progress.

And last but not least, this is the room that I just finished yesterday. Months and months ago (like probably 6...yes I have crafting ADD), I bought two shower curtains from Target. I loved the pattern and the fact that it was a fabric shower curtain. However, the curtain was not nearly long enough so I decided to go to JoAnne's and get a coordinating fabric. And with just a couple of straight stitches, Philip's office now has curtains. This project was easy and very inexpensive (cost about $40 each). None of these prices include hardware, but I tend to go to Ross to find good deals on drapery rods ( I would say they average around $14-$24 each... definitely not bad).

Just a quick side note: I found these pictures on Etsy a while back and absolutely love them. They are printed on real antique dictionary pages and were only $7 each. I framed them in black frames with large white mattes (also on sale at Target). There were so many stamps to choose from, but we tried to pick three that related to Philip (and the moose is probably more me).

 These are the rooms that I have left to put draperies:

Our loft area/ gameroom/ craft space

This is our kitchen windows awaiting a valance one day.

Good luck with decorating your windows!