Curtains in the Office Complete

Thank you so much for wishing James well.  He is doing great and was definitely in a better mood this weekend.  We didn’t make it to the pumpkin patch, but we did take him to the Greek Festival on Sunday and had so much fun.  I hope your weekend was wonderful too.
I was able to finally complete the curtains for my office on Saturday night (yeah, that’s what Saturday nights look like at our place these days:), but I have to say, I may just hire a seamstress next time I want curtains made!  I found the perfect fabric (Waverly Bedazzle Silver Lining) and foolishly thought, “How hard can it be to make curtains??”  Ha! 

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My procrastination alone was probably enough to make it worth hiring someone.  I mean, I had the fabric for probably over a month before I attempted the curtains.  Then, I made one panel and it took another week and a half to get to the other panel!
I don’t know if you’d want to follow my method, which was basically to make two giant pillowcases and attach them to the rod with o-rings.  I drove myself crazy measuring and remeasuring so that both panels would be identical in terms of how the pattern hung. 
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James, Greek, Curtains 002 

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But the real pain was hanging the curtain rod.  My husband was able to place two brackets at the far ends of the window, but then the middle was bowing.  So he tried to put another bracket in the middle and wasn’t able to because he kept hitting what he thought was a stud in the wall.  NINE drill holes later, we realized there must be a steel plate above the window, preventing us from drilling any bracket into the wall in any area directly above the window.   Off to the hardware store for spackling and then using leftover paint to cover the patches. 
I ended up switching out the initial curtain rod for a sturdier one that we weren’t using and spray painted it silver.   I’m wondering if a bigger circumference rod would look better and not bow in the middle at all??

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I was somewhat terrified of ending up with high-water curtains so I made the length puddle just a tad.  And I can make them shorter simply by folding over the top side (where they are clipped to the o-ring) a little more.

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Although this was a not an easy project for me, I have to say that I do like the result of the new curtains.  And now, at parties, I can casually mention how I make curtains in my spare time. *wink*

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Update: This office has been updated quite a bit since this post was originally published, see how it looks now here.
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Meet Megan

Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!

52 Comments

  1. They look fantastic! And I totally get what you're saying about high-water curtains… it's happened to me, and I still haven't recovered 🙂 I love the fabric you chose, too!

  2. Go Megan, Go Megan! 🙂
    They looks awesome. I LOVE yellow & gray! Gorgeous fabric.
    And I love those clip on O-rings. I'm gonna have to use those for my craft room windows!

  3. They look fantastic! I love the pattern. If you are looking for a sturdier rod, you might want to consider doing what we did…buying metal piping and spray painting it. It won't be adjustable like the one you have now so it shouldn't bow. We put a center bracket on ours, but only because it was 13 ft and we ended up having to piece it together.

    Here is a post I wrote about it. Good luck!

    http://letsmakeitours.squarespace.com/lets-make-it-ours/2010/9/1/custom-13-ft-living-room-curtain-rod.html

  4. Youve done a fantastic job..they look awesome…and really make the room. I am soon to tackle the same project so Im not looking forward to all the little obstacles that Im sure will come my way when doing so…for eg: Not being able to even use a curtain rod as we live in a rental apartment…lol..how do I get around that one?..lol. x

  5. They look awesome. I really love that fabric. That is one of my all time favorite color combinations. Have so been there when trying to hang something and it turns into a ridiculous project. Way to pull through. And I love your desk! Very crisp and clean.

  6. Wow I love that fabric! And I hear ya, sewing drapes are for the professional. I have made many in my lifetime, and every time I remember why I hate to do it, even if it saves money. Yes, you guys are right, there is a metal plate above that window, {I think it helps keep water out around the window in the framing} now you know for the next hanging of treatments. I would go for a fatter white rod, that window can take it and it would be really nice with that fabric. Great job Megan, I am impressed.

  7. Not one to push as seen on tv crapola, but that mighty putty actually works. You could put it on the back of the bracket and smush it onto the wall. It would hold that center bracket where the steel plate is. Voila! No screws needed.

  8. they look awesome! love the fabric!

    i would just get another bracket & put that in the middle so it doesn't bow. you can pick those up anywhere.

  9. They look awesome! You did such a great job first time out. I hate those steel plates above windows. My daughter's dorm rooms as well as apartment has them! Yeh, the measuring, remeasuring, pattern matching gets time consuming and frustrating both.

  10. I love them! You did a great job. 🙂 Maybe a chunky wooden rod wouldn't bow as much? What a pain. At least they look pretty, that's all that matters. 🙂

  11. The custome drapes are stunning. Kudos to you for all your hard work. Trust me…I know what it means to have oodles of holes in your wall. I HATE hanging curtains in our home. I think we have steel plates edging each window.

    Cheers~
    e

  12. Love your "custom window treatments"! I think a larger curtain rod would definitely help your bowing issue…

    Happy Monday!
    xo Jade

  13. Love them! I have a similar pattern for some pillows I made. There is just something about grays and yellows and really make me all warm and cozy.

  14. I did line them and sew them. I figured since I had the sewing machine and all I should at least try.

    I do think a bigger rod would look better, so I'm looking . . .

    And the Greek Festival was really fun- I'll post some pics at some point.

  15. We almost went to the Greek Festival. How was it? The curtains look GREAT! I love the pattern. Also, we did go to Dewberry Farm. It was a great time, although it's definitely in the middle of nowhere! Have a great week! 🙂

  16. Those curtains look fabulous! I am loving damask right now so love that fabric!

  17. Meg, I totally love it. I want to stop by and see it in person! U are the best! U need to help me decorate my beautiful undecorated home… LOL

  18. LUV! LUV! The fabric, colour combo and the print…

    …can't wait to see the finished room…

    P.S. Love your space in the blogosphere…I'm a follower

  19. They look great! And I am sooo with you on the high-water curtain fear. A number of mine are a bit too long, since I would rather err on the long side than the short!
    Great fabric!

  20. So, I also have to ask…does your hubs complain when you ask for his help with decorating stuff, or is he pretty cool with it? Mine grouches a little bit, but he does like to help. My problem is his OPINIONS on everything. :s

    Thanks so much for joining my party! 🙂 Happy Weekend!

  21. Your new curtains look fabulous! I love your fabric choice. I know what you mean about measuring and remeasuring. It's so easy to make a mistake when you sew.

  22. The curtains are fabulous! You have inspired me! I think the rod width is good. You can try a bracket in the middle to secure it and eliminate the sag. Michele

  23. You did an awesome job! you should be very proud! I am now definitely inspired to tackle "sewing my own shower curtain"! I love the fabric you chose!

  24. What a great idea! And it matches so well. I really like the fabric you used. Thanks for linking up to Topsy Turvy Tuesday's!

  25. Megan, what a fabulous fabric choice – Love the colors and print. You work definitely paid off – fantastic job! I featured this on the Sunday Showcase post. Stop by and grab a button if you like. Thanks so much for linking up. Hope you are enjoying your week! ~ Stephanie Lynn

  26. Pretty. I made grommet top curtains for our living room and after that said never again. I wish I could have made them floor length but we have baseboard heaters. Still trying to come up with a solution, I was thinking about buying curtain rod extension brackets. That might keep the curtains away from the front of the heaters. But then I would have to make new curtains. Everything I have seen in the store is so boring, I like pattern and color.

    Here's mine:
    http://orange-sugar.blogspot.com/2010/02/tutorial-lined-grommet-top-curtains.html

  27. Hi sorry I've never been to your blog before. But I'm always surfing for cute ideas. I love how your curtains look, even if they were a pain. I was actually looking at another curtain DIY on some other blog and they had put a bracket? Rod holder? (ha wow) you know what I mean hopefully. . .Anyway they had put one in the middle of the rod between the two windows. It gave the middle support and distributed the weight preventing bowing. I don't know if you could find another one, but I thought I'd share the idea.

  28. PS I just realized you don't have two windows. But I think it would still look good centered over the window.

  29. We had the same drooping problem and couldnt get a middle piece to stay in the wall..

    We got a thick curtain rod from target and it works great! No droopy!

  30. Hi Megan,

    You did a fantastic job on the curtains. I'm also working on a grey/yellow room and I've been looking for curtains…these are awesome. How big is your window and about how many yards did you use? I'd love to try it out!

    Thanks!

  31. This sounds EXACTLY like what I have been going through lately. I was so frustrated. I had the holes, the spackle, the metal above the window, the stud, the droopy rods…everything. LOL But yours turned out great! Guess I'll have to just keep trying! 🙂

  32. We had the EXACT same problem when hanging curtain rods in our bedroom a few weeks ago! Apparently most new homes around here have a steel plate that is a storm brace above most windows. What a pain!

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