DIY // Painted Striped Curtains
There was that time I tried to paint stripes on polyester fabric and just when I thought it was going to be a total disaster, to my surprise, it turned out pretty well. (Thanks to my Instagram friends for encouraging me on!) Here are my newly painted striped curtains hanging in my office.
You might remember that before I painted the drapes, they were originally just black.
I researched how to paint fabric and read that you add Textile Medium 
to Acrylic craft paint, but one site said you could use acrylic latex, which is what I already had, so I used that. The directions say use 2:1 Paint to Textile Medium. I just eyeballed it.
to Acrylic craft paint, but one site said you could use acrylic latex, which is what I already had, so I used that. The directions say use 2:1 Paint to Textile Medium. I just eyeballed it.
The textile medium makes your fabric flexible without cracking after it’s painted. You are supposed to wash and dry your fabric before painting, then heat set with an iron.
After the first coat (which I applied with a small foam roller), it barely looked like I had painted at all- almost like grey tie dye.
By the third coat, I thought it was a lost cause and gave up. Also, I felt like my tape wasn’t sticking very well so I was pretty convinced that the lines were going to be a mess.
You can see that I folded over the curtain on the right side and just started painting with my son. After we were finished, I actually looked online to see if I could just buy some striped curtains but I couldn’t find any – except expensive ones on Etsy. I knew if I wanted these bold black and white striped drapes, I would have to make them one way or another, so I gave it another shot. One more coat of paint. . .
Finally, after two days and four coats of paint, the stripes were solid and bright white. And, I had very little bleed through the tape, just a couple of spots where I accidentally dripped from the foam roller. I tried to wash the paint out, but it didn’t come out completely. I used a black sharpie to cover any white paint mistakes.
I’m very pleased with the final result. Makes my office a happier place!
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They look great! So happy it wasn't a flop for you 🙂
Very cool! I will def try that!
Your curtains look great Megan! LOVE them. So happy to see this because I am considering a black and white striped rug for a room in my house. Now I feel validated! 🙂
They look great Megan! All it took was a little faith 😉 xxxx Lizy
They look amazing!!! I so need to try this!!
Love these!! Do you think it would be easier to buy white curtains and use black paint?
Hi! So sorry for the late reply, but YES! If you buy white curtains (canvas or cloth and not polyester, it would be much easier to paint. Of course, you have to be careful not to drip black paint onto the white curtains. I had a couple of white spatters that I covered with a black marker.
love the result!
They turned out so great Megan! Can't go wrong with a b + w stripe!
xo Kristin
They look great Megan. You did a wonderful job.
They look fantastic Megan. Good for you for sticking with it.
Painted?! This is brilliant, I really love how this turned out.
Looks awesome. I am always so impressed with all of your DIY work. You have true patience and talent 🙂
Those look fantastic! It is so tough to paint white over black. Way to persevere!
Wow, they look great! Love black and white stripes!
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So proud of you girl. They look awesome. Such a great space to get work done. LOVE!!!!!!!!
I love these! They turned out beautifully!!
They look GREAT!!! Like you bought them that way!
So glad you stuck with it! They make a huge impact in that room and now when you look at them, I'm sure you get more pleasure, right?
Wow! Those look amazing! I never would have guessed that you painted them!
It's fantastic! 😉
These turned out incredible – it's always nice when you persevere with a project and it turns out well.
Megan, they look great! The difference they make in kicking your office up a notch is huge. It's great that you persevered!
These look great! I have have some solid curtains I would like to try to transform.
I am looking for a white office chair, where did you get yours?
Here are my newly painted striped curtains hanging in my office. … bcurtains.blogspot.com
You go girl, very fabulous! I’m glad I found your article because I’m about to attempt this on some curtains with a damask pattern and I hope the fancy pattern shows through..??
Good luck girl, that sounds like a pretty project!