I spent an hour this afternoon putting together the curtains for one of the study windows. I’ll do the other two when I get back from Quebec. I frosted the large window as well as the one on the filing cabinet side, so they’re not as urgent. I didn’t want to do the one on the desk side since I like to see what’s going on outside. However, guests of this park are extremely rude and walk through my site to get to the facilities on the other side of the meadow. I wouldn’t mind if they walked on the far side of the site (it’s double-wide), but they walk right by the rig and take plenty of time to peak into windows. Yuck!
At any rate, I don’t sew, but I am well equipped for sewing. The other day, I took my cutting mat and tool (looks like a pizza cutter) and I went to the laundry room where there is a large table. I spread out the fabric, measured, and cut out all my panels.
Sometime in the spring, I bought some fusible hemming tape to try out in lieu of hand sewing. It’s a small roll, so I didn’t think I’d have enough to do all my curtains, but when I opened up the package I discovered that it’s a very fine product, kind of like a spider web, and that a roll will go a long way.
First thing to do, set myself up for ironing. Hmm… Oh, I’ve got it! Board down on study mattress, dish towel over board, and a damp absorbent cloth to substitute for an ironing cloth:
I started with the bottom, since it had a finished edge that would allow me to make a perfectly straight edge, which would guide me for the other sides. I did one panel, then used it as a guide to get the other one the same size.
The fusible tape is extremely easy to work with. I worked with foot-long sections at a time, folding the hem over it, applying the damp cloth over top, and pressing firmly with the iron for ten seconds. It was slow going, but the crisp edges were worth the effort.
For the top, I simply made a much larger hem so that the pole could fit through the top section. I got simple tension rods which fit snugly. For added protection, I had them rest over a valance bracket to give them a bit more support:
The fabric is long enough to cover these windows, but it is about two inches too short for the picture window. The fabric is just so perfect and there was exactly enough of it, except for those two inches, so I’m glad I have the valances to make up the rest!
End result:
