Uncurtain Times Call For Innovation
There are times I've splurged on drapery/curtains - and in some locations it is worth the investment. The children's bedrooms have thick blackout lined curtains on easy glide rods and the few minutes of extra sleep the dark room affords is worth every penny. But there are a lot of spaces in our home where curtains are wanted aesthetically but not needed functionally. For these spaces, I have foregone the traditional rod and bracket and replaced them with something with a bit more character.
Before we start, these are the type of curtain rings we use. You can get enough for your entire house for under $12. Sturdy and easy to use on sewn drapes, shower curtains or even just simple panels of fabric. They also come in different finishes. You can also find similar ones at Hobby Lobby and Home Depot but the price is significantly higher :
Simple Creation
These farmhouse cornice boards make the perfect solution for hanging curtains in any space. The thing I enjoy most about them is how simple they are to create.
1) Measure the length needed for each window. This will be the width of the window plus how wide you want the curtains to be on each side. Left drape + window size + right drape
2) Cut wood to that width and lightly sand the edges.
3) Decide how many folds you want on each side. In our examples I used 6 or 7. So for each drapery panel, I knew I needed 7 points where the drapery would be attached to the wood.
4) Take the drapery area measurement for each side you used above in step 1 and divide it by how many touch points you decided on in step 3. In our example shown here I wanted 6 fold touch points and had 12 inches of drapery area to fill so I knew each touch point needed to be about 2 inches apart. Ya'll can relax now. The math portion is over.
5) Drill screws into the board at each touch point. These screws only go into the board, not into the wall so they do not need to be long. You will want them to stick out about 1/4-1/2 inch so you can loop the drapery rings on them later. In our example I was using a 3/4 deep board so I used 3/4 long screws. They stick out about 1/4 inch and do not go all the way through the wood. (Ok so a little more math).
6) So what you are left with is a piece of wood with screws on both ends. Now, find the studs in your wall over the window. They are typically right near the edge of the window. While one person holds up the board, another can screw directly through the board and into the studs. The weight of your drapes will determine how many screws into how many studs you will need to go. So just screw it right in. You can use touch up paint to cover those installation screws if you want but I think it adds to the charm.
7) Attach the same number of drapery rings to your curtain panel in even distribution. Put one on each edge and then work your way in to get them about even.
8) This is the fun part! Pop the rings over each screw and voila!
Budget Friendly
Drapery rods can be expensive. Pretty drapery rods can be downright absurdly priced, and when you add up how many windows you'd like them on in your home it can be discouraging. This solution is not only easy, it's very cost-conscious. In our examples, I used 6 x 1 boards from the Home Depot fencing section and they were less than $3/each. I used one board for each window. But you can use any width / depth board you like for your space and still likely be well under $5/window. Then you're just adding screws and drapery rings that you'd likely have needed with a traditional rod anyway. Rings can be found at most craft stores like Hobby Lobby, JoAnn's and Michaels and are also on Amazon. These come in different sizes and finishes - I usually get the small inexpensive ones :)
Wall Friendly
Nobody enjoys patching and painting walls when you move or change decor. With traditional rods you have brackets that require minimum 2 screws per bracket. If you need those brackets to be placed in areas without studs then you also need thick wall anchors which leave large holes in the wall. No bueno especially if you are renting. This method usually requires just 2 small screws directly into the studs for easy fill and paint if you change things up later down the road.
Privacy
We rarely close the curtains on these windows because they have blinds as well. But I wanted the ability to. So as an added feature in the center of our boards there is an additional small screw that I could use to close the curtains entirely. To do this I'd simply unhook all of the rings except the one on the outside and then link the inner most rings on the innermost screw. This would expand the drapes their full width and cover the window. If you open/close your drapes daily we will have more curtain tips for you in a separate post.
So that's it! It's simple, very inexpensive and you can use your existing sewn curtains or (if you're like me) just grab some pretty fabric and clip it up there! It's honestly the feature we get the most compliments on and I love knowing it's not the same as every house on our street.
Disclaimer : I have personally researched, purchased and use the products suggested above. I am also an Amazon Affiliate. Some of the links used are affiliate links. By buying through the links I may receive a commission for the sale from Amazon. This has no effect on the price for you.
Other posts you might find interesting!
Comments