Who needs curtains when you have sheets?

If you come to my house you'll see that most of my curtains aren't perfect. It's because I generally make them or alter them myself. It's partially because I can never find curtains in the right color and size for the right price. It's also because I like to sew without patterns and curtains are one of the only things you can get away with doing this.

I don't have the patience to measure exactly. I just like to hit the pedal on the machine and watch it buzz away. Who cares if it's straight? ;-)

Back when I was still just a visitor at the house I owned, I bought a set of black King size sheets at Ollie's Bargain Outlet for like $20. They didn't fit the bed. Since Nate didn't have curtains, the flat sheet made the perfect item to drape over the bathroom window, which is really three windows in one. That's how it stayed.

We've since painted the bathroom a brilliant maroon color and kept the white beadboard and accented it with black stuff. See here if you missed the spray paint blog.

So the bathroom looks great, except for this crazy sheet neatly strewn over the window. (Sheets make great fabric for curtains. One end usually always has a nice finish, so you don't have to bother with extra sewing) So, a few weeks ago when I had the bug to rip up the dining room carpet and Nate said no, I took to a sewing project instead. I started on the curtain, finally. I had high hopes of making it look really cool with maroon stripes with leftover fabric I had. Didn't happen. But, I tried to get a little creative.

Most of the time, the curtain covers all three windows for privacy. It's a little crooked. But when we have company or I want to let some light in, I pull it together with a tie I made. You can't even tell. I just sewed a button onto some maroon ribbon and it holds back the curtain. I used stuff I already had around the house for a creative, modern looking curtain.


***If you want the curtain to last long and it's any color other than white, you'll want to sew a white liner to the back of the curtain so the sun doesn't fade the color. I usually sew it like a pillow case and then turn it inside out to hide the seams. It's a little complicated, but with a little practice, you are sure to come up with your own tricks and tips for sewing using sheets.