How to Make Simple Window Curtains Without Sewing

If you would like to make curtains for your home but don’t know one end of a sewing machine from another then don’t worry – there is a way! A way where you don’t have to even do as much as pick up a needle and thread. There are many reasons why you might like to make your own curtains. Maybe you have seen some great fabric but it is not available in ready made curtains. Maybe your windows are a non standard size and the cost of custom curtains is too much. Maybe you just feel like being creative.

Whatever your reasons you can easily make simple curtains in an afternoon and then embellish them to your hearts content with or without a sewing machine or having to sew them by painstakingly by hand. As well as your fabric, you will need a steam iron and iron on double sided fabric tape which acts as a fabric glue holding seams together. You will need to be able to press the fabric using your iron so check that the fabric is suitable for this.

1. Measure and Cut

To create one curtain panel (for a pair of curtains), measure your windows and cut a piece of fabric which is the width of the window plus 4 inches and the length (or drop) of your curtains plus about 10 inches. Remember to measure from where your curtain rod is fixed when measuring the length you require.

2. Neaten the sides

Fold in the two sides of the curtains by one inch towards the wrong side of the fabric and press and then fold in another inch and press again. Make sure the seams are straight then, following the instructions on the fabric tape, use this to fix the seams neatly in place.

3. Create the Casement Header





The seam at the top needs to be an open channel which will allow the curtain rod or pole to pass through easily so this will depend on the size of your curtain rod. If the diameter of the curtain rod is one inch make a three inch channel. Do this by folding the top of the curtain under one inch and pressing using the fabric tape to fix this neat edge and then creating the three inch channel by folding in a further 3 inches on the wrong side of the curtain and fixing the fabric tape along the lowest edge of the seam.

4. Hang the Curtains

Hang the curtain on the rod and mark the correct level for the bottom of the curtains.

5. Finish Off the Curtains

Trim the curtain if necessary if there is too much fabric to create a neat hem along the bottom edge. Create the bottom seam by folding in one inch to neaten the edge and fixing this with the iron on fabric tape then fold in the remaining excess fabric and fix with the tape to create a curtain panel of the right length.

Note that when you are making a pair of curtains follow these steps for each curtain together so that you match seam allowances and length and so on.

Janice Wood has a site dedicated to helping you make the best decorating decision when it comes to curtains. Window Curtains Online will help you to choose the right curtains for each room and save money when you buy them. Plus it has all the information you need on styles, fabrics and shopping. See http://windowcurtainsonline.com/

How to Make Simple Window Curtains Without Sewing
By Janice Wood