DIY: Ikat Infatuation and Simple Rod Pocket Curtains
Diane Schmidt
Ikat isn't a style that immediately comes to mind when thinking of Victorian houses. However, I've been searching for curtain fabric for months, now, for our little old Victorian house and I keep coming back to ikat!
I ended up buying these two fabrics for our glass front doors. The doors are both visible when you're in the living room/hallway, so hopefully they work well enough together.
I've already made the Maasai Mara curtains and hung them up and we love them! I happened to have an old white sheet (probably was my Grandmother's!) and it was the perfect size and weight for a liner. I made really simple rod pocket curtains and found super pretty vintage curtain tie backs so we can easily open the curtains during the day to let the light in.
Maasai Mara Maasai Grey curtains
We got these vintage curtain tiebacks from lilprotege on ebay-- one set for each of the front doors!
Making the curtains
I pinned the fabric and the liner right sides together, planning to turn them inside out.
All pinned and cut, and ready to sew!
Sew along all four edges and make sure to leave a few inches unsewn along an edge so you can turn the curtain inside out!
Here's the gap where you'll turn this inside out!
Turn inside out and make sure to poke the corners out! You can round the corners, too, if you prefer, by sewing the corners into a rounded shape before turning them inside out.
Press all of the sides and turn in the edges of the unsewn spot & press-- when you sew along the sides you will sew this shut, too!
Time to make the pocket for the rod!
Measure to make sure the fold is even all the way across and pin & press. Sew along the sides and bottom for a nice flat edge, and then sew across the bottom of the fold for the rod pocket.
Done! The pattern going across is a little uneven (left side higher than the right) but I count myself lucky because I didn't even think to match up the pattern on both panels while I was pinning and sewing! Next time I will be sure to pin the panels at the same time to ensure the pattern is perfectly straight all the way across.
A slightly more revealing view of how our hallway really looks! I can't WAIT until we can put the scaffolding and giant ladder away...
Here is the Braemore Spice Market Ikat Putty fabric! Can't wait to make these curtains! I had to buy liner from JoAnn Fabrics since there wasn't enough sheet left over. Looking forward to getting this done!
I also bought this fabric for the office-- but it's going to be a looong time before I make them into curtains!
And, along totally different lines, I fell in love with this fabric and bought enough for curtains for our bedroom. This fabric is so happy and bright-- like laying in a field of wildflowers! Very vintage looking.
Emily W. owns and operates Mothra Sue & Co., unique items for you and your home! Be sure to stop by and say hi!
