Our recent road trip to visit Katie and tour her beautiful home gave us the boost we needed to jump back into projects at our house. We tend to work in bursts—full-on momentum for a few days, then a short break to recharge—and this trip reset our energy. The morning after the 9.5-hour drive I dove into photos, wrote a shopping recap, caught up on messages, drafted another post, and somehow found time to make dining room curtains that may be my new favorite thing in the whole house.
I adore these curtains. They came together in about an hour and a half to two hours, but look and feel much more involved. The fabric is a discounted Robert Allen find from a local fabric outlet called U-Fab. It was designer upholstery fabric marked down to a great price because of a small irregular stripe along one side—something I knew I could work around.
I wanted two panels about 90 inches long for the big picture window in the dining room, so five yards of the 57-inch-wide fabric gave me what I needed. That translated to roughly $32 per panel at the outlet price—much cheaper than the full retail cost for the same fabric.
Because we rarely open and close curtains for privacy (we use blinds for actual privacy when needed), these panels were designed to hang high and wide to let light stream in and to visually elevate the room. I rolled the fabric out on a 5 x 8′ rug in our office so I could get straight cuts by lining the fabric up with the rug’s edges. Then I measured 90″ for the length, cut the swatch, and ended up with a 90 x 54″ panel.
Because of the defect on one side, I trimmed about three inches from that edge but left enough to hide any remaining irregularity when I hemmed the panels. I used the first cut panel as a template to cut the second to the exact same size, then washed both panels so they would be pre-shrunk and easy to launder going forward. I pulled them fresh from the dryer to avoid excessive wrinkling.
I debated whether to use iron-on hem tape (my usual no-sew trick) or to break out my sewing machine and actually sew the hems. I decided to sew—partly to challenge myself and partly because sewn hems are more permanent. First I ironed a half-inch seam on the short sides, then folded that seam over one more time and stitched it down. That extra fold hid the raw edge and created a neat, finished hem that looks good from both sides. The ironed fold held well enough that I skipped pinning entirely.
The method worked equally well on the long edges. Folding and sewing the hem made the defect completely invisible and gave both the front and back clean edges. I used seven oil-rubbed bronze ring clips per panel and hung them on a long matching rod. The rod needed to be extra long to allow us to hang the curtains wide so they drape in front of the wall instead of directly over the window trim.
Hanging curtains is a two-person job at our house: one person stands on a chair to hold the rod while the other steps back to check how the curtain hits the floor. We adjust the rod height until it’s just right—sometimes fine-tuning many times—then measure and install the brackets. We also like to hang the rod high above the trim and extend it wide beyond the window so the curtain panels open fully to reveal the window and let light pour in.
In photos the room sometimes looks greener or more yellow than it does in real life because the foliage outside cast a tint through the window. Closer shots show the curtain color more accurately: mostly blue with accents of green, chartreuse, white, and brown. The pattern is lively without being overpowering, and it ties into other room accents like the deeper teal on the back of the built-ins and the yellow-green knobs on the base cabinets. Those unexpected color echoes make the room feel intentional and cohesive.
The curtains inspired me to set the table even though we didn’t have guests. A runner, napkins, plates, and a few clipped branches made the space feel inviting. I left everything in place so I could wake up the next morning, walk in, and smile—one of those small pleasures that makes home projects worth it.
The difference curtains can make is remarkable. Combined with the rich color on the back of the built-ins, the room already feels transformed from when we first moved in. We’re planning a large doorway to connect the dining room to the kitchen (to mirror the size of the picture window) and a chandelier over the table to add proper function and balance—right now the room doesn’t have ceiling fixtures, so a big light will help a lot.
When house hunting we try to see past furniture, wallpaper, and paint and imagine how the space could function for our family. Converting rooms and rethinking layouts is part of that vision. Have you made curtains lately, knocked down any walls, or set a table just for the joy of it? If you’re not a sewist, no worries—iron-on hem tape makes a great no-sew alternative for quick, washable curtains, and there are plenty of easy tutorials available for that approach.
