File this under “A lazy mom’s trick to get more sleep.” I made no-sew, unbelievably easy DIY blackout curtains — not the professional method, just a fast, practical shortcut that actually works.
Why blackout curtains? Although the faux wood blinds in Clara’s room blocked a fair amount of light, I wanted the room to be truly dark during daytime naps. Blackout fabric makes the room pitch black even in the middle of the day, which can help lengthen short naps. I went to JoAnn and bought 5.5 yards of blackout fabric — it felt like the material used on roller blinds. With a 50% coupon, the whole project cost me about $15.
How I made blackout curtains
- I measured the existing curtain panels first and bought 5.5 yards of blackout fabric.
- I washed the fabric. It was labeled dry clean only, but the store associate recommended a cold wash and air dry, and it was fine.
- I unclipped Clara’s two curtain panels and laid one panel on the blackout fabric as a template on the floor.
- I cut two blackout panels to match the sizes of the curtain panels.
- I considered sewing three sides of the blackout fabric to the curtain panel, then turning it right-side-out and hand-sewing the top closed, essentially creating a finished liner like a pillow cover.
- But I only had four minutes before nap time and wanted to test whether the blackout liner would help.
- So I clipped the blackout fabric behind the existing curtains using ring clips on the curtain rod — no sewing required. The weight of both layers made them drape naturally, and from the room’s perspective the curtains looked the same as before but with the blackout layer hidden behind.
I’ll probably sew a few sides later when I have time and patience, but for now the quick clip-on method works well. Since adding the blackout liner, Clara has increased her naps from about 45 minutes to roughly 90 minutes for the past two days — a welcome change — and she’s also sleeping straight through the night for 12+ hours (about 7:30 p.m. to 8 a.m.). She’s always been a good night sleeper, so the blackout liner mainly helped encourage longer daytime naps. As a bonus, her usual 7:30 a.m. wake-up has slid back to about 8 a.m.
These DIY blackout liners cost about $15 and took roughly 15 minutes to prepare. That small investment and little bit of time has been worth it for the extra sleep we’ve gotten. Life’s been hectic — we’ve been up late finishing book work — so those extra morning minutes are very welcome.
Have you tried any simple shortcuts lately? Clara’s nap schedule has surprised a few visitors. When the Bowers were here, their son napped for three hours and we were a little jealous of that long stretch of quiet time — imagine how much you could get done with three uninterrupted hours. Still, we’re grateful for Clara’s consistent night sleep and the fact that we can put her to bed at 7:30 and get to work by 8:00.
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