Draperies for the Bedroom

If you follow my homestead blog, then you know we've been working on a bedroom remodel. Most of it was done last fall and winter, spring and summer being the time for outdoor projects. At long last, we're finally down to the finishing touches. After shopping around for draperies, I decided to make my own. I found the fabric at Hobby Lobby.

I found drapery fabric to match the carpet we bought. Story on that here.

Then I found the perfect drapery DIY at 7 Layer Studio. I modified it somewhat, and am very happy with the results.My sewing machine is on the fritz, but no matter, I love handsewing and this was quick.

The gold thimble is one of my treasures. It
belonged to my great-grandmother, an avid quilter.

The grosgrain ribbon loops was a quick, clever idea, I thought. I only made them half as long as the directions.

The result is a very nice natural gather.

I also liked the idea of pinning the hem while the drape is hanging.

Because I had estimated the amount of fabric before we put up the rods, I decided I was a little short on length and needed to somehow lengthen the drapes while still getting a nice 4" hem. To accomplish that I sewed on a strip of lining fabric.

A faux hem made by adding a strip of lining fabric.

That way I had the weight of a 4" hem for the draperies to hang properly.

And there they are. I'm happy with them. The only things left to finish the bedroom are the carpet (what you see is padding on the floor in the photo above) and the door. Then it's done!

I See Sewing In My Future

Drapery fabric for our bedroom. Remodel almost done!

A Little Quilting

By Leigh

What better thing to do on a drizzly, damp, chilly, dark day than sit by a cozy fire ...

... and do a little sewing.

Thanks to our fireplace project, everything around here has been dusty and disorganized. With the new hardwood dining room floor to be put in next, the forecast is for more of the same, especially when we get to sanding it. So, weaving projects like living room draperies, and even sock knitting (I discovered that I can't find my needles) are on hold at the moment.

Still, I have to do something, which turned out to be an inspiration to make some pillow shams to match a comforter...

... which matches the green walls of our bedroom.

Initially, I had rag rugs in mind, so when I thought about sewing some pillow shams, I thought about making something that I could coordinate with a rag rug. I chose a very simple block pattern...

... and used a progressive color sequence which I can reproduce as a polychrome rag rug.

Quilting was my introduction to the world of fabric and textiles. Though it's been a long time since I've pieced any tops or done any quilting, I still very much appreciate the art.

At first I thought I'd do the quilting by hand. I used to have both a quilting frame and a quilting hoop, but I believe these were left behind along the way. I believe I still have some large embroidery hoops somewhere, but I'm really not sure where at the moment. So, I'm doing something I've never done before...

... quilting by machine. I appreciate how quickly it's going though and this is meant to be a simple project after all.

I'm not really following a pattern, but I did find instructions to sew mitered corners, here. There's lots of other good stuff there too.

© 14 October 2009 at http://leighsfiberjournal.blogspot.com

Related post:

Shams and Rags