Curtain Solutions: Part 1

     This house has a ton of windows.  Seriously, from where I'm sitting, I can count 11 windows- and that's only TWO rooms.  Big windows, tiny windows, over-sized windows... you name it, there's a window for it here.

     I don't know about other renters out there, but if I had to buy ready-made curtains every time I moved, I'd have a closet filled with nothing but curtains.  It seems as if no two homes ever had the same size windows.  I've learned to get crafty when it comes to window coverings, though, and I'm going to present several ideas over the next month that you can use on your own windows.

DIY Curtains for an Over-Sized Window

     Our living room has a ginormous picture window.  The dimensions are 9 foot 8 inches wide by 6 foot high.  Add in that it's a foot and a half off the floor, and that's a whole lot of space to cover.  Luckily, the landlord left us some sheers in the right size.  Personally, I was content to stick with sheers for a while... then IT happened.

Forgive me for recycling a picture, but I TOLD you this road was the view out my front door.  I wasn't kidding.  I was standing next to my mailbox when I snapped this.

     See that?  It's a road... directly across the street from my living room.  Why is this a problem?  Well, let me draw you a mental image.  Imagine it's late at night and with the kids already in bed, you're enjoying a night at home watching TV on the couch.  You're already in your nightie and stretching out to enjoy some quiet time with the Hubs and the latest episode of Top Chef.  Then you realize the folks pulling out of the street across from your couch can TOTALLY see you making out with your Hubby through those sheer little things you'd called curtains.  Yeah, not cool.

     I scoured the stores looking for curtains large enough to cover the space, but comparable sizes were running over $50 per panel.  We're talking AT LEAST A HUNDRED BUCKS- all to get some measure of privacy.  I finally wandered through Target and doubled back as something caught my eye:

It's even red and golden yellow- two of my favorite colors!

    Hmmm... it's big enough to cover half the window easily.  The price is awesome ($15).  I've got a plan.

     Score!  These are less than $5 per set!

As the top layer to the sheers, it's so cute!

    Putting it all together is a cinch!  If you can open a clothespin, you can use these curtain hangers.  I put them along one of the already hemmed edges, then, simply thread the curtains onto the curtain rod.

Cost:
2 Tablecloths @ $15/each
2 Bags of Clips @ $4.89/each

Total: $39.78
Total Time: 5 minutes



     The best part to me is that, while I own two sewing machines, I didn't have to break either one out!