Sunday, January 22, 2012

Striped Curtain Tutorial

I am obsessed with all things striped.  Look in my closet and you'll find stripes.  Stripes in the hallway?  I've got those too.  Lately I've been loving the look of striped curtains.

I've got a little round-up of striped curtains that other bloggers have made using different techniques, then I'll show you the striped curtains that I whipped up. 

The Nesting Place was one of the first places that I noticed horizontally striped curtains and started thinking about putting them in my home.  She used striped fabric to sew panels.

Perfectly Imperfect painted her curtains with chalk paint.  These look so beachy to me.



Camilla at Effortless Style used spray fabric paint on white panels to get this look.


Sarah at the Yellow Cape Cod used a different technique.  She already had white panels and used fusible fabric webbing to attach strips of black fabric to her panels.  Then she attached grosgrain ribbon along the edges.  The ribbon gives such an elegant, finished look.



These curtains at A Thoughtful Place were made by sewing strips of different colored fabric together.


I have no idea how these were made, but I love them too much not to include them here.



I am not the best seamstress and the thought of having to sew perfectly straight lines was too frightening for me.  I knew I wanted to start with premade white curtains and the easiest way to make stripes was to paint them on.  I painted stripes in the hallway and it was surprisingly easy.  So, I decided to use the same technique for painting the curtains.



I purchased some inexpensive white panels from Target.  I think they were around $20 for a pack of two panels.

Next, I taped off my stripes in seven inch intervals.


I used regular old acrylic craft paint to paint the stripes.  However, I added a fabric medium to the paint.  The fabric medium makes it so that the paint will not wash off when I wash the curtains.  Since these curtains are going in a child's room, it's essential that the curtains are washable.

I started by using a foam roller to roll the paint on.  The paint did not want to spread evenly across the fabric and it was taking forever to get the fabric covered in paint.  After two stripes, I switched from the foam roller to an old paintbrush.  The paint went on much better with the paintbrush.  Be sure to put some cardboard under the fabric as the paint bled through.


The fabric seemed to take the paint differently.  Some areas did not absorb the paint very well.  I think you need to goop lots of paint on the fabric to get good coverage.  As you can see, I still need to do a second coat on some of the stripes.

The stripes are a bit stiff and crunchy, but I think they will soften over time, especially after being washed.


As you can see, there are lots of ways to make striped curtains.  I'm happy with the paint method, but check out the other links if you want to try something different.

Linking up to some of these great blogs:
Today's Creative Blog, Sugar Bee Crafts, Not Just a Housewife, Reasons to Skip the Housework, Bella Before and After, Primitive and Proper, Home Stories of A to Z, Savvy Southern Style, DIY by Design, Tip Junkie, Type A Decorating, http://sistersstuff.blogspot.com/, The Thrifty Home, Domestically Speaking, Primp,
A Diamond in the Stuff, Restore Interiors, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Somewhat Simple, Beyond the Picket Fence, Fireflies and Jellybeans,My Simple Home Life,
Addicted 2 Decorating, Just a Girl, Remodelaholic, Miss Mustard Seed, Finding Fabulous, Tatertots and Jello, Under the Table and Dreaming, Thrifty Decor Chick, Coastal Charm, Junker Newbie, Serenity Now

15 comments:

Carol-Anne said...

Sorry to sound like a dunce, but this is something I'm planning to do ASAP, so I need to ask: How much fabric medium do you add to the paint? How many coats did it take? How long did you wait before you removed the tape? Till it was dry? Or when it was still wet? How long do you wait before you can wash them?

Ok. Sorry to bombard you!

natasha {schue love} said...

What a great tutorial! Totally want to try this in our living room!!

Lisa @ Lisa Moves said...

I love striped curtains! These came out wonderful!

Cassie Bustamante said...

ooh i love the color!! they look awesome!

Holly Gruszka said...

I've always wondered about these and since a sewing machine is out of the question at this point I've always wondered about painting - nice to see what you have done and what types of hiccups you experienced too. But overall I think it's a great look and doesn't break the bank. And they look great hung up - which is key!

Linda {Calling it Home} said...

Cool! I have never painted on fabric.Danylle, in the One Room Challenge, painted on chairs. Maybe you need a chair to match? Looks great.

Homestyling101 said...

I am crazy for stripes, too! I haven't had the courage to stripe out my daughters white curtains that I bought with those intentions...thanks for all the options! They look great...loving orange, too!

Tiffany said...

Hi,
I'm new to your blog. Your curtains turned out great. I love the look of striped curtains and it was great to see so many different techniques.

Chad, Mindy and girls said...

Suzi, you are so talented! Love, love, love the striped curtains...I'm going to have to find a place in my house for those :)

Kim said...

Love the stripes too ... so fresh and fun ... and love the bright colors! Way to Go!

Crafty Texas Girl said...

I made these too! So here is what I learned from my project: I had to do several coats and they are a bit stiff, but you can use the stiffness to your advantage. They hold the 'pleats/folds' of the curtains better. And if you set the curtains off to the sides of your window- the window will look larger and the light won't bleed through the paint. Love your orange- it's the color of 2012!
http://www.craftytexasgirls.com/2011/09/crafty-how-to-painted-curtains.html

Found you via TCB, love your blog!
:) Samantha

A room with a view said...

Thanks for sharing this Suzy! All the pictures are inspirational and your project, too, makes it look easy. The curtains look great installed..the room looks like it is coming together.

Lisa @ Shine Your Light said...

They look great, Suzy!!! Love the contrast in colors - so fun! I painted those same white Target curtains in my last house. The buyer asked for them when were were negotiating so apparently us bloggers know a little something! :)

Dana Frieling said...

You can't go wrong with stripes! Loving that you went with orange. Great work.

The Southern Product Queen said...

Wow! Love the curtains! I am so doing this for my house! I hope you don't mind! I love stripes..(and polka dots)! This is a great post! I'm having a linky party as well, and would love for you to join it! Here is the link http://www.thesouthernproductqueen.com/one-stop-s... Thanks for sharing!