Drop Cloth Curtains!

One of the items on my March to-do list was to get some new curtains up in our bedroom. I feel like the bedroom is almost always the most neglected/undecorated room in the house... mostly because - how many people really see it? Other than you and your hubs AND it's kinda a catch all for us too. More often than not when we move an item from the kitchen/dining/den/living area it goes to the bedroom... same for pictures, candles, un-wanted furniture, etc. ...you get the picture.  It also doesn't help that we're currently in a tiny 700 sq. ft. rental and our king size bed, beautiful Pottery Barn bedding and monogrammed sheets are also still in their original packing. :( {I just hope I don't change my mind when we finally get  to pull it out} So, we have the "guest room bedding" for now, along with my great-grandparents furniture, which is pretty cool. After looking at it more, I decided it was time to put some effort into our room.  First came the bedding, we picked up a nice gender-neutral coverlet and new white sheets... and I made a couple of burlap pillow cases for our square pillows to match the new lamp and burlap shade.  It was starting to come together, but I really wanted to make a statement with some nice new curtains. After trying out lots of colors and pallets, I decided to try my own drop-cloth curtains. They were a little more than a simple craft project, because of the time involved in the process, but they were worth it!

I purchased two 6 x 9 ft. drop cloths from Lowe's fro $10 each. I also picked up some Rit dye in royal blue from Wally fro $2.95.  Add in a can of salt for 44 cents and you're set.

As I was ready about "Do-It-yourself curtains" I came across Merrypad, and she mentioned some cheap, but cool new curtain clips from where else, but Wally.  I picked up two packs for $2 each. A STEAL!! They may be cheap, but who really gets that close to see them... and they are kinda cute too!

The process took me several days, but I think you could get it done in a day if you had the time to spare.  I started by soaking the cloths in the tub - not sure if this is necessary, but it said to use wet cloth, so I did.  Next, I added the full bottle of dye and a cup of salt to the wash - using the hottest and largest setting you have.  I washed twice, one after the other and then once more with detergent.  {Note to self - if you want dark curtains, use twice the amount of dye. The whole bottle of dark blue dye turned my drop cloths light grey/blue. It turned out very pretty for me, but if you want to go darker, you may want to add more.} After washing I dried them on low heat for an hour. They came out nice and fluffy and a beautiful shade of blue!  Immediately when you remove the cloths from the washer, you'll want to run another load to rinse it. I used a cup of bleach and detergent and it worked great!

Next, I ironed and starched both cloths.  Then I placed them on the ground and cut each into two 3 x 9 ft. sections to give me panels for each side.  After cutting, I used stitch-witchery to hem the sides.  It may have taken longer than sewing, but it made for a nice smooth seem. I left the hemmed sides just as is, but if I time in the future I may finish those off as well for consistency.  I left the bottom long so I can hopefully re-use them in another room later. They look kinda nice long... and you can't even see the ones behind our bed.

Living in a rental, we try not to make too many holes in the wall, or get attached to too many things... but, I convinced the hubs that the curtain rods had to go up at least a foot. Check out the difference it makes to the entire room - AMAZING!

 

I am SO happy with how they turned out. I love snow days when I don't have to work... I get so many projects done. :)  For those of you who also had a snow day, I hope you had a much fun as I did!