This weekend I finally finished sewing dark-out liners in our bedroom curtains. We've been in the house for over a year, and I have been slightly frustrated I haven't managed to get around to this task, rated as "medium" difficulty on my chore list. Even though the actual act of sewing is not too difficult (after I finally sat down, only took just over two hours for three panels), I had to jump through a number of mental hurdles before sewing.
1 - I had to decide if I wanted to use our super nice think lining material I had stitched into 84" panels in India. In HYD, we had two curtain rods per window, so it was easy to hang. In Manila, I recut (but never hemmed the edges) and safety pinned the lining to the existing curtains hung on one track. So, should I just keep the material to rig up in our next city (whenever or wherever that may be?), buying new liner here? Or should I use it?
2 - I don't really like our curtain color with our wall color. Should I even keep these curtains (which I actually do like) or just get new ones that coordinate better with the wall color? Will I have time to paint the room before we move (Greg doubts it)? Should I "upgrade" the curtains even if I decide to get new ones? If I "upgrade" them, will I get new ones? Will it force me to prioritize painting our room to a more neutral off-white rather than the brown?
After I finally decided to just use the lining I had (finally hemming the edges I quickly cut in Manila), with existing curtains, I then had more decisions.
3a - Do I properly measure and cut and tack the lining, so it fits and hangs well? I have four panels of lining, but only three curtains. The lining panels are about six inches too narrow. But I have only three curtains. So, I could easily cut some strips from the fourth panel, sew into each of the other panels, and then properly fit the lining to the curtains. The curtains are only 72", but the lining is 84", so I'd also have to cut and hem length
OR
3b - Do I just fit one lining per curtain as best I can, and then not worry about the fact that there's about 2-3" on either side of the curtain that is unlined? And, if I'm cutting that corner, do I just leave 6" at the top of the lining, or do I still properly measure and sew the seam?
In the end, I decided to just bootleg it, sewing a straight line across the top of the curtain, with six inches inside at the top. And I used safety pins at the bottom rather than tacking it down the side. My reasoning?
I really like the liners - we haven't found as thick or dar a lining (for as reasonable a price) since HYD. So, I didn't want to cut up the fourth panel. And I did want to keep the full 84" length in case we need that much in the next city (whenever or wherever that may be). And, not being sold on the curtains (since I might not get around to painting, let's be honest), I didn't want to invest in new lining. This way, all I need to do when we move is take out one straight seam, and I will once again have liners to tack or safety pin to whatever window treatments I might have in the future (whenever or wherever that may be). And with safety pins, I could finish the project quickly, before I got too tired or any boys distracted me.
Decisions made, five straight seams sewn, curtains hung, dark room this morning. Great.
Except, I know my grandmother is probably rolling in her grave, since cutting corners was not how she taught me to sew. Were she alive, I'd appeal to her Depression-Child side, pointing out how I'm saving and reusing material, again and again. Surely that must count for something in her book, right?
1 - I had to decide if I wanted to use our super nice think lining material I had stitched into 84" panels in India. In HYD, we had two curtain rods per window, so it was easy to hang. In Manila, I recut (but never hemmed the edges) and safety pinned the lining to the existing curtains hung on one track. So, should I just keep the material to rig up in our next city (whenever or wherever that may be?), buying new liner here? Or should I use it?
2 - I don't really like our curtain color with our wall color. Should I even keep these curtains (which I actually do like) or just get new ones that coordinate better with the wall color? Will I have time to paint the room before we move (Greg doubts it)? Should I "upgrade" the curtains even if I decide to get new ones? If I "upgrade" them, will I get new ones? Will it force me to prioritize painting our room to a more neutral off-white rather than the brown?
After I finally decided to just use the lining I had (finally hemming the edges I quickly cut in Manila), with existing curtains, I then had more decisions.
3a - Do I properly measure and cut and tack the lining, so it fits and hangs well? I have four panels of lining, but only three curtains. The lining panels are about six inches too narrow. But I have only three curtains. So, I could easily cut some strips from the fourth panel, sew into each of the other panels, and then properly fit the lining to the curtains. The curtains are only 72", but the lining is 84", so I'd also have to cut and hem length
OR
3b - Do I just fit one lining per curtain as best I can, and then not worry about the fact that there's about 2-3" on either side of the curtain that is unlined? And, if I'm cutting that corner, do I just leave 6" at the top of the lining, or do I still properly measure and sew the seam?
In the end, I decided to just bootleg it, sewing a straight line across the top of the curtain, with six inches inside at the top. And I used safety pins at the bottom rather than tacking it down the side. My reasoning?
I really like the liners - we haven't found as thick or dar a lining (for as reasonable a price) since HYD. So, I didn't want to cut up the fourth panel. And I did want to keep the full 84" length in case we need that much in the next city (whenever or wherever that may be). And, not being sold on the curtains (since I might not get around to painting, let's be honest), I didn't want to invest in new lining. This way, all I need to do when we move is take out one straight seam, and I will once again have liners to tack or safety pin to whatever window treatments I might have in the future (whenever or wherever that may be). And with safety pins, I could finish the project quickly, before I got too tired or any boys distracted me.
Decisions made, five straight seams sewn, curtains hung, dark room this morning. Great.
Except, I know my grandmother is probably rolling in her grave, since cutting corners was not how she taught me to sew. Were she alive, I'd appeal to her Depression-Child side, pointing out how I'm saving and reusing material, again and again. Surely that must count for something in her book, right?
1 comment:
Too funny. All the time I was reading I was thinking about Grandma :) and then there she was at the end of the post.
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