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How To Make No Sew Ikat Curtains For A Kids Room

Some people who went for a pattern like this on the daybed might go for something neutral and simple for the windows (like breezy white curtains). Others might pluck one of the colors from the blanket and go for that (bold red cotton panels, taupey-gray velvet ones, etc). We might have been tempted to go with something more neutral and safe if the room wasn’t meant for our color loving kiddo (so the bedding could “be the star”) but since it’s Clara’s new space, and we love kid zones with a few layered patterns and colors, we decided to just go to our favorite local fabric outlet (U-Fab here in Richmond) and see what grabbed us. And by us I mean Clara. It’s her room, after all…

Curtains 1 Bedspread Fabric

Like a moth to a flame, this happened:

Curtains 2 Clara Hiding In Fabric

She had some fun playing with a few crazier options (a bright orange one with large coral on it, a dark purple plaid, etc) but this one was definitely something she pointed at a few times – and we thought it actually could work – especially since it has navy and white in it, which are two of the colors we’ve mentioned wanting to add to balance all the pink & red.

In short: Clara’s clearly a decorating genius. Just kidding. The truth is that there are probably a ton of fabric options that could layer nicely into a kids room when it comes to curtains (as long as they’re not too “alpha” they’d fall in line behind the bedding and a bright rug without totally disappearing). But we did like that there was a very very very subtle chevron-ish pattern going on (the blurry linear edges actually reminded us a lot of her daybed blanket). And the price wasn’t too scary…

Curtains 3 Price Tag

… especially with a store-wide 20% off sale that was being offered on top of that discounted price. So in the end we got just a smidge over ten yards to make four extra long panels for the room, which each broke down to around $25 per panel after the sale.

Curtains 4 UFab Sign

When we got home and tucked Clara in for a nap, I rolled out my bounty and started cutting my four panels from the roll (because let’s be honest she’d yank this every which way while I was trying to measure and cut if I tried to do this while she was awake).

Curtains 5 Fabric Laid Out

The simplest way for me to measure for panels is just to see how long I want the finished curtain panels to be (ex: 89″ high) and then add two extra inches to the length of each panel to account for the hems on each end that I’ll add. So each of the four panels that I cut was 91″ long and then was hemmed to a finished size of 89″, which might not sound that long but I love hanging my curtains on a rod with rod clips, so those tend to add a little length too. That way the rod can be mounted just a few inches below the ceiling like I like it (we left some extra room for crown molding which we’ll be adding in here down the line). Oh and I use the full width of the bolt for the curtain’s width, which means less cutting, and they’re as thick and full as possible that way.

I’m a fan of using one panel as a template for the others. So once I measured out and cut the first panel, I just placed it on top of the fabric under it and made three more of them in exactly the same size for a grand total of four soon-to-be curtains.

Curtain 6 Matching Up Cut

Then I used my trusty hem-tape method, detailed here and here. For over half a decade I’ve used the heavy duty Heat N Bond stuff, and it has not only held up amazingly but it can even be washed, so I’m definitely a fan. I’ve also sewed curtains and actually think the hem-tape ones look crisper and straighter since keeping my stitching straight isn’t as easy as following hem tape with an iron for a nice straight hem. Like so:

Curtains 7 Ironing Them

Oh and it always helps to wash your fabric first (before cutting and hemming it) so it’s all pre-shrunk!

As for the curtain rods and ring clips, we actually had them already (remember we had hung them back here?), we just removed them to paint the room so we could re-hang them at the height of our freshly made curtains. So here’s John’s tricky little tape move for hanging the rods (he folds some painters tape under the hole he’s making so it sticks out like a ledge and catches the drill-crumbs).

Curtain 8 Drilling Wall

For the detail loving folks, we used these plastic anchors (we like to make sure our rods are held in with more than just a few screws in case a kid hangs on the curtains – which we’ve found results in just the fabric slipping out of the ring-clip’s “mouth” instead of the whole rod banging down on them).

Curtains 9 Anchors And Screws

Bada bing, bada boom. Clara done good with her curtain choice, we think. They sort of look black and white in these pics, but they’re really navy in person, and we plan to bring more navy into the room in a bunch of other ways (picture some navy picture frames on the wall, a navy pillow or two on the daybed, maybe even a navy light fixture or ottoman in the middle of the rug). That will “link” the curtains to the rug and the daybed a bit more, so they won’t look as random. Should be fun to inch towards a more finished look. You know how impatient I am…

Curtains 10 After Full Room

While the room keeps slowly evolving, I’m soaking up the little things. Like the fact that the curtains almost touch the floor but don’t (it keeps them cleaner and helps them hang in a fuller, loopier way). Oh and here’s one more hanging tip: clip the rod rings to the rod and to the fabric and have someone hold them up at different heights until you like the way they hang and then mark the wall and hang them at that height. That way they won’t be dorky short or too long. It definitely beats trying to guess the length of the curtains while hanging a bare rod (if the actual curtains are on the rod they can help you pin down the perfect height).

Curtains 12 Floor Detail

Oh man, it still feels pretty empty in here (and that old fan practically pokes John in the eye every time we’re in there) but we can actually picture more things being layered in now. Like our kids table and maybe an ottoman to break up all the pink in the rug plus a ton of playful art to add balance. Here’s the ol’ to do list:

  • paint the room (more on that here)
  • cut down our old den side table to make a play table (more on that here)
  • bring in a dresser (we’d love to find something secondhand) (more on that here)
  • make/hange some curtains
  • add a rug (more on that here)
  • hang art on the walls along with a few other 3D objects that we have in mind (how’s that for cryptic?)
  • install a new light fixture
  • refinish or paint Clara’s new dresser (which we got here)
  • paint the chairs a bright happy color to go with Clara’s play table
  • turn the junked up closet into an actual clothes closet/reading nook
  • add crown molding (along with tackling the other un-crown-molding-ed bedrooms on this side of the house)
  • add accessories like more pillows, storage bins for toys, etc

Sounds like a good time to me. I know, I’m crazy. Kids rooms are so much fun though! What have you guys been up to? Anyone else making curtains or letting their kids help with fabric or paint choices? Do you use the hook-the-curtains-to-the-rod-and-then-hang-the-rod trick too? It took us a few years to figure that out, but it seems to be a lot more exact that trying to measure curtain length and account for the height of the ring hook and the rod itself (we used to be off by an inch or two after all that calculating and then we’d have to re-hang them again to fix our mistake). Oh well, live and learn!

Psst- The latest roundup of Clara Conversations are up on Young House Life, and let’s just say there are a few gems – at least according to us, her obsessed parents.

Comments

  1. Gretchen Brown says

    Love love love!!! (As always.) One more tip to those making their own drapes – if you plan to machine wash them in the future, I HIGHLY recommend washing the fabric before you measure and cut it. I’ve had fabric shrink up 6+ inches on me in the past!

    Reply

  2. Athena Warner says

    I love how you guys are putting this room together. It feels different from your other spaces, and that feels “right,” you know? It’s more like Clara’s Space.

    Because of certain parenting choices we’ve made (like co-sleeping instead of crib sleeping), our baby girl’s “room” is really a corner of our master bedroom. But, with our new apartment with a bigger second bedroom, we’ve been able to slowly start transforming it into a playroom/office! It’s been so much fun having a space to decorate that can feel more “her” than our bedroom does (sorry, kiddo, but Mommy and Daddy need Their Space), but we’re smack dab in the middle of it and WOW. The middle really doesn’t make any sense at all. But, I just know it’s going to be great once we finish it…I just have to keep my impatience to finish it in check! It’s hard!

    Reply

  4. Dehdee says

    Totally loving the curtains and the way they hang! The color and pattern really brings out the pink in the room (by the way, your little Clara is adorable and has fabulous taste!!!) What kinds of curtain hooks did you use and how did you sew those onto the curtains??

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      They’re just ring clip hooks, so you don’t have to sew them at all. They just go on your rod and clip to the rectangle of fabric below them to make a curtain :)

      xo
      s

  5. Kim says

    Ditto on being excited about crown moulding! I want to do it in my bedrooms too. Any idea about when that might happen? No pressure, just wondering.

    Reply

  7. Ginny says

    Clara’s big girl room is coming along great! I can’t wait to see what else you guys have in store!

    Thanks for the tips for making the curtains! I’ve had some murky plans to make some for our living room sometime soon, but I hadn’t taken the time to get a clear outline of a plan. So, woohoo! Curtains shall commence soon!!

    Can’t wait to see you guys in Atlanta!!!

    -Ginny

    Reply

  8. Stephanie says

    GURL. I have been looking for something **EXACTLY** like this fabric for months and haven’t been able to find it. I almost did this one – http://lsfabrics.com/fabric/jiri – but wasn’t sold. THANK YOU for posting this because, like a hooker, I just cleaned them out of the remaining 9 yards to squeak together a few panels.

    Clara has excellent taste!!!

    Thanks,
    Steph @ CovetLiving.com

    Reply

  11. jenny says

    they look great and i love that she helped pick them out! So cute!
    I am always torn because I love the clean, crisp look of simple white sheers in certain spaces but I also LOVE to mix colors and patterns whenever I can.

    Reply

  12. Ashley says

    I really love Clara’s taste in fabric! It really helped the room come together just by adding some curtains and the pattern plays off the blanket on the bed which I’m in love with! Can’t wait to see the rest….!

    Reply

  14. Dana says

    Do you ever pre-wash your curtains before hanging to avoid shrinking (and that dorky too-short look) later on? Or has that not been an issue? Thanks!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yes, that’s a great tip! I didn’t do it this time (I’ve learned with ring clips if things shrink up a bit just clipping them less deeply seems to save them for the most part) but I have pre-washed in the past and it has been great “insurance.”

      xo
      s

  16. Abby says

    I love it! I’ve been such a Boring Betty when it comes to layering prints. Seems like my boys room might be a good place to start! So inspired

    Reply

  18. Heather @ What Does She Do All Day? says

    Clara has great taste in fabric! I wish we had great fabric store like U-Fab in our area!!

    I let my daughter pick the wall color for her bedroom. I knew I wanted a purple, but I couldn’t decide on a pink purple or a blue purple. I was leaning toward the pink purple, hubby was leaning toward the blue purple so we let Cupcake pick. (she went with the pink purple)

    Reply

  19. Carly says

    That fabric looks fantastic in the room. Clara made such a great choice! I love how you are mixing patterns– can’t wait to see the finished project.

    Reply

  20. LeAnne Maready says

    We are living parallels this week! I am actually going out tonight to buy Navy and white chevron or wide striped fabric for curtains. Hobby Lobby has great fabric. Over the weekend we painted our son’s room ORANGE. He’s wanted it for two years with no signs of changing his mind so we finally went for it. Benjamin Moore, Orange Juice is what he picked out. It’s SO hideous and so awesome all at the same time. But it’s definitely FUN and he LOVES it! Now to tone it down with curtains, maps, bookcases, etc. Having a blast!

    Reply

  21. Jennifer Armstrong says

    That fabric would actually be perfect for curtains in my dining room. By any chance, do you have the designer/manufacturer and/or pattern name?

    Reply

  22. Janice says

    Hi!

    I love your blog. I commented previously on the paint color in Clara’s room. I asked a question about primer vs. no primer. (I probably did something wrong… didn’t see my post or a response!) We are painting and had great results in the bedroom – was sage green – used primer then one coat of light blue paint..came out great! Moved to family room – same sage green – same primer – light yellow paint..yuck! lot’s of bleeding through. Could you recommend a good primer possibly? Any suggestions greatly appreciated!

    Read your blog daily..have a granddaughter a week older than Clara…she doesn’t live very close, so I love reading about Clara..see many similarities!

    Thanks,

    Janice

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We only use a primer when we’re going from very light to dark or vice versa, and in those cases any primer by the same paint company you’re using (ex: BM makes a great primer, as do many other companies, so wherever you buy your paint just grab some primer, which they can even tint for you to cut down on coats). Hope it helps!

      xo
      s

  23. Kim says

    Loving the mix of patterns! So fun to see how you do that, since I am a total neutral, solids type for my windows. It’s good inspiration as always :) this is prob not the right place to make this request but can you some time do a post on secrets to styling shelves and making vignettes? I have 2 sets of built-ins in my house plus just got a new pottery barn dresser for the maaster with a naked top and can’t figure out what to do with any of it! I feell like styling the accessories is the finishing touch that make a room look complete, like the jewelry to the outfit and I just freeze! And I can’t really find any good blog posts about the inside secrets to styling. Thanks!

    Reply

  25. Stephanie says

    Any chance you have any details on the fabric – I need to make panels for my dining room and think the fabric you chose (or Clara chose) would be a great option. I live in WA so U-Fab is a little too far for me :) Thanks! Love the way the room is shaping up!

    Reply

  26. JulieW says

    I don’t have the room on the floor to cut that much fabric so I usually ask the lady at the cutting table to cut it into 2.5 yard increments for me. I usually get a little side eye but hey I don’t have cats constantly walking across it and kids “trying to help.” LOL

    Reply

  28. Ashley says

    I keep getting thrown off by the brown sheet – it seems like an orphan (the only brown in the room because it’s so much richer than the wall). Any chance you’ll try a navy sheet?

    Reply

  29. Leigh says

    You know what I realized while reading this? Clara is better at mixing patterns than I am! I would have never put that curtain fabric with the blanket and rug, but I love it! I am not afraid of color and am loving all the colors in her big girl room so far. I need to be a little more brave and outside the box on my pattern mixing…maybe in my son’s big boy room I can experiment a little. He definitely has an opinion, so we’ll see what happens :)

    Reply

  30. mis says

    Love Claras curtain choice. Was there a manufacturer name on the selvage by chance? I would love that fabric for my living room.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I wish! I looked all over the fabric and the bolt and even on that tag there was no clue. Perhaps if you call U-Fab they’ll know what it is though :)

      xo
      s

  32. Amanda S. says

    eek! How is she already big enough for a big girl room?! :) All joking aside, it’s gorgeous and I can’t wait to see how you pull it all together!!!

    Reply

  33. Lesley says

    I think I am at the “the middle makes no sense” phase with this one… but I am, as ever, willing to stick with you! This happens in my projects too, so I believe it will click for me soon.

    Reply

  34. Sarah says

    Do you know how long the U-Fab sale goes on? Love the room – it looks great, and now I want some no sew panels for my sunroom! Sarah

    Reply

  37. Jennifer says

    Those curtains are perfect! I’m redoing my son’s room with a plaid duvet and I got a few sideways looks from my family when I came home with a striped rug in a completely different color, but it works. Ha! They can eat their words now! ;)

    Reply

  39. Sandy says

    Of course Clara IS a decorating genius. With the two of you for parents how could she not be? Those curtains look amazing in the room. I love the mixed patterns/layered look. Well done, Clara!

    Reply

  42. Jeanie says

    Thank for for a post like this. So helpful down the pike when it is my turn to change things out around here. (Curtains are not my friends….they paralyze me with uncertainty so I REALLY APPRECIATE this post!)

    Thanks, you guys!

    Reply

  44. Shanny says

    Do you guys have any tips for pre-washing your fabric? Every time I’ve done it, I end up with loose/stringy ends on the fabric & insane wrinkles. It just seems to lose that look it had at the fabric store. :(

    Thanks, love Clara’s curtain selection!!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Whenever I pre-wash I iron it straight out of the dryer, which seems to starch it up and give it that thicker less rumpled look. As for the strings, cutting them off the edges and then using the hem tape cleans things right up. Hope it helps!

      xo
      s

  45. sarah says

    Enjoying these updates, BUT every time I see one, I can’t help but think… I gotta know what the heck happened to all that junk that was in that room before!! Did the art get hung? Pillows distributed throughout the house? Where is it all living now??

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      The pillows are in the guest room closet, a pile of leftover art is also in there, but many many items got yard saled (stuff we no longer used), donated (to Goodwill), and auctioned off for charity (book stuff). It was amazing to reclaim that old messy room. Can’t believe it took us over two years!

      xo
      s

  46. Suzanne says

    Hi – quick question. Given your cold climate in richmond, do you worry about heat loss through windows in winter without thick curtains which assir in retaining the heat? i love your curtains but When buying curtains for my new house find it difficult to find attractive curtains with heat retaining abilities. Thanks.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Richmond is actually a pretty mild climate (it gets somewhat cold for a few months but rarely snows or even freezes) so compared to living up in NY/NY it’s a lot milder here. Our first house had really drafty original windows (over 50 years old) so we replaced them for more energy efficient new ones and that helped a lot! In our current house most of the windows are newer (some are original but appear to be upgraded from the type that our first house had) so we don’t notice much heat loss, thank goodness! Adding a heavy liner to your curtains might help though and generally not going for thin fabric (we like thicker upholstery grade fabric) seems to come in handy as well.

      xo
      s

  47. Marti says

    “FABRIC ME”
    I’ve never been crazy for my name, which is MARTI. It isn’t short for anything or after anyone. My parents were going to give the name to a son if they had one. But they didn’t and somehow I became stuck with it. Lol.

    Reply

  48. Lisa says

    Wow! Perfect! My 3 year old wants a purple room, and I’m willing to paint it purple but I’m wondering if you have any tips to avoid an overly lavender room? She was very clear that the walls should be painted purple!

    Reply

  49. diane says

    Darling room! Keep an eye on the details like some fun finials on the ends of those curtain rods and maybe a leading edge trim of solid pink on those curtain panels to tie it all together. Just some suggestions that you don’t need but the designer in me wont let me stop!

    Reply

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