DIY curtains from thrift store finds!
If you’re on the hunt for inexpensive curtains with a unique (and even vintage) flair, you are well aware of how long and tiring the search may be! I just haven’t had the money for new curtains, and I couldn’t find a set of 4 curtain panels I liked at the thrift store, so discouragement began to set in. Until it occurred to me, why not take two sets of curtain panels and splice them together, making four panels with two different fabrics? So I set out on a thrift store adventure to find two pairs of curtains I quite admired. But, because I am impatient and didn’t find what I wanted after visiting four stores, I settles on a pair of flat sheets instead. And as I was walking to the register, i spied a lovely striped valance and lace panel. Hmmm… the wheels were turning.
When I arrived at my home, I didn’t skip a beat before getting to work. And I photographed the process along the way so that you can make your own set of funky curtains with thrifted sheets! It was a fun process from beginning to end, and you really just can’t beat the price tag. $4 for 4 curtain panels!
Obviously, the first step would be getting out to the thrift store and looking for fabric to use. I used old sheets, but you could certainly utilize vintage curtains (as I had originally intended) or other linens available. And don’t limit yourself to just large pieces of fabric. Be sure to check out the valances and such smaller fabric pieces to utilize as trim. You could even do a patchwork of fabric scraps, if you are extra ambitious!
I needed my curtains to be 84″ long to hang properly on my curtain rods. But first, I needed to see if the valance fabric would be wide enough to continue the entire length. Fortunately, it was right on the money! So, I went ahead and measured the sheets to 90 inches (I added 6″ for a hem) and cut them to length. Tip: to save time, I folded the sheets in half and them trimmed them to size.
After trimming both flat sheets, I needed to cut them into 4 widths since I was making 4 curtain panels. So, keeping the sheet folded in half, I cut it in half at the fold. Then I folded it in half again, cutting along the fold to make 4 pieces.
After I cut both flat sheets and the valance into 4 pieces 90 inches long, I organized them into piles and began the assembly process. I have very little sewing experience, and I didn’t want this to turn into a long process, so I just did a simple stitch to sew the two pieces together, creating the base for one panel. Make sure when you are sewing them together, you have the fronts of the sheets touch each other, with the backs of the sheets on the outside. It might seem like a no brainer, but remember- haste makes waste!
After you have sewed the two larger pieces together, now sew the trim piece. This piece was only 84 inches long, so I made sure to leave a three inch space at the top and at the bottom to make a nice hem with the larger pieces. The hem on the 84 inch valance fabric was already in tact, so I left it alone.
Now that all three pieces of fabric are sewn together, iron the curtain at the seams to flatten out the fabric. Next, iron a 3 inch hem at the top and bottom of the panel, to remove the need for pinning and such. After I ironed the hem, I did a quick stitch on the sewing machine to finish it off. And once again, if you are feeling ambitious, you may want to do a blind stitch to close the hem. I suppose I’m just not that picky.
Going through this process 4 times (one for each panel) didn’t take as long as I thought! I was pleasantly surprise. Although, it probably would have gone faster if it weren’t for the silly automatic-off feature on my iron! From start to finish, (not included shopping for the fabric) this project took me about four hours.
Note: I had originally planned these curtains for our living room, but after purchasing the kilim for this space, I decided they would be better suited to our bedroom. So now I have more hemming in store! Ah well.
I love the finished look! When I first saw the fabrics, didn’t love them, but they look GREAT on the window! :)
Perfect timing! I was just starting to think about how I could dress the bay window in my new victorian house. I’m getting overly excited about it. I think I might also be attempting to make the curtain rods as well to save money. Any tips?
beautiful. Reminds me of the quilts in Anthropologie.
I have no curtains at all and have always wanted to make my own but didn’t know how to. This is really helpful. I doubt I’ll get around to it, but I hope to. Thanks for the great tips!
so cute!
I’ve been planning to make curtains out of some vintage vera sheets I’ve had laying around for years. I really like the idea of the stripes and I might replicate it a bit. Thanks for the idea!
those are beyond….so jealous —–so cool!So is this where we’re staying this new place?
super cool. they turned out great!!
These look awesome!!! Super cute.
your a genius!
i have a huge empty window desperately in need of some curtains.
and no no money for the ones i would like!
this is a most definite option!
thanks for sharing!
These are so pretty! You’re welcome to make me some. Just sayin’.
Such a great idea! What an sweet mix of patterns :)
Wow! Looks great! Such a fab idea!
so so cute!
Sweet! They look great, thanks for the inspiration :)
Great idea! I’m moving in a few weeks and need to dress up future windows! Thanks for the tip!
I have been looking for perfect sheets to sew into curtains for our room, I love love these!
this is a great post! just started a new blog myself and i linked this post since i was talking about curtains.
So smart and it looks amazing!
yes! i’m so glad you blogged this because i am dying to get some new curtains up here and wasn’t really sure how I was going to do it. i’m thinking maybe patchwork even?
:D
also- about a different post, i am with you on the melting. summer kills me. haha.
wow, what a cute idea
Those are beautiful, what a great idea!
I just have to admit that I truly admire your courage and skill. You’ve done the stuff so well, I found your output cute and very much cool. And your choice of color is indeed a good one, it complements well to your window theme. Thanks for sharing this productive article and tutorial.
I’m having that reason too, it takes effort to look and grab inexpensive curtains that would truly satisfy your taste, and I’m just so having trouble for that too so I’m very glad I’ve found your tutorial that I’ve found effectively helpful.
All the pieces just fit perfectly, that’s why the finished product is just so lovely. My girlfriend loves decorating our apartment. And for her next project, she’s going to make beautiful window treatments for our big windows. I’m so excited to see how she would make our windows more fabulous!
Pretty impressive! That looks great. I love the result! Thanks for sharing such steps. I’m planning to arrange one for my own too, I wonder if it would be as fabulous as what you’ve done. I better try it out!:D
Excellent idea and excellent tutorial. It couldn’t have come at a better time, as I’ve recently been in search of affordable fabric for curtains for 7 currently naked windows in my new apartment. As much as I would love to adorn them in japanese linens or some other equally beautiful fabric, it’s just not gonna happen. Thanks to this, I’ll be on the search for vintage sheets as darling as your finds!
And by the way, I recently stumbled across your blog (I forget how) but I’ve been a follower ever since!