How To Make Homemade Window Shades

Recall when John mused about who would win the bathroom race (he wanted to frame out the mirror and I was on the DIY window shade railroad train) hither? Well, chugga chugga, baby. Momma won.

We got the fabric at an outlet called Mary Jo'south a while back (here'south an affiliate link to it on amazon for folks in other areas). We threw Clara a wormy altogether political party with her two favorite colors – pink & orange – so when it came to picking out the fabric for the hall bathroom, where we log some serious potty and bathroom time with her, I couldn't resist adding some fun with the assuming patterned fabric that featured a few of Clara's favorite colors. Peculiarly since so much of the room is such a safe/neutral tone (lots of white tile and trim + gray walls with a soft plum undertone), and so it'south fun to bring some pops of color with the turquoise knobs that nosotros added to the vanity, some colorful fine art, and our new window shade.

Equally for the procedure, it was a semi-similar system to the shade I recently fabricated for the kitchen – except fifty-fifty simpler. Yup, this babe was an $8, xv minute drapery (the kitchen one took nigh an 60 minutes). There was still no sewing machine involved, only this fourth dimension there was also no pinning and less fabric (I only needed one-half a yard) – so it took a lot less time. You prepare for the breakdown? I thought information technology would be fun to do a infinitesimal by minute rundown, and so hither nosotros go.

Minutes 1 – 3: Make A Paper Template

I broke out six pieces of cardstock and the tape to make a quick paper template for the verbal width and length of the window.

So I taped it upwardly in place. Sometimes it just helps to visualize things before committing to a certain size/shape.

Minutes 4-five: Cut Your Fabric

Next I carefully placed my paper template on my fabric (so the pattern was centered) and cutting it out with an inch edge on each side and the bottom with a wider border along the top (three″) since that extra fabric would exist used to mountain it at the elevation.

The reason I cut the fabric to merely exist an inch wider on those three sides was because that's the width of my hem tape, and so once it was hemmed I knew I'd end upward with a shade that was exactly the width of the paper template, which perfectly fit our window.

Minutes 6-eight: Hem Your Textile With An Fe

Then I merely hemmed all of the sides with no-sew iron on record (I like heavy duty Rut N Bond). Oh and at that place'due south a little video tutorial on how to apply no-sew tape here for anyone interested.

Minutes 9-11: Attach Wood Piece

Afterwards all 4 sides were hemmed and the fabric was now the same width equally my paper template and two inches taller on the top for mounting reasons, we got a piece of 1″ ten 2″ scrap wood from the basement and cut it to be a tiny chip narrower than the width of the fabric.

Meanwhile, Clara ran off with the measuring record and was found "helping u.s.a. mensurate the tub." Thanks, girl!

Minutes 12-fifteen: Screw Shade To Window Frame

Yous can see from this photo that we secured the fabric to the slice of wood. I used a staple gun to attach it so it would be firmly held in place in one case the woods piece was screwed directly into the top of the window (just like you'd hang an inside mount shade). And see that rolled bottom edge in John's left mitt in the picture below?

I likewise grabbed a scrap dowel that nosotros had in the basement and cut it to the same slightly-narrower-than-the-width-of-the-shade size and rolled it into the fabric at the lesser of the shade to create a nice finished bottom edge with a bit of weight to it and so information technology would hang nicely. I secured that rolled edge with a few stitches in a few places (no sewing car came out, then it was just a minute of "tacking" the textile in a few spots to hold that tight roll around the dowel). That's optional though, because the shade in the kitchen doesn't have a dowel at the bottom and it still looks make clean and straight. Possibly I was simply in a dowel mood?

Then, similar a finely cooked steak, that baby was done. And since the unabridged window is also frosted (run into how nosotros did that final week), in that location's privacy but light notwithstanding streams in – and so it doesn't experience dark. I love how the colors in the fish canvas non only tie into the greyness-plum walls but are besides echoed in the window fabric. I mean if you can't have fun with fish art and some assuming window fabric in the bathroom, where we can you lot have fun with it? #fishcanvas4eva

Update: Nosotros've had a few "but how do you wash your DIY window shade?" questions, so here's that answer for ya: just like any other store-bought roman shade or blind, it'south not washable, but we didn't have any issues with the white Ikea shades that nosotros had for over four years in our commencement firm (which couldn't be done). If you really wanted to exist able to launder yours, mayhap you could connect it at the meridian to the woods mounting piece with washable velcro instead of stapling it?

It still looks a little undone in hither since we have to frame out the mirror and I'm planning to bring in a few more pops of colour to tie in the curtain, just it's getting there. The sugariness matter is that the other side of the bathroom has some dainty vivid colors that balance things out pretty well already.

And the room as a whole is definitely looking a lot more "us" than when we started…

So if you lot have a basic looking bathroom, a half-m of colorful fabric, and a few bright accessories you tin hopefully spice things up without a full gut job. A cheerful little patterned drape isn't even a giant commitment since it's so piece of cake to switch out downwards the line. Oh and did you notice how I colored my brassy doorknob black in the photo below thanks to a little one-second photoshop work? Hah! Someday I'll really spray him for real.

Hither'due south the updated bathroom list:

~~rehang the shower curtain at ceiling meridian~~
~~trim out the unbalanced window~~ (more than on that here)
~~switch out the low-cal fixture~~ (more than on that here)
~~add some meaningful fine art~~(more than on that here)
~~build in a shelf over the toilet for some leaning art~~ (more on that here)
~~paint the walls a fresher color to assist the original tile pop~~ (more on that here)
~~upgrade the vanity hardware~~ (more on that here)
~~frost the window~~ (more on that here)
~~brand a assuming textile shade for the window~~
frame out the mirror over the vanity for a less builder-bones look
ORB that brassy gold doorknob
paint the whitewashed shelf in a solid white tone (since the room is coming together more than & we're feeling that now – we'll proceed you lot posted!)
add finishing touches/accessories and dish out a budget breakdown for you guys