And then curtains

Finished yesterday afternoon! Sweetness in Shell Rummel's Traverse fabric from her Daybreak collection.

This project was far less painful than I imagined. The last time I made curtains was in 2014 for the house my youngest daughter was then living at, and those drapes were produced with the barest of sewing essentials; a machine, an iron and ironing board, tape measure, scissors, pins, um.... Certainly no ample table or cutting mat or rotary cutter. Which might not sound like much, but believe me, they made a big difference this time.

My husband recalls me saying, "I am never again sewing curtains!" I don't remember that, which is good because if I did, I wouldn't have made these. Of which I am so pleased, especially since I didn't even think about matching up the waves when choosing the fabric. I simply had plenty, though I ordered and used more, and I LOVE the print, and.... I learned that in future curtain/drapery construction I won't pick prints that require so much attention.

I took a few pics along the way not for a tutorial, but to remember how I went about things. Sewing the very bottom hem, which came after I stitched the top of the hem.

I will line the next batch, but these are unlined, and I'm fine with it. I'd planned to make ties, but they're unnecessary as well. I do wish they were wider, but again, when one is winging something, defining details can be omitted. I love how they.... They enhance the space in a way neither my husband and I can pinpoint, but my goodness we like them.

Not mostly, but high on the list of what to appreciate about them is they are DONE! I say that because sewing things other than quilts/placemats/coasters ranks LOW on my To Do hierarchy. I'm not fond of patterns or items that require exact measurements. I made a pillowcase right before diving into these curtains, and even that made me.... Not uncomfortable, yet not within my happy zone. I like quilts because they can be any size, any shape, any.... Any manner of methods equals a cozy. But curtains, or even a pillowcase, demand precise boundaries. Dude! That's a lot of It Must This Way (or the highway).

Sewing the top of the bottom hem, lol.

Yet I breathed deeply in matching, to the best of my ability, the rows of blue and white. Making sure the panels were going the same direction, hah! Confirming they were the same length, ahem. And that they align upon hanging just as neatly as they did before I sewed all the hems and side seams, etc. And for the most part, they're good. If you place the right panel atop the left, well.... Just don't do that, LOL. Left over the right and don't gaze directly at the bottom of the left panel where I added a section, and Bob's your curtain-making uncle.

Next up in Curtain-Land are two sets of patchwork/boho/not matchy-matchy draperies for guest rooms. One room has green walls, the other a light ocean blue. I prewashed a stack of fave fabrics, need to iron them, then will start making blocks that eventually will be eighty-two inches in length, but different widths, as one window is smaller than the other. Less wide, to be exact. I am SUPER EXCITED to start that project, in part for playing with prewashed quilting fabrics, which is wholly out of my fabric wheelhouse. Cutting them was a blast, taking their silky-feeling selves from the washer was, um, nearly erotic, HAH. They were so supple, not like clothes. Slippery in a way, but sturdy, and then trimming all the straggling threads after being dried was cathartic, like tending wounds. Hmmm, not sure how this would play in analysis, but honesty is what I attempt to place here.

The top of the curtain, in making the rod pocket. Didn't use pins much, instead pressing where folds were needed, or employing Clover clips. When I line the next batch, more pinning will probably be required.

Anyway, that's me and curtains. They won't replace quilting, but they will make a small dent in my stash. And they'll decorate rooms, provide privacy, and expand my abilities. And I'm even thinking of making a prewashed fabric quilt top, hehehe. Because I'm sure to have scraps, and an improv quilt is calling to my heart, and a bright shiny catches my eye. Have a great week, and be good to yourself. Life is brief, we are fragile, and love is widespread if one is brave enough to grasp it.