How to Make Curtains for Your Baby’s Nursery

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Well, by now it’s no secret that I’m loving all things DIY for my baby’s nursery. I’ve already showed you how I DIYed bumpers, a fun painted dresser, custom photos and mats, and glider chair cushions. You think that’d be enough, right? Wrong! I always find more…

Well when I stepped back to look at his little room, I felt as if it was missing SOMETHING. What was that something? Curtains…definitely curtains! I mean, the room already had great blinds, which were good enough when the room was just being used as an office.

However, now that I was going to be relying on that room to keep my little baby asleep for those precious extra 5 minutes, every little bit of darkness helps!

Yet I didn’t necessarily need blackout curtains, because that’d be a little overkill with wood blinds already in place. No, I just needed (and desperately wanted) adorable curtains to add to the aesthetics of this little boy’s nursery.

What Curtains Add

Did you know that curtains help to open up a room? You’d think that wouldn’t be the case, since a lot of the time they’re used to help darken it up.

However, when positioned correctly, curtains actually give the appearance that a window is larger than it appears, and hence, your space is larger (and lighter) than it is.

But to do this, you must position your curtains specifically so they DO NOT COVER any part of your existing window. What that means is you need to make sure your curtain rod is at least 18-24″ longer than the widest part of your window, and hung at least 12″ above the top most part of your window.

And when hung to “frame” your window, rather than cover it,your curtains will give the illusion that your open space is much larger than it is. And to anyone that’s working with a tiny room, that is a BIG deal. And seeing that my baby;s nursery is the smallest room in our house, anything that will “open it up” is a plus in my book.

Why DIY Curtains Instead of Just Purchasing Retail

Well, again, if you know me (and you’ve been following my DIY nursery process on this blog) you know I am extremely particular. I wanted every little pattern to coincide with the perfect “theme” in this little boy’s room.

I first checked out Target to see if they had any pre-made curtains I could just hem to the perfect size. After all, I have shown you how to hem curtains perfectly for any room. So hemming was definitely an option. And I found some that might work…

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Picture #1 – Natalie Global Fretwork Curtain
Picture #2 – Leo Chevron Curtain
Picture #3 – Threshold Farrah Southwest Curtain

But again, I had a little different style in mind. And with the curtains panels running about $20-40 each (and I needed 2) I decided it wasn’t worth it to settle on a pattern I sort of liked. Rather, I was going to pick the exact pattern I wanted on Fabric.com, and make the curtains myself!

So below, I show you how to make curtains for your baby’s nursery (or any room, for that matter) all by yourself! This is a lifesaving technique if you have an adorable fabric you can’t get enough of, or don’t want to pay up the ying yang for blackout curtains (yes, you can make curtains with blackout fabric, too!). And no, you don’t have to be an avid sewer to DIY. Below, I give you both the sewing and no-sew instructions!

How to Make Curtains – Step by Step

The Necessary Supplies:

* NO-SEW CURTAINS: If you are planning on making “no-sew” curtains, follow the instructions exactly as I lay them out. But whenever there is sewing involved, use your seam tape and heat from your iron to fuse the fabric together instead of sewing it together. You will end up with the same result as you would have sewing.

Step 1:

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  • First, hang your curtain rod exactly as I specified above (about 10-12″ above the top most point of your window, and about 10-12″ from the outer most part of the right and left sides).

Step 2:

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  • Then, measure from your curtain rod to the exact point where you want your curtains to end.
    • Mine measured exactly 60″.
    • Now, if you haven’t already – go order your perfect fabric!

Step 3:

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  • With your fabric folded in half (width wise) take your air erasable pen and mark about 6-8″ longer than the length needed for your window (to allow for seams).

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  • Then, cut!
    • Repeat this step for as many curtain panels as you’ll need.
      • I needed 2 panels, and 4 yards of fabric was perfect for 2 panels.

Step 4:

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  • Now, unfold your cut piece of fabric.
  • On each side (not top and bottom, but on the left and right sides) fold your fabric to the back about 1.5″. Tuck the raw edge inside the fold, and pin shut with your sewing pins.
  • Finally, run these folds through your sewing machine to seam up the sides of your curtains.
    • Or iron the seam closed with your seam tape if not sewing.

Step 5:

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  • Now, fold about 4″ of the top of your cut piece of fabric over to the back side.

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  • Then, tuck in the raw edge inside the fold about .5-1″, and use your sewing pins to keep your folds perfectly intact.

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  • Then, run the bottom of that fold through your sewing machine (where your pins are, leaving the top part folded and not sewn so you can run a curtain rod through it.

Step 6:

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  • Finally, so the exact same thing to the bottom of your fabric, except with only a 2″ fold (and 1″ of the raw edge tucked inside).
  • Pin closed, then sew (or iron) shut.

Repeat Steps 4-6 with as many curtain panels as you cut in steps 1-3. Finally, hang your curtains and admire 🙂

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Aren’t they adorable? Well, I think they are! And the best part, is they go PERFECTLY with his room. No compromising on style needed. And they only took me about an hour or two to make. Not bad, not bad at all.

Making your own curtains doesn’t require you to set aside an entire weekend, so making they can be done when you get home from work and you’ll STILL have time for that glass of wine with your hubby. Quick, cheap, and completely custom. Now THAT’S what I’m talking about 😉

So if you’re ready to go out and DIY, YAY! I’ve done my job. Here’s a little reminder of everything you’ll need to get your project going:

Supplies Needed to Make DIY Curtains

HAPPY CRAFTING!!

Comments

  1. says

    When you get to design the nursery room for your baby, the whole process is incredibly exciting. I love it! and you make it look so easy to make them! Things like this are why I really want to learn to sew. Thanks for sharing!

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