This fabric started life as a cotton tablecloth I picked up on clearance a year or two ago. I can’t remember how much I paid, but it was probably under $10. I never really had intentions of using it as a tablecloth, but I loved the pattern. Once I had the thought to use this fabric for curtains, the whole color plan for the bathroom came together.
Using a pre–made tablecloth is not really much of a cost savings when you consider the cost per yard, but since it was something I already owned, it’s almost like it was free. Another excellent reason for using a tablecloth instead of raw fabric: no hemming!
This tablecloth was 52″ x 70″, and when cut in half, it was the perfect size to make short curtains for the two windows. I folded over the cut edges and sewed rod pockets, which took all of about 20 minutes. I didn’t bother lining the curtains because there are already blinds on the windows.
I had a couple of curtain rods already and was planning to use one, but two were too long and another was too short. I just couldn’t make them work, so I bought the simplest, cheapest white rod I could find. I’m not counting the cost of the fabric toward my budget since I bought it so long ago and it wasn’t specifically purchased for this bathroom. It would still be in its tablecloth state if I hadn’t used it.
Now that they are up in the room, I’m wondering if they are too long. I wanted them to cover the entire top half of the windows, but they might be a little overwhelming to the space. I’m going to reserve judgement until the room is closer to being done, but anyone have any thoughts? Is there a rule about the length of a valance?
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How I spent my $100 budget (so far)
1 qt. Semi-gloss wall paint … $11.42
Curtain rod … 4.49
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Total spent … $15.91
Amount left … $84.09
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Follow along with me as I give our upstairs bathroom a face lift with a budget of only $100.
1. Another bathroom update: Before
2. My color plan
3. Painting the walls
i think standard length for a valance is something like half the length of the rod. but i don’t think i would worry it about it, regardless of your measurements, if you like the length! this also doesn’t account for the length of the actual window, so who knows what’s right.
This rod is 72″ and the curtains are approximately 28″ long, so that seems about right. I’m going to wait until I have more in the room to make a decision. The curtains are really the only thing in there right now, so my eye goes right to them.
That seems kind of crazy that it doesn’t take the height of the window into account!
I think the rule is more like 1/3 of the window length, but really, it’s all just subjective. What YOU think looks good is what you should do – BTW, I love this fabric and the colors (: