Monday, October 1, 2012

Drop Cloth Valances


Today I made new some new valances for the three little windows in my nook.



 
 The old valances came down over a year ago and I never got around to replacing them. These windows were looking a little bare and for the past few months, I have been searching for the perfect fabric but I just could not commit to a color or even a pattern.


 
While cleaning out the attic for our garage sale last week I found the old valances and decided to use the existing wood and brackets for some new valances. Believe it or not, these valances just slide between the top of the blind and the windowsill. Very easy to install.


Since I have wood blinds in the window and pretty molding surrounding the windows I just wanted to dress up the top portion of the blind. I did not want to put any holes in the walls above or the molding so I decided to attach a flat bracket to the wood and then slide the bracket between the blind and the top ledge of the window frame. There was just enough of a gap to allow my bracket to slide into.





On a whim, I decided to use some drop cloth fabric I had on hand along with my favorite webbing and some brads I found at Hobby Lobby.



One of my best selling pillows is my French Market Pillow, so it just felt right to use it in my own home.




 
The other two valances I used a graphic from the Graphics Fairy DIY blog found here. I just love the Paris wreath image.
 
 
 These valances are very simple to make. I used a drop cloth as mentioned above. I was able to use the finished edge of the drop cloth for the bottom and one side of the valance. I only had to finish off one side by turning the raw edge over and sewing it. You could even use fabric glue or iron on hem tape to finish the edge.
Then I attached the fabric to the 1 x 2 wood I had cut to fit my opening. I used carpet tacks to attach it. Then I rolled the fabric so it covered the wood on all sides. I also attached my flat brackets to the top of the fabric-covered wood and then I hung them to see how they looked. While they were hanging, I decided where I wanted the image to go on the fabric. I took the valances down and transferred the images. Then I hung the valances back up and added the webbing and cute crown brad. I had precut all my webbing to the same size before I hung them on my valances so they would all match.
Have you made anything with drop cloth fabric? I would love to see what you have created.
Thank you for visiting Lola & Bea. I hope you return real soon. 
Love ya,
Joanie

2 comments:

Catherine Elizabeth Creations said...

Nicely done! I have been planning on making some curtains for my living room using drop cloth curtains. So great to see how you used them to make valance as well! Love all the detailing too :)

Lola and Bea said...

Thanks Catherine. I love using drop cloths because they save me time on finishing the edges. Good luck with your curtains.