How to choose the desired length of curtains and hem the curtains with your own hands at home - an understandable master class and video + useful tips and life hacks.
Even if you buy ready-made curtains or sew them to order, there are some advantages to sewing curtains at home with your own hands. When you hem the curtains yourself, you can precisely choose the desired length by hanging the curtains on the ledge and figuring out different options. Perhaps, what satisfied you at the stage of the idea / sketch, you will want to adjust on the finished curtains, making them a little longer or shorter. Therefore, when ordering, making with your own hands or buying curtains, it is optimal to choose a length slightly larger than what you need to measure, and then hem the curtains yourself.
Photo: kopyok.com
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You will need:
- curtains;
- centimeter and ruler (ideally - tape measure);
- crayon;
- sewing machine and thread in the color of the curtains;
- overlock (if any);
- iron;
- pins.
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Work sequence:
1. Decide on the desired length of the curtains.
To make the choice clear, you can hang ready-made, but unframed curtains on the ledge and try different options, for example, pinned bottom pins.
There are four classic, basic options for curtain length:
Photo: dummies.com
- curtains up to the windowsill;
- curtains with a length just below the windowsill;
- curtains in the floor (or above the floor for a couple of centimeters);
- An elongated version, when the bottom of the curtains lies on the floor.
The first two options are good for curtains on the kitchen window.
The third option is the most common, suitable for most living rooms.
The fourth is good for an interior in a romantic style, for thin translucent curtains or, conversely, for dense curtains designed to reliably keep the room from light and drafts.
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2. Make the markup.
It is better to leave new curtains hanging slightly on the window so that they straighten and take shape. Measure accurately the required length, remove the curtains and draw a straight bottom line with the chalk at the bottom of the finished product. A wide hem is suitable for curtains - excess fabric up to 20-30 cm can not be cut off, the rest should be cut off (focus on the height of the ceilings, the length of the curtains and their model). It is better to bend single-layer curtains from not too thick dense fabrics during processing twice - just a double hem will “hide” the extra length of the fabric. Curtains made of heavy thick fabric or double-layer curtains are better to fold once, before that, having trimmed the lower edge evenly and treating it with an overlock or sewing machine with a “zigzag”.
This video explains in detail and clearly how to determine the desired length of curtains if you choose curtains to the floor (and this is the most difficult, though the most common option):
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3. Hem the curtains.
3.1. Fold the bottom edge of the curtain to the wrong side and iron. (For thick or two-layer curtains - do not bend the bottom, but treat the edge of the fabric.)
3.2. Fold the edge of the curtain again and iron or secure with pins. Please note: the hem line (on the left, see photo) should correspond to the bottom line of the finished product.
3.3. Sew as shown in the photo. Make stitches at the beginning and end of the line.
3.4. The edges of the hem can be left free, stitched on the machine or carefully sewn by hand with a blind seam.
Photo and source: designsponge.com
If after the unfinished curtain hangs on the ledge, the fabric in the middle of the curtain “sags” a little, stretches out (this happens more often with heavy curtains), in the process of stitching such a curtain you need to make small adjustments.
To make the line of the line straight, you first need to iron the hem along the bottom line, and then lay out exactly (using a ruler) the second hem so that its width across the entire width of the curtain is the same.
In detail and clearly - in the video:
How to sew curtains with your own hands: simple workshops and interesting ideas
