IKEA Hack: No-Sew Curtains

*IKEA Pittsburgh provided the curtains for this project, but of course all opinions are my own! :-D*

If you’re new to the blog, we are currently in the middle of a total room overhaul for our boys, ages four and two. We’ve partnered up with IKEA Pittsburgh to create a transportation-inspired room, and we’ve been working and working to get it finished! I knew I couldn’t do an IKEA room without an IKEA hack, and these curtains gave me the perfect opportunity.

When I was picking out items for the room, I immediately fell in love with these bright green Mariam curtains, which coordinate with the Cs’ bedding. They were beautiful on their own, but I wanted to make them unique to my boys’ room, so I decided to give them my own little twist. After the whole appliqued pillow saga, I wasn’t about to turn to the sewing machine again, so this was a no-sew project. {I love me some hem tape!} Here’s what I did:

Step 1- Gather Supplies

You will want to have…

• Measuring tool {We ended up using a tape measure as well, not pictured.}
• Two curtain panels
• Scissors
• Iron
• Pencil
• Heat’n Bond Ultra Hold Iron-On Adhesive; I used two rolls. {Amazon affiliate link}
• Fabric of your choice {I used about 3 1/2 yards; your yardage will vary based on the width of your curtain panels and how high you would like your fabric to go.}
• Your mom {Seriously, this was so much easier with two people. Plus, my mom is much more mathematically minded than I am– HELLO, English major– so she was a huge help with all of the measuring, etc. I think she’s going to stop visiting pretty soon, though, because every time she comes over I make her help me with a project. I appreciate you, mom!!}

Step 2- Figure Out Your Measurements

If you haven’t done so already, this would be a good time to figure out what size you need all of your pieces to be. I measured the height of the Cs’ room and figured out that I wanted my final curtains to be 90″ long. I wanted 57″ of the Mariam curtain and 33″ of my fabric to show when all was said and done. {You will also need an allowance for your hem tape and some overlap. See next steps…}

Step 3- Measure and Cut Curtain Panels

I measured 57″ down the panel and added an inch for the Heat n’ Bond tape, giving me 58″. I marked it out and carefully cut each panel. Fortunately the Mariam curtains are 98″ long, so I had plenty of room to spare!

Step 4- Measure and Cut the Fabric

I said previously that I wanted to have a length of 33″ of my fabric showing on my final curtain. I added an inch at the top and an inch at the bottom for hemming, plus an inch for overlap with the curtain, giving me 36″.  I wanted my fabric to be the exact width of the curtain panels, so I measured the width of the curtains, which were 57″ across, and added an inch on each side for hemming, giving me 59″ for my fabric width. {Tip: Always measure your panels, even if the size is listed on the packaging. They may not be exact, and sometimes two panels in the same package can even be slightly different from one another.} So to review… I cut my fabric 36″ long by 59″ wide.

Sidenote: I was completely giddy when I found this fabric at fabric.com. It was a great price, it matched the colors of the room perfectly, AND it mimicked the chevron shapes I used on the pillows. I call that a win-win-win!!!

Step 5- Use Heat ‘n Bond to Hem Curtain Panels

Cut the tape just slightly shorter than the width of your panel and line it up on the bottom edge of the back of the panel. With the adhesive side down, use an iron on medium heat {no steam} to press on each portion of the hem tape for two seconds.

Let it cool, and remove the paper backing. Fold over your curtain until your hem is the desired width, then iron each section of the hem for eight seconds {longer for thicker fabric} until your hem has been adhered.

Step 6- Hem All Four Sides of the Fabric

Repeat the steps above to “hem” all four edges of your fabric. You will want to pay especially close attention to the width to make sure the width of the hemmed fabric matches up with the width of the curtain panel. You will also want to make sure the two hemmed fabric pieces are the same length so that they hang the same way when attached to the curtain panels.

Step 7- Adhere the Fabric to the Curtain Panel

Cut a piece of Heat ‘n Bond tape to the width of your curtain panel. Attach it to the bottom edge of the front side of the panel using the same ironing method as above.

Remove the paper backing. Then adhere the back of the fabric to the tape on the front of the curtain panel, holding the iron on each section for 8+ seconds. {Mine took a little longer because of the thickness of the fabric.} Be sure you use the same amount of overlap on both panels so that your curtains line up when hung. When everything is attached, you have your completed curtain! Give your mom a high five! {Or give yourself one if you were brave enough to try this alone! ;)}

And the beautiful sun-shiny shot:

See, who needs a sewing machine?! Not this girl! {Okay, you do need a sewing machine for some things. But not for these curtains!} I was just so tickled with how they turned out, and I think they will be a fabulous addition to the Cs’ new big boy room! I’m up to my eyeballs in paint and fabric right now, but it’s coming together! If you want to follow the room transformation from the beginning, check out these posts:

The Before Pictures

The Plan

Appliqued Accent Pillows

Racing Striped Dresser Update

Have you ever attempted no-sew curtains?

I link up at Home Stories A to Z, Inspire Me Please, and these fun parties!

*IKEA Pittsburgh provided product for this post. This post also contains an affiliate link. For more information, see my disclosures here.*