Sunday, April 21, 2013

It's Curtains For You, Guest Room!

Once I had wrapped up all the major projects for our bedroom, I decided to continue my warping up of the guest bedroom.  You might remember my ridiculous lampshade redo... well, the window shade fabric is equally ridiculous and I love it so.

See?  The crazy colors make sense now.  Or at least have friends in the neighborhood.  Ahem.


I bought it at Ikea before we moved with guest room window coverings in mind, but I didn't have measurements or even photos of the guest room windows so I guessed* at how much I would need and came up a bit short.  I found the green woven cotton at JoAnn.

window_shade ikea_fabric
This door leads out to the second story balcony and faces SE, so it gets sun first thing in the morning and all day. Pardon the blurry shot, please.


I had wanted to do something kind of strappy and unusual to lift the shade, as well as minimize the amount of hardware I'd need to attach to the wall, moulding or trim.  I had a type of purse hardware in mind, but couldn't find it at JoAnn where I had a handful of paper and electronic coupons so I decided to go for overalls strap hardware.  I think it worked out better for how the shades look from the outside with this method, so win-win.

window_shade ikea_fabric blackout_fabric overalls_hardware
This method is quick and easy to open and close, although I suppose it might depend on the height of one doing it.  I could add more buttons later if I wanted to have more than one open position.



OOPS: After I thought I was done, I discovered that even though there is a rather stiff blackout lining and the Ikea print is also heavy bodied, the shades won't hold themselves straight when open.  So I added a wooden dowel that we already had between the layers of fabric of the shade on the door.  The window shade was too wide and heavy for a four-foot wooden dowel or a pieced together version, so I bought a six-foot metal rod for that one.  It's raw steel, so I sprayed it with a clear lacquer to prevent rust (they tell me that things do rust here) and cut it to size.

[Sad trombones]


This is not the look I was going for, but the dowel and rod saved the day (see below).  Neither is the purple paint on the wall in there.  If you saw my last post, you know that we love us some purple bedroom walls, but not quite this grape-candy-color, at least not in this room at this time.  I have picked out colors for the walls and ceiling and will share that when it's done.


window_shade ikea_fabric
For reasons we will never understand, this window is not centered on the wall, so it is also not centered over the bed.  It is partly over the bed and faces NE, so even though some light sneaks in around the edges when the shade is closed, it's MUCH darker in there and the light doesn't stream directly on to the pillows.


*You don't know how badly I wanted to use "guest" there just for funsies.

13 comments:

  1. YEAH! Next time I stay I won't be awakened at O' light thirty. I love the kitchy fabric and the colours. It'll be such a FuN room to stay in.

    ReplyDelete
  2. If only they were also sound blocking! The light and the squirrels and birds are out well before 7a these days.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The overall hardware was a GREAT idea- great take on the whole Roman shade thing!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The colors are fun. Love your solutions to won't stay straight shades.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Now I have to decide if I have time to paint that room before our May Guestacular.

      Delete
  5. oh my stars I want that fabric! :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi - this isn't related to your current post but to the terrific Beatrix Potter toile image you show on crafster (http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=344019.msg4000512#msg4000512)

    I have been looking for that toile for years - do you recall the manufacturer or source? Thank you!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi! I got it from an interior designer who was selling off her old stock about 5 years ago and she had had it for over a decade already. I will try to dig up what's left of my piece to see what the selvage has to say and let you know.

      Delete
    2. I would be eternally grateful - thank you!

      Delete
    3. I have a really packed schedule for a few days and I haven't unpacked my fabric, yet, so it will be a few days before I can go have a real rummage through the boxes and bins. If it seems like I have forgotten, please don't hesitate to remind me!

      Delete
    4. Thank you so much - I appreciate anything you can tell me!

      Delete
  7. Thanks so much for your patience. Here's what the selvedge says:
    (c) T. Warne & Co. 1996 Beatrix Potter TM Collection for Motif Designs

    Good luck!

    ReplyDelete

It feels so good to read comments! If you're leaving one (or more!), THANK YOU! If you're not... c'mon, already!