Simple Curtains

Living in an apartment means using all the space you have 


However some spaces just aren’t pretty. 


In my case that’s our closet, the first thing you see when you open it is the water heater. Yuk! 


A quick and easy fix for this is a curtain.

Supplies:

~ enough fabric to go from your ceiling to the floor

with 3 extra inches for the rod pocket and 2 for the hem

(I doubled mine because it was so shear)
(Any nice shear fabric will work I used a bolt my Grandma gave me)

~ Sewing supplies (scissors, iron, sewing machine, thread, etc)

I started with 5 and 1/3 yards of a shear organza fabric, double what I would needed because I wanted two layers. (A bolt I got from my grandma when she was cleaning out her supply. Yeah!) If you are only using one layer you can skip the next two steps.

I decided to do a variation of the french hem. First I took both layers and put one on top of the other. (There is no right or wrong side to this fabric so it didn’t matter for me but if yours does then you would start out with right sides together.) I stitched them together at 1/2 inch, then cut it down to 1/4 inch. (This is to make sure it’s all very even.)

Then I flipped the fabric over so the raw edge was between the two layers, pressed it and stitched it at 1/2 inch to encase the raw edge. 

Then I sewed the sides down, going 2 inches from the top so the layers are sewn together at the top.

(I’m not doing anything to the sides because the salvage keeps it from fraying and I think it looks fine.)

To make the rod pocket I folded the top down 2 inches (where it was sewn together on the side) pressed it then sewed it. (If you have just one layer you will want to fold it down 1/2 inch and press it first. Then fold it down 2 inches to make a double fold hem rod pocket.)

For the bottom I double folded it 1 inch, and sewed. 
(Double fold hem: fold and press, then fold and press, then sew).

This next step might seem weird but this will keep the light fabric weighted down. I cut a refrigerator magnate (the kind that look like business cards from random companies that you usually throw away) into 1/2 inch squares and stuck a few together.


(If you don't have useless magnets laying around you can also use pennies.)

Then about one inch from the edge at the bottom I sewed from the hem line to the end. Then I put a magnet clump in.

Next I sewed the magnet in by closing the pocket I just made (careful not to sew over the magnet or you will break your needle).

(See the magnet in the pocket it will weight the curtain down so it wont float all over and you can’t even tell it's a magnet.)

Now I can open my closet without thinking about the water heater- it’s still there but I don’t have to see it. Also a nice hidden place to store the brooms.