Curtain hanging is in the bag!

Our new bedroom is tiny. Like, really, really tiny. But the light from the windows is fabulous!

The window coverings that came with the house, are good but someone cut them too short on the sides. You can totally see outside (and outside can see INside) on the left and right edges of each covering.

We knew we didn’t want to spend eleventy-thousand dollars on window curtains and especially the cost of the curtain rod that would have to cover the expanse of the 3 windows.

That’s when we thought of buying three 6ft. bamboo poles. WAY cheaper than traditional curtain rods and I loved the organic feel of the bamboo. (And bamboo is much more earth-friendly since it grows so quickly.) But hey, mostly…I liked the look.

Next came the hunt for curtains. I didn’t want full curtains. I didn’t even want curtains that were going to be “showcased”; didn’t want them to distract from the light. And because there is so much sunlight coming in from the windows, I didn’t really want a color that would cast a hue across the bedroom. I wanted them to be an easy, simple flow with the windows. And didn’t want them to completely cover the windows – only the gaps on the sides.

Enter World Market.

Not only were they the most inexpensive curtains we found, but they also were our favorites. Flowy. Organic. Very “bungalow hut in the Caribbean.” And since Scott signed up to be a new World Market member, he got 15% off our entire purchase. Score!

They are crinkled curtains. Remember those skirts that were like that? All twisted up and came in a bag? I remember buying some in the 80’s from Pier One.

We had to purchase the curtains from two different World Market stores since we needed 7 of them. One of the curtains was already undone and had been used as a display, so it gives me a better feel for what they will look like when they have “settled” and “unwrinkled” some over time.

So how to put everything together…

The bamboo poles weren’t long enough for the window sections (3 windows on 1 wall and 2 windows on the other.)

So Scott took one 6ft pole and cut the additional amount that he needed from the other 6ft pole. He then inserted a wooden dowel rod between the two sections of bamboo and apoxy glued them together.

The window brackets were also tricky. The curtain brackets are made from a combination of metal 90 degree braces which are bolted to a 1″ conduit strap, which is really intended to hold electrical steel conduit. Scott spray painted the shiny metal with flat black paint before putting them up.

Perfect curtain rod holders!

Sheer, cotton, wrinkled, casually Caribbean curtains.
I can’t wait for the day when I can open up the windows and see a cool breeze blowing through them!

I’ve got to tell you, though…I stood on a small step-ladder and tied 7 ties to the pole…for 7 panels of curtains. All above my head.
I woke up in the middle of the night with a massive twitch in my left arm. It was quite the arm work-out!!

After all the bamboo poles were cut and fitted together, this is how much bamboo we had left over…!

Added bonus: I love the sheer, cotton bags the curtains came in! They will make great gift bags!!