How to Sew Draperies

Take Your Measurements First

• 1

  Purchase the curtain rods you would like to use for your draperies, along with any hardware, such as rings or clips. This may sound unusual, but it will make purchasing your drapery material and taking measurements much easier.

• 2

  Install the curtain rods next, because you will need to take careful measurements to purchase the correct amount of fabric.

• 3

  Measure from the bottom of your curtain rod to the floor. Subtract a .25 inch from your calculations, and this will be your finished drapery length.

• 4

  Measure the width of your installed curtain rods.

Purchase Your Fabric

• 5

  Take your length and width measurements with you to the fabric store.

• 6

  Calculate how much fabric you will need for the length of each window. If you have four windows, and each curtain rod-to-floor measurement is 84," you will need about 9-1/2 yards of fabric. If the fabric is a 56-inch wide home decorating fabric (most fabric for draperies will be that width), consider each window panel will be 56-inches wide.

• 7

  For lined draperies, follow the same measurements for your lining fabric. Even though you will need less fabric for your lining, it's best to purchase the same amount to account for waste.

Cut Your Lining and Fabric

• 8

  Cut your fabric to your calculated finished length, plus 10 inches for your hem and 14 inches for your header.

• 9

  Cut your lining to a width of 3 inches less than your drapery width. Cut the length of your lining to the finished length, plus 4 inches for the hem and another 2 inches for the header.

• 10

  Save any fabric scraps, in case you want to make tiebacks or pillows at some point.

Time to Sew

• 11

  Fold the bottom edge of the drapery fabric up 5 inches and press, then fold up another 5 inches and press. Pin and sew with a blind hem stitch or a straight stitch. Fold the bottom edge of the lining up 2 inches and press, then fold up another 2 nches and press. Pin and sew ith a blind hem stitch or a straight stitch.

• 12

  Lay the draper fabric right side up, and the lining right side down so the bottom edge is 1 inch above the bottom edge of the fabric. Align one side edge, then pin both layers together and sew with a .5-inch seam. Repeat on the other side.

• 13

  Turn the drape right side out. Your drapery fabric will fold over to the lining side about 1-1/2 inches. Press so that the drapery fabric is even on both sides of the lining. Pin in places to keep the layers from slipping.

• 14

  Fold in the raw side edges of the fabric, with the drape lining side up, at the top of the drape and pin. Sew in place with a straight stitch. Tuck the raw edges of the fabric at the bottom corners of the bottom hem, and stitch the bottom corners in place.

• 15

  Lay the drape lining side up again. Measure from the bottom edge up the finished length and mark with a few pins. Fold the top edge down to the lining side so that the top edge is about 1 inch past the pins you just placed. Pin the top edge in place. Stitch the top edge to the drape along the pinned measurement. Clip or sew the curtain rings to the drape along the stitched line.