Archive for the ‘windows’ Category

Roller Boogie

Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008

The kitchen has been begging for some window treatments. ENJE to the rescue!

I bought the dark gray version of the ENJE roller shade from Ikea and installed in the window above the kitchen sink. It gives some privacy, lets in light, and was super easy to install.


*Before & After

Above is the before and after. One issue I’m running into is the length of the metal chain. Its too long for the window and rests in a puddle on the counter top…getting in the way when I wash dishes.

And YES, the shade is a little boring. I’m just not ready to commit to a big graphic pattern or something to trendy, and I just am so bored dealing with this whole window treatment situation. Stupid naked windows.

I also bought another gray ENJE roller shade to go in the larger double window. This window is weirdly sized, so I bought the shade a little large and plan to cut it down to be a custom size. I experimented with cutting a small ENJE curtain and found that the best way to DIY is to use a chop saw with a fine metal blade – it cuts it really straight, but sparks like crazy. If you wet down the shade where your cut will go, it keeps the blade from burning or searing the edges of the curtain fabric.

I both hate and love Ikea.

FILED UNDER: after, before, kitchen, windows

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Bedroom Curtains…

Monday, September 8th, 2008

and I don’t mean the meaty kind.

I hated the curtain rods in the bedroom – above is an old shot. I started thinking about doing a turnbuckle curtain wire system…like these featured on Apartment Therapy – and I used these instructions.

Here are some of my supplies. I used the Apartment Therapy step by step to install the wire on the back wall and wrapped it around the corner using the eyelet thing below to cover the side wall.

Heres my corner eyelet thing.

Here is the turnbuckle with the wire clamped on…exciting!



Here (finally) is a small preview of the whole thing put together. I used those DIGNITET clips from Ikea and I’m still working out the kinks…more soon…

FILED UNDER: bedroom, decorating, windows

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Curtains

Friday, September 5th, 2008

Ugh.

I have to admit that I am a miserable failure with curtains. I wanted to test out the Ikea KVARTAL track system to use in the living room wall of curtains.

Here is the installed track – mounted to the ceiling – and here is the curtains attached 2 ways (since I like to try things both ways if you know what I mean…). I tried those funny little plastic gliders and curtain clips…both look like crap.

Heres a bit of a cropped view with the two hanging styles – gliders on the left, clips on the right. The whole thing looks rather LAME-O.

Plus the window is in a weird spot, shoved right into the corner, so I’m a little stumped on how to actually hang a curtain there. I’ve been looking for fun fabrics since I think white curtains are ever so boring in the den…but now I can’t decide on a fabric or color. Theres a lot of yellow and orange and warm wood tones in the den, so maybe something cooler or more neutral might be in order. I love the fabric over at Sew, Mama, Sew! and Reprodepot Fabrics and feel like I might want to get some fabric to make my own curtains.

Where do fancy designers go for textiles? I bet its pricey…and I bet its not Joann’s.

So I’m a failure – a FAILURE I say – at curtains and such. Poo.

FILED UNDER: decorating, den, windows

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