Kitchen Curtains

Don't get me wrong, I love our kitchen. It's spacious, looks like it belongs in an old farmhouse, and gets lots of light. The problem is that we've got a west-facing window that lets in so much sunlight in the evening hours that it's difficult to be in the kitchen at all. It's the time of day when we're making dinner, so the room is already warm from the stove, and the excess sunlight makes the whole room feel like an oven. It's also hard to see! The sun is so bright that K and I find ourselves shielding our eyes and ducking our heads into shadows. We needed to remedy this situation.

"I'll make curtains!" I said, but for the longest time I didn't know how to make curtains. Once I got my sewing skills up to par, I began looking for some fabric. Of course, I couldn't find any that I liked in the fabric stores. Then while combing through a thrift store for vintage pillowcases, I happened upon an old twin sheet in a print that I actually liked. It was what I was looking for--a light background with pops of blue. I bought it for 53 cents(!), gave it a good washing, and set about sewing up some curtains.

The curtains are simple, but lovely. They're just two straight panels to block the sun, and I made some tiebacks to use during the daytime. They keep out the heat and direct sun, but allow some light to filter through so that we can still see.

K noticed a drop in the temperature of the room right away, and I realized that now when we have guests over for dinner, they can sit in any of the chairs at our table without having to wear sunglasses. The curtains are a great success!

(I couldn't figure out a good way to show you the curtains, though, since clear pictures are well lit and curtains by definition block out light. These pictures are the best I could render. I hope they'll do.)

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I've got some leftover sheet fabric from making these curtains, and you can bet that I already have ideas on how to use it. I'm just itching to make a beach blanket like the one in Handmade Home. These blankets are so gorgeous and would be wonderful for picnics, reading in the park, or just lazing about. I can't wait to hit up some thrift stores in search of more vintage linens. Re-purposing old fabrics might just be my new hobby.