Pretty cottage-style curtains for summerhouse

evoke

I've just repainted my summerhouse in the garden and cleaned the windows. It looks nice now but needs a finishing touch and I was thinking of getting some attractive cottage-style curtains. The summerhouse is a very simple pine one with a double door in the middle and two small windows on each side of the front elevation.

The window sizes are 50cm wide x 110cm high. There's no recesses or anything like that - just the thin wooden window frames.

What's the best Money-Saving way to prettify the windows bearing in mind that I wouldn't be able to attach proper curtain poles. I'd need to have a small curtain rod that is fitted onto the window frames as there is no recess. It's the type of curtains that I'm more interested in getting advice on.

Made to measure curtains would cost hundreds of pounds and I'm really looking at £10-£20 per window including a curtain rod to mount them on.

Head_The_Ball

Do you have a sewing machine or a relative or friend with one?

Buy some nice material and make your own curtains.

For the sizes you need you may find fabric shops have off cuts that would suit at a discounted price.

Charity shops may have donated curtains or other fabrics. If you find something you like with enough material to make a pair of curtains you could end up spending very little.

Working_Mum

Check out charity shops/eb4y etc for duvet covers in pretty materials - they could be a nice cheap alternative.

If you don't have access to a sewing machine then you could hand sew or use fabric glue and Velcro to secure them over the top.

Owain_Moneysaver

Cheap curtain rod can be supported by a cup hook at each end - wardrobe rail, 20mm plastic electrical conduit (about £2 for 2 metres in Wickes), thick garden cane.

You can also glue in ribbons to the top, then tie those over the rail, which is easier than cutting in tabs or eyelets for cafe-style curtains.

-taff

I buy my curtains in charity shops and off ebay. I get them free from freecyle or I make them myself.

As your summerhouse isn't going to take much weight, a viscose fabric would work, there are loads with floral patterns to choose from, just hem all the edges, tun over the top and sew down, there's your rod pocket, and attach with the bendy rod stuff, three small brass hooks on the wall, two round ones each side of the curtain rod.
Again though find a fabric you like the look of from any of the above places, the lighter the better.

Also look at duvet covers for florals if you have a sewing machine, they're very light for the most part and cheaper than curtains.

RMJ20

I'd definitely be checking out Ebay for things like this. Some peoples trash is another's treasure.

evoke

Thank you for all the great ideas! The weight for each curtain would be negligible, and in fact the thinner the better so as to appear a little translucent. The summerhouse is just a storage shed for me but I spent a week painting it starting from sanding down to bare wood, so I feel the job needs to be finished off. It looks a little naked at the moment!

evoke

I found some lovely floral nets designed for boats and caravans that will do the job perfectly. They'll be supplied as a single 4m wide curtain which I'll have to cut into 4 pieces for the 4 windows on the summerhouse (windows are 0.5m wide so I will fit 1m wide nets to each window to have some gather). I have a couple of questions

1. Any tips on cutting nets neatly and accurately?

2. What's the best way to hand these? Would a curtain work?

pinklady21

Turn over the top and sew down (or use wundaweb) to make a channel along the top edge. Then simply thread a wooden dowel rod through it and hang the dowel using 2 or 3 cup hooks, depending on the length. Pull back the sides of the curtains and clip back in the middle to make for the cottagey look.
You may also have to seam the edges to stop them fraying, depending on the material. Let us know how it turns out!

Eenymeeny

I used French linen type, striped tea towels on curtain wire for mine. They won't ever be closed and were really easy to do Oh and they look really pretty!