I have a lot of blogger friends, but have met very few in person. Rachel is one of the few I have actually met, and she has even been in my house!! That’s right, in the flesh. I was so delighted when she agreed to do a guest post for me today. When I saw these amazing drop cloth smocked curtains, I knew you would want to see them for yourself. Here she is.
Hi Cedar Hill Farmhouse readers! My name is Rachel, and I blog (and live) at Maison de Pax, which is what we’ve dubbed our 1940 colonial. When we moved in two years ago, it was desperately in need of love, but Mr. Pax and I have so enjoyed restoring, remodeling, and redecorating… all while chasing our three children! You can see a full before and after tour here. From our gorgeous new whitewashed attic to last week’s dinner menu, Maison de Pax is filled with beauty, love, and plenty of chaos. I have the privilege of calling Anita a real-life friend as well as a blog-world friend (yay!), and I’m so thankful that she has asked me to be here today! I am especially pleased to share one of my favorite projects: smocked drop cloth curtains.
I know drop cloth curtains have been all the rage for some time in the DIY world, but I had my first experience with them last summer when I decided I needed to dress my three tall living room windows. Six 9′ panels don’t come cheap, though, so I began looking for affordable yet unique options. I must say that both turned out better than I could have imagined; they were time-consuming, but totally worth it. They even emboldened me to try my DIY ruffled curtains. Now I only wish I’d discovered my $5 “reclaimed” wood curtain rods before I hung these!
The smocking makes them so…. scrumptious. No. other. word. for. it.
I made these over the course of a month or so right after my son was born, so no process pictures… sorry! Before I give instructions, though, I will tell you a little secret.
Are you ready for it…..??
You can hang these half finished and no one will know. I mean, I imagine you could… I wouldn’t know from experience, of course. 😉
Ok, enough confessions suggestions. Step one is to buy drop cloth material at a home improvement store (mine came from Lowe’s). Tip: make your curtains the height of your walls (mine are 9′ tall, so I was able to buy 9′ drop cloths which saved me some hemming!). Then hang your bar 4-8″ below the ceiling and it gives you some pooling on the floor.
Note: Smocking the material cuts its width in half. So before you begin cutting your individual panels, make sure you take that into account. If you want your panel to end up 3′ wide, you’ll need 6′ of material. Capiche?
Now hem all four sides (hopefully some of that was done for you since the drop cloths are pre-hemmed!). [And if you are me, here is where you hang them all up using little curtain clips and take them down one at a time to smock them over a few days weeks.]
Finally, read this fabulous tutorial on honeycomb smocking. It seems daunting, but once you get rolling, it’s fairly mindless. I had never smocked before, and I managed without any major hiccups! Start your smocking a few inches from the top (to provide a ruffle for the curtain clips). I chose to make my grid on 3/4″ (this will make sense once you’ve read the smocking tutorial).
And voila! I love them in our living room because the drop cloth material provides a casual, comfortable backdrop, but the smocking dresses them up a bit and adds that hint of texture.
Thank you again, Anita, for having me. I love questions and comments, so please feel free! And if you enjoyed that,I invite you to subscribe to Maison de Pax so you’ll never miss a post, or follow along on Pinterest, Google+, Instagram, and Facebook for more decorating ideas and tutorials. You also might like:
I also met Rachel in person at Haven this summer and love her and her style. Wow, those drapes are fabulous!
Great post love these curtains and the ruffled ones too!
I am in AWE! Thank you for sharing these amazing drapes…I have been “curtainless” for a year now in the dining room and living room of my turn of the century farmhouse. I just could not decide what to make? Now I know and I will be making these amazing curtains! Thank you for your beautiful work…it is a blessing to me!
Did you do your curtains? I’d love to see how yours turned out! 😁
Lindsey, click on the link in the post. That was a guest post, and I didn’t make those. I do think she did make them.
Thank you so much!
I love the curtains and the smocking! Lovely!
Is it my computer or is the Drop cloth gray? Do you know if you can dye drop cloth
Love the drapes!
Yes it is a bit gray. I suspect you can dye the cloth, but I have never done it.
Hi Cecilia,
I’m so glad you like the drapes! I just wanted to tell you that I’ve found grayer drop cloth from Lowes at times… I’ve gotten some from Home Depot before that was much warmer. I am sure it depends upon the batch, but if you keep your eye out, you might find what you’re looking for. 🙂
Rachel is a sweetheart…prior to actually meeting her in person, I noticed a young mom with a baby at the conference…I said to myself, now that’s a great mom….and she is….got to know her more over dinner and the baby was a perfect angel…I think it is because the baby felt the “calmness” of mom…Rachel is so very talented and loved her stories about living in Paris….the smocked curtains are gorgeous as the rest of her projects!!!…
Shirley, I just saw this comment… You are SO kind! And you give me way too much credit. 🙂 But thank you thank you, friend! I’m so glad I got to meet you!!
xoxo
Rachel
That is a great tutorial. Most smocking tutorials are too difficult to understand. Thanks so much.
This tutorial came at the perfect time. I have been thinking of doing the same drape for my family room. I already own POM POM but they are so expensive and they do not come in a long enough length for my windows
Thank you for sharing.
Willow.
Oh Anita, I just love Rachel!!! I want to replace all my curtains after seeing these beauties!!! And who knew they are dropcloths. I am a huge fan of smocking and did a little when my daughter was young. You are right, once you get going it’s easy!!!
Gotta find a room to make these for!
I can’t thank you enough, Anita, for having me here! You know I love your style, and it’s such an honor to post at Cedar Hill Farmhouse!
xoxo
Rachel
Thanks so much for joining me Rachel!!!
I love these curtains! they add character to this room! love it!
I am so impressed with those drapes, WOW. I have smocked dress for my daughter when she was young, but would have never thought to do the top of drapes. hmmmm what drapes in the house can I redo? Great website, will sign up to follow.