MEASURING TAPES AT THE READY

Since I posted about my curtain making I thought that I would also give a little how to on measuring your windows for curtains and also for fabric quantities.

When measuring your window for curtains always measure the curtain track or pole and not the window width.  Ideally your pole should sit approximately 15cm either side of your window.

Tip- If you want to make a small window appear larger fit your pole up to 30cm either side of your window. When your curtains are hung this will create the illusion of a bigger window.

Curtains can fall either to the sill or to the floor. Personally I feel to the sill is a very dated look and that the overall look is very skimpy. I vote to the floor every time.  Ideally your curtain should fall 1cm above the floor. 

Tip- Always measure the drop in 3 different positions, especially in older properties as windows and floors are rarely level. Use the shortest of the three measurements for your finished length to make sure that the curtains do not drag on the ground.

Your curtain drop will depend upon the type of curtain heading that you use. In my case I used a wave heading. (this would be the same if I were using the more common pencil pleat heading). Measure from the underside of the curtain pole ring to where you want the curtain to finish.

If you are using an eyelet heading then measure from the top of the pole to the floor.

Now here comes the maths.....

Like me if you decide make your curtains yourself you will need to calculate how much fabric you need. First you need the following information.

Heading type- Wave

Pole Length-220cm

Finished Length-300cm

You will also need to know the pattern repeat of your chosen fabric (if any).

First you need to calculate the number of widths of fabric you need.

·  Width of curtain pole: 240cm

·  Multiply by 2(this is the fullness required)for wave: 480cm

·  Divide by fabric width of 137cm: 3.503

·  Round up to the nearest whole number: 4

So in this case 4 widths of fabric is required. Different types of headings require different fullness of fabric, the most common are pencil pleat which is a double fullness or an eyelet which is a 1.5 fullness.

Next you need to calculate the length of fabric required.

·  Finish length of curtains: 300cm

·  Add hem allowance of 10cm to the top and 10cm the bottom:300cm

·  Add pattern repeat of 37cm: 337cm

·  Multiply the finished length of 337cm by the number of widths            which is 4: 13.48m

Now you know how much fabric you need your ready to create some beautiful curtains.