Stifling my individuality: condos and curtains

October 26, 2008 8:45 PM

How can I insert a white lining onto my curtains, thereby appeasing my condo association?

My condo association, in its now familiar gulag-like approach to living, requires my curtains to be white on the side facing the outside world. Of course, my curtains are (a) decidedly not white and (b) have no liner. Sooo...I found some white hotel-type liners, thinking that would be an easy solution. BUT at $30 a pop that adds up pretty quickly considering I have ten window panels that need white liners.

I thought about purchasing simple white cotton to sew onto the outside of the curtains to shut up the condo association. (I've found, but have not purchased, some clearance cotton fabric to cover all ten curtain panels for around $70, which is a considerable savings).

Uh. I know it'd be easier to buy new curtains with white linings, but I can't find any that match.

1. Does anyone have any experience with sewing these types of things? Pros/cons? (FWIW, I'd be hand sewing them with a quick whipstitch on top and sides.)
2. Would a different fabric be better?
3. Any other ideas as to how to accomplish this, beyond buying fabric and doing it myself?

posted by December to home & garden (18 comments total)

If you have 10 window panels to do you might consider seeing if a seamstress or tailor in the area would be able to whip them through their sewing machine for a decent price. Or post an add on craigslist.
What comes to mind is using velcro to attach the white fabric at the tops of the current curtains.

What kind of material are you current curtains. How are they fitted onto the curtain rods? Is it feasible to do dual curtain rods with the white behind?
posted by silkygreenbelly at 8:58 PM on October 26, 2008

The current curtains are cotton and at this point, I have a single curtain rod. I thought the dual curtain rods (with additional curtains for the secondary rod) would end up costing me just as much as the pricey liners. But then again....that is a very good - and pretty - idea if I just give up on the whole do-it-yourself lining idea. The Craigs List idea is also great! Thanks for the suggestions!
posted by December at 9:02 PM on October 26, 2008

You can buy white drapery lining by the yard at fabric stores. It can be found at a relatively inexpensive price and it's 54" wide. HouseFabric.com has it for 2.95 a yard.

Instead of sewing by hand, you can use fusible tape (Steam a Seam of Stitch Witchery) and iron on. You don't have to even fuse it on all four sides. Steam a hem in the lining and then attach at top and sides.
posted by Fairchild at 9:02 PM on October 26, 2008

Steam a Seam or Stitch Witchery
posted by Fairchild at 9:05 PM on October 26, 2008

A white, flat sheet would be inexpensive and already hemmed. Just a few stitches (or pins or velcro) to attach it in the right place and you're set.
posted by Ostara at 9:34 PM on October 26, 2008

Glue gun. That's all.
posted by pearlybob at 9:44 PM on October 26, 2008

get thee to ikea—they've got lots of white curtains at different price points and they come with hemming strips so you won't have to sew at all.
posted by lia at 9:44 PM on October 26, 2008

Before you buy the clearance fabric you might want to buy a smaller amount and make sure that it will cover the color of your curtains. I don't know what color they are though, so that might not be a problem.

You can buy something called Stitch Witchery or Heat 'n' Bond and use that to attach the white fabric to your curtains. All you need is an iron. It comes in rolls and you can get it at any fabric or craft store. It's fast and easy.
posted by apricot at 10:21 PM on October 26, 2008

We covered the inside of our curtains with black material to increase light blockage and it worked fine. Basically just as you described, cut to the same size as the curtain, sewed across the top and down the sides but not across the bottom (it seems to drape better without an extra hem there), with the main difference being we used a sewing machine. For this I think stitching will work better than fusing because it's softer and drapes better, but any method for adding it will work.

I agree that you'll want to try a piece to make sure it's thick enough for the colour to not show through and also that cheap sheets can be a good source of material. But otherwise I don't see a problem.
posted by shelleycat at 10:40 PM on October 26, 2008

You can do this cheaply with thin white cotton fabric, but it might be more beneficial to you - and hence feel less like an annoying concession to the condo association - to line your curtains properly. I don't know what the climate's like where you are, but curtain linings have a pretty important insulating effect and if you're in a cold place they could end up paying for themselves over a period of years.
posted by Acheman at 6:13 AM on October 27, 2008

Here is a nice tutorial on lining curtains.
posted by sulaine at 6:51 AM on October 27, 2008

All that sewing looks like a lot of un-fun. And unless you're very good at it, it might end up looking less than optimal. You might want to consider inexpensive spring tension rods that just expand to fit on the inside of the window frame, and hang something white from that.
posted by sageleaf at 10:06 AM on October 27, 2008

What sageleaf said, especially if you ever intend to wash your curtains. If you've sewn cotton to the inside, it may shrink in the wash when the other fabric doesn't. As a pretty experienced seamstress, I would try to come up with any solution that did not involve trying to retrofit a liner onto existing curtains. A second curtain rod, an inset, or pinning fabric only on the top would be what I would consider. Adding a sewn-in liner is a pain and it will change the way the original curtains hang and drape.
posted by oneirodynia at 12:48 PM on October 27, 2008

If you do decide to sew, be sure to wash and dry all new fabric before sewing, finish the edges of the new fabric, and baste together at the top before stitching. I would not sew down the sides, maybe just invisibly hand tack from the top down after letting the curtains hang for a day or two to eliminate distortion at the tacks as the fabric stretches. Definitely do not sew the bottoms at all.
posted by oneirodynia at 12:55 PM on October 27, 2008

How about curtain sheers to go under your existing drapes?
posted by tinatiga at 1:56 PM on October 27, 2008

If you have wooden window frames, use thumbtacks to hang up a window-sized rectangle of the cheap fabric you already have. If they are metal, would magnets work?
posted by artychoke at 4:06 PM on October 27, 2008

Have you considered eBay? I get nearly all my drapes and stuff from there. If you persist in searching, you can find good deals. I got 6 sets of 2 panels for $11.
posted by Susurration at 6:35 PM on October 27, 2008

Thanks, everyone! Very good ideas, all of which floated around my mind for some time. I did finally go easy on myself and opt for the white sheers (which I wasn't sure I'd like - but did). Saved myself some sewing, however, the sewing ideas come in handy for other projects I'm working on.
posted by December at 10:26 AM on December 2, 2008