How to Drape Fabric on a Rod
One of the simplest and most elegant ways of dressing a room is to design a creative window treatment that doesn't rely on conventional drapes. The advantage is that you don't have to drag out your sewing machine if you don't feel like hemming, and you can change the look seven days a week if you feel so inclined. Muslin and lace are suitable as are yards of crushed velvet. You could even use black plastic if you're feeling gothic. Anything goes. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Plan your design to reflect whether you want the effect of drapes or you prefer fabric tumbling down at one or both sides as drapery. Dummies.com suggests that if you don't want people looking in all the time, you could use etched glass or stained glass in the window, to deter the eyes of the curious when you want some privacy.
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Measure the drop from the rod to the floor. If you're going for an elegant length or two of fabric, just double the measurement and add another couple of feet for winding round the rod and for pooling the fabric on the floor. Extravagant folds incorporating two or three fabrics or deep drops will require as much fabric as you can lay your hands on.
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Experiment with muslin if you have a large window. Pass one end over the rod from back to front, bringing it down to pool on the floor. Feed the other end of the muslin back over the rod, pulling it through until you have a deep drop. Continue feeding the muslin over the rod, making each drop a different length, and either continue to the end of the rod or make the drops much higher for the last quarter. Draw the muslin apart if you want more light.
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Try several yards of lace, shot silk or velvet wound round the rod a couple of times, and let both ends fall to the floor. Make sure that any fabric with a right and wrong side always has its right side facing the room – you might have to twist it behind the rod.
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Go for billows of starched broderie Anglaise to dress a narrow window – the fabric keeps its shape when wound loosely round the rod. Feed the fabric from front to back so that each end drops behind the rod. Once you've finished winding, bring both long drops together under the middle section and fasten with a brooch.
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Decide if you want to use black plastic as an option. If you do, bring one end of a length of black plastic over the rod towards you, spreading it out to one or two feet depending on the width of your window, then wind the other end tightly along the rod. At the other end, bring the plastic over the rod towards you and down to the floor, spreading it out as before. Use clear sticky tape at each end of the middle section to keep the tension. Leave the drops as they are or tie a knot three-quarters of the way up on one side and one-quarter up on the other.
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References
- Photo Credit Brand X Pictures/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
