Guide to Hanging Curtains

Curtains can dramatically change the look of a whole room.

Curtains give you privacy in your own home while accenting the decorative features of your windows. Hanging curtains requires a great deal of precise measuring and adjusting; however, once the curtains are hung to your satisfaction, they can stay up until it is time to clean them or to remove them to make way for a new window decor. Some basic guidelines help simplify the process of hanging your curtains.

Things You'll Need

• Stepladder
• Curtain rod
• Level
• Screwdriver
• Wood putty or plaster
• Putty knife or trowel
• Fine grit sandpaper
• Measuring tape
• Cordless drill
• Clear, plastic clip

Instructions

1. Use a stepladder to place a curtain rod in the brackets on either side of the window where you will hang the curtains. Use a level to determine if the curtain rod is hanging straight while it is in the brackets. The level will indicate that the curtain rod is straight when its bubble rests between the two lines in the level's window.

2. Remove the curtain rod brackets and curtain rod from the wall with a screwdriver if the curtain rod is not level. Fill in any screw holes with wood putty or plaster and a putty knife or trowel and let it dry. Sand the filler with fine grit sandpaper so that it is flush with the wall. You will not need to repaint if you are careful because the curtains will hide the wall repairs.

3. Lay your curtains flat on a clean carpet. Measure the length of the curtains. Climb up on the stepladder, and use a measuring tape to determine where the screws for the curtain rod brackets need to go into the wall. Measure a few inches higher on the wall than the length of the curtains if you do not want them to pool on the floor. Mark these measurements with a pencil. Drill the holes for the brackets with a cordless drill. Screw the brackets back into the wall with a screwdriver.

4. Measure the curtain rod with a measuring tape and add 2 inches to the length of the measurement. This is the ideal width for your curtains. For example, if the curtain rod is 100 inches, then each curtain should take up 52 inches of space on the curtain rod. The curtains can take up a little more or less space on the rod, depending on how you arrange them.

5. Thread the curtain rod through the top hem of the curtains. Arrange the top hem in even gathers to hang the curtains as evenly as possible. Climb back up on the stepladder, and clip the curtain rod with the curtains hanging from it into the brackets. Adjust the curtains' top hems by moving them back and forth over the curtain rod.

Tips & Warnings

• Tying the curtains back on each side can cause your curtains to slip along the curtain rod and create an unbalanced look to your window dressing. Clip the curtains together at the top with a clear, plastic clip in the middle of the curtain rod before you add curtain ties.

References

• Window Treatments Made Easy: How to Hang Curtains
• Dummies: Using Curtains and Draperies in Your Decor