New curtains bring light, contrast to room

The fabric was gorgeous. My mom had spotted it in an out-of-town fabric store, but I needed more. And wouldn’t you know it, a clerk said she couldn’t get more.

We checked with the local store in that chain and hit the jackpot.

When my rust-colored fabric came in, I was excited to see how it would look in my living/family room. I held the bolt up to the window and was pleased with what I saw.

When I finally had the four panels measured, cut and hemmed on the tops and bottoms, I hung them and stood back to look.

Big letdown.

I’ve never been into dark colors for my interior, so the look of dark curtains against my dark sofa was too monochrome for me.

After pondering several possibilities, including intermingling a lighter fabric between the dark panels and using two lighter colored panels – tied in the middle – on top of the darker ones, I decided to go with the latter. The lighter color will bring out the lighter hues in the sofa pillows.

This project is a work in progress.

Now that spring is here, some of you might be looking for a simple way to lighten up or change the look in a room. Changing window treatments is one approach.

Here are instructions for making simple curtains that can be changed seasonally:

•Measure the length and width of the window. (Remember to allow for seams.)

•After measuring the width, decide how many panels you will need. The width of the fabric you use will determine this. For instance, if your window is less than 59 inches wide, one 59-inch panel will do the job, or two panels of 45-inch-wide fabric. In my case, my window is 96 inches wide, so I went with four panels to allow for gathering.

•Cut your fabric the desired length and sew a 1/4 -inch hem, or larger, depending on the desired look.

•Fasten curtain ring hooks to your panels, slide the curtain rod through the hooks and hang. (I used 5/8-inch clip-on café rings and an 84-inch to 120-inch heavy-duty double curtain rod.)

On another note

I received a message after my March 14 column from a woman who said she enjoyed my pattern for a crocheted little girl’s drawstring skirt but wanted a pattern for knitters.

Lara Neel, who does Crafty Living’s accompanying blog, Math4Knitters, was gracious enough to work a knitted version of the pattern. The name is after a coworker’s expected bundle of joy. So here it is:

No-Purl Skirt for Pearl

Gauge: 4.5 stitches/inch in garter stitch, about 3 stitches/inch in cellular stitch

Needles: No. 8, 24-inch or shorter circular

Yarn: Bernat’s Baby Coordinates

You will also need: Ribbon, or other drawstring, and more ribbon, if desired, for embellishment.

Size: Up to 26-inch waist, theoretically. Really, it’s for a small child.

Special instructions:

m1: Lift the thread between the stitch you have just worked and the next stitch. Place it on the left needle. Knit into the back of this stitch, twisting it.

Cellular Stitch, in the round (adapted from A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns, by Barbara Walker)

Rounds 1 and 3: Knit all stitches.

Round 2: (knit 2 together, yo, k1) around.

Round 4: (yo, k1, knit 2 together) around.

Cast on 117 stitches. If you are using two strands for a long-tail cast on, don’t break the second yarn. Join, being careful not to twist, and knit one round.

If you do not have a second end of yarn from your cast-on, join on a second strand of yarn. This can come from the other end of the ball, another ball, or your unraveling gauge swatch.

**Flip the piece over and work in the other direction. With your second strand of yarn, knit around.

Repeat from ** three times so that you have a total of two garter stitch ridges, or four times around.

(Knit 2 together, yo, knit 1) around.

Work two more garter stitch ridges (four rounds), as above. Break off one of the yarns and continue with just one.

Place marker at start of round.

(Knit 39 stitches, m1) around. (120 stitches)