~unknown
Anyone who knows anything about sewing knows that plaids, checks, prints and stripes need to be matched exactly or it's going to look like really bad. I knew my checks needed to be matched and it needed to all be cut a certain way because one way the checks measured 2 inches and the other way they measured 2 1/4 inches. That's why yesterday I mentioned that I used tailor's chalk to mark bottoms, tops, etc. I'm also fortunate that my new machine I bought a few years ago, has a nifty device that keeps the top and bottom fabrics together as they're sewn. Without that, sometimes the top and the bottom don't always stay together, no matter what. My biggest concern was how straight was the window, the board placement and the ceiling. If anything was off, no matter how hard I tried to sew and keep everything matching up, if it were hung above the window and something were off, it would be so noticeable. Almost like watching a person talk to you with poppy seeds in their teeth...
Fortunately, everything turned out perfect. I mentioned yesterday that I would share just a few more tips in sewing this type of valance. Because this window faces west, I knew I had to sew a lining for it. After cutting everything out, and sewing the seams, I pinned the lining to the bottom edge of the fabric and sewed it together...
Then before I went any further, I had Mr. Cottage remove the mounting board so I could double check and make sure everything would fit exactly, including enough fabric to wrap around the ends of the board...
I estimated the finished hanging valance would be 18 inches, but to keep with following the checks, I ended up making them 18 1/8 inches long. Rather than measuring from top to bottom along the entire valance, I used my gauge and followed along one of the lines of checks...
After pinning and ironing along the bottom and making sure everything was smooth and even, I sewed the two ends, then trimmed...
And cut off the excess at the inside corners...
I turned the valance right-side out and ironed again, and then using the zigzag, I sewed the lining to the fabric at the upper end. I also decided to finish off the raw edges because I didn't want fabric sticking up on the board and showing above the window. Then I formed and pinned the pleats and decided to sew each side of the pleat, just where it wouldn't show once it were hung...
Once everything was finished, I stapled the top of the valance to the board. I forgot to take photos of this, but you can reference the directions from Beyond the Screen Door or my tutorial I posted a few years ago which you can see here. Just before we hung it, I had Mr. Cottage come down and help hold the board as I tried to iron everything one last time.
Let's just say I'm so pleased with how it turned out and it was definitely a blessing in sewing these checks.
No comments:
Post a Comment