Sunday, March 14, 2010

DIY Canvas Drop Cloth Roman Shades

Ok....as I 've said previously, we desperately needed new window coverings for our big front windows.

Yet....$$$$ is tight.

Enter my genius idea. Haha.

I married this idea with this idea. And together, it looks great.



Click here for the 'Before'.

Mr. Free and I loved the idea of using canvas drop cloths for material.
We also had old crappy blinds.
Perfect.

So.... we pretty much followed Little Green Notebook's instructions for the roman shades, but with a few tweaks.

No. 1- We used hot glue. We tried fabric glue, but it wasn't holding together well. Hot glue did much better and didn't show through.

No. 2- The instructions also said to take the bottom piece off the blinds and slide off the blinds you didn't need. Well...our bottom piece of blinds wouldn't come off, so we just broke the blinds and took them off that way.

All in all, it took us about 3 hours for both shades. The first one took a lot longer than the second, since we were learning as we went.

Here are some pics of the process:


Cut out these bad boys:













The DIY-Showoff is featuring a DIY Project Parade today, so it was perfect timing to share this easy, affordable project!
It's my first time to submit something!
Thanks Roeschel for hosting!!!

Be sure to check it out to see even more DIY inspiration!

I've also submitted it here, here, here, and here.

17 comments:

  1. I think they look wonderful!!

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  2. Awesome! Some crafters use hot-gun glue in conjunction with the fabric glue. The hot glue sets up quickly and the fabric glue is long-lasting.

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  3. Thanks! The original instructions said NO hot glue...but I think the fabric she used was thinner and would show through. Our fabric was thicker, so it wasn't a problem.

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  4. Oh wow - they are awesome! You did a fantastic job(as usual)! This is something I want to try someday. Thanks so much for sharing!

    Roeshel

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  5. Ok so I have a huge window that needs some love, thanks for sharing!

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  6. Love LOVE! THe canvas drop cloth. Brilliant!

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  7. Lovely! Thanks for the great idea! :)

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  8. AWESOME! Thanks for sharing. I'm thiking of making some for my kitchen window and all the plans seemed extremely difficult. Maybe I can handle this. Maybe.

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  9. FrouFrou- Believe me, if I can do it. ANYBODY can do it. Good luck!

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  10. I have three sets of mini blinds I have got to do that too... I haven't worked up the gumption yet, but thanks for the inspiration.

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  11. Love it! Ah, wish I could tear the ugly blinds out of our apartment, but I'm pretty sure we would end up having to pay for that... lol =)

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  12. Okay so I am inspired, my windows are even bigger than yours. I was going to do the drop cloth curtains but I like this much better.

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  13. Thank you for all the positive comments!!! Mr. Free and I LOVE them! I highly encourage you all to try it...it really is simple! Thanks again!

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  14. They look so wonderful. What i like in your idea is that you recycled your old venetian blinds which is so great so instead of just putting it in the trash you got an idea to use some of its parts.
    John Taylor
    liverpool blinds quick tips on selecting the right shape and styling your room

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  15. The shades look so fantastic...like it..easy to follow and take care of..

    window shutters clayton, ca

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for informative and helpful post, obviously in your blog everything is good.If you post informative comments on blogs there is always the chance that actual humans will click through.

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