CBC NewsWorld Door Curtains

 

 I installed some cafe-style curtains for the doors between my studio and the bedroom!  It's nice to be making things that are for myself or don't have some deadline attached. In fact the last Christmas present is done, framed, and at my house, but because it's so late, I've just been putting off sending it. I don't have a box, the actual object is bigger than I thought it would be, etc. Some good news this week though: I was accepted into the only Master of Publishing Program in Canada! So the best possible thing that could have happened to my career is about to happen. For serious, check out this view. So I guess I'm pretty good at what I do. 

It was just the sort of thing to get me motivated to finish some projects! So I sent my mother out for wine and champagne, invited the rest of the family over, and put up these curtains. I needed them because back when I was a teenager I also had this room as my bedroom, but there was film on the doors and window so that light could get in (it's in the basement so the studio actually has no windows except for these), while maintaining some privacy. When I moved out to go to school, I stayed in the spare room when I was home, they gave my single bed away, and painstakingly peeled the film off of these windows to open up the space. It seems like a pretty tough job, and it was never finished; you can still see some of the film on the bottom panels of the doors. 

 But the leftover film was good news! That meant that I only had to cover the top three rows of windows, and had a little more freedom. In Halifax my room already had window treatments: ugly plastic white blinds and a mysteriously flimsy curtain rod above them. I always dreamed of putting lace curtains up, but living in a place for four months at a time discouraged me from decorating too much. Not to give the impression that the place didn't feel like home! The living room was bright and spacious, and the kitchen was one of my favourite places to be, when I didn't have to share it with the rats.

THE POINT IS, I started thinking a bit about that curtain rod. It was thin and plastic and fit into little hooks you screwed into the wall or window frame. Pretty simple. That meant I could attach the curtains to the doors which made way more sense than the alternative, if you know what I mean. What's more, an extra rod at the bottom could make it ruffled and happy and kept in place!

 It went pretty well. My mom brought some curtains that she made for her boyfriend's old apartment so I had pre-made curtains to work with. Sort of. I had to cut them in half, and when I hemmed the edge, I accidentally sewed the opening at the top shut. Normal people would have just taken a seam ripper and taken out those stitches, but I chose to cut the top off and make a NEW opening. I don't know what inspired me to do that, but it made the curtains too short.

Nevertheless, I don't think it looks half bad. Next on the list, getting that gift sent out! And making some bedding for the crib we have so the niece can play with it. I made her a quilt the summer before she was born and I have some of the fabric left over, so I'll do my best to make it match hers. Don't know what I'll do about the mattress that used to be in there though. Part of me just thinks some thin foam padding, and the other part thinks I'm getting caught up in the idea of what USED to be in there. Ah well. My grandmother probably made the original bedding, and her ideas are always the best.