conquering my sewing nemesis

Wednesday 30 June 2010
Thank you all for chiming in with your own experiences regarding your spirited children - it's comforting to know that so many of you have survived parenting the little blighters, but it's amazing just how many of them are out there! Anna has actually calmed down a little this week - going to sleep at 7pm with no tears, and only waking a few times for 30min or so each time. She's also slept really well at daycare, which means she's a happy little girl in the evenings and eats her dinner with no tantrums! If only she was always like this. I did see my doctor about the situation, but while she was sympathetic, she certainly offered no suggestions.

Well this week I have finally finished sewing my living and dining room curtains, achieved only because I've been home sick from work for the last two days with another bout of tonsillitis, this time paired with a head cold and a mouth ulcer to boot. But Anna wasn't sick so she went off to daycare and since I had the house to myself I couldn't waste it by doing something sensible like resting and sleeping all day now could I! Luckily my husband has banished me to our guest bedroom because I'm sick and he's been dealing with Anna at night time, so I've had a relatively good night sleep knocked out on painkillers. See there is a silver lining to practically everything!

These curtains have been a loooong time coming. After a long search for fabric that looks good but was also reasonably priced, I settled on this cotton from Spotlight for the bargain price of $16.95 a metre:


I needed 20 metres plus lining fabric, so some of the beautiful fabrics I saw in the $50 to $150/m price range were definitely out of the question. I made simple 'S wave' curtains, which are the easiest to make and use the least amount of fabric too. All that is basically needed is to hem the curtain and lining fabric on all sides, sew on a stiff header tape, insert a curtain hook about every 10cms and then hang. That's all, no pinch pleating or pulling cord to gather it up, but it still took me a long time to do because a) sewing curtains are boring, and b) handling such large sizes of fabric is a pain in the butt.

Because my living and dining room are so bright, these photos are pretty crappy I'm afraid but here is the big reveal. First the living room:

And the dining room:



And because I tidied up the house today I can show you what is out of frame of my tightly cropped outfit photos:


I had thought long and hard about what to do with the triangle windows at the top, but have decided to leave them uncovered. They are laminated glass so should be energy efficient anyway, and there's no privacy issue or significant glare from them, so that's how they're gonna stay. A lick of paint to the window frames wouldn't go astray though, I guess....

And I would like to say that our living area is finally complete, but there are still a gajillion things left to do: painting window frames and door trim, painting the staircase railing, having a carpenter build a bookshelf, hang some artwork, etc etc.

But I am now free to start sewing what I like best: clothes for me. Stay tuned, I promise to return to your normal programming soon

12 comments:

  1. Fantastic, Kristy! Your curtains look terrific.

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  2. They look great, really goes with the lightness and airy feel of your living space. You must be so happy to have them finished. Well done!

    And sadly, I'm turning into a Melbournite, and am in transit at the moment! I'll still be following your blog to get my Sydney Inner Westie Fix though! xoxo

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  3. The curtains are beautiful and really enhance the room! Even though it took some time they were definitely worth the wait!!!

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  4. Very pretty. Like a magazine layout. Thank you. I'm glad you're having an easier time. We had one of those. That's even what our pedi said. I might suggest you keep locks on your yard gates, and a lift up hinge on your doors leading to the outside. (just a suggestion) Keep an eye on permanant markers. We also had some problems with inside doors, fridges, and cabinets.
    Anything that could be flushed down the toilet. We even had toilet and bathroom door locks. He's pre law now. We do sometimes get nervous thinking we might have to babysit his children. He buried some matchbox cars, and it has been fun finding those later with the metal detector. They turn out quite smart and are able to juggle lots of activities. They are very loving and good with people.

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  5. You have a beautiful home! Glad things are better with your beautiful, spirited child.

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  6. Beautiful curtains. Your living room and dining room look like something out of a decorating magazine. Love that big flowered carpet. I have sewn a lot of curtains and it is boring, but it sure saves a lot of money.

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  7. Great curtains and your home is lovely.

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  8. When my daughter was still crib bound, she would wake up in the night, maybe twice a night. One night, I was SO tired, I just got up, hugged her and went back to bed. After a few minutes of whining, she fell asleep. Then it became the need for hugs intermittently thru the night. This lasted until she was about 8. She's 20 now, and I have "cooties" - untouchable. No more hugs. :(

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  9. Nicely done! Your rooms look like they are from the Ikea showroom! The draperies are really lovely! They sure do make the room look finished too! And I would never have thought that you had an upstairs! Yeahhhh Team... onto bigger and better sewing projects!
    Don't you feel satisfied? Always a pleasure to be able to say... yes, I made them!

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  10. They look great . I am wondering if Anna might have the drive determination and chutzpah her mother has but just isnt able to express it yet!! I base this observation on the fact that her mother made kilometers of curtains while quite ill and then cleaned up her house !!!!! I used to drive my poor mother crazy and we are sooooo alike . Not that she will have a bar of this but everyone else says so.Hang in ther they turn into teenagers and this is great training.Ask me how I know.

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  11. Ooh, they look pretty good :) Well done.
    Anna sounds like she takes after you! Why are you up sewing curtains when you are so sick? You should be resting.

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  12. I love to see your home-dec projects, too, since your taste is similar to mine. Fabulous curtains!

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