Any ideas on the age of this fire?

[ilona73]

Joce is right i would completely un-gather the curtains altogether BUT when you are drawing them back of a morning make sure that you fold them back in line with the stripe so you are almost making line a linear concertina along the stripe edge.... it seems a bit pennickety i know but after a few weeks you will find the curtains will then fall into the said folds automatically and so will be come easier to draw back it should also sharpen them up too as they hang.
The poles do need changing i agree... you could always go for an ornate carved wood pelmet rather than a fabric covered one they can look stunning int he right circumstances.

good luck and its lovely fabric... oh and by the way... how do you wancy making me 4 pairs of silk curtains and co-ordinating swags & tails heheh ....worth a try eh!!

 

[Moo]

Nigel, you don't have to be confined by the styles and spacings of commercial curtain heading tapes (posh curtain makers never use them anyway). With your skills you would have no problem doing a pukka job that could be tailored to suit both the stripes and the width of the window.
Just remove the existing heading and creases, and stiffen the top of the curtain with something like buckram. To keep it neat you'd need to fold a narrow hem over the top of the buckram and hold it in place with handsewing or (dare I say it?) glue. Then all you have to do is work out the size and spacing of whatever sort of pleats you think is appropriate, try it out just pinned first, and do the permanent fixing by hand or by machine - your choice, again.
It's all very well for these rich ladies to suggest chucking them away and buying new, but ...

 

[Lime]

...
The problem I have with the bedroom curtains is that, for a formal room, they dont look formal enough. In particular the way the stripe manifests itself is rather arbitrary; sometimes you get a white one, sometimes a blue. If they could be hung in such a way that the stripes look even I think it will be much better. The heavy cotton fabric is of high quality and in good condition. The poles are from our previous house.

There should be plenty of width as the old windows were wider. There is also some leeway on the length, although I have already dropped the hem once.

As I said ungather the curtains at the ruflette and you should find the curtains show their pattern much better in large folds.
At present the gathering squanders the fine pattern in little folds so you can't see it clearly even at the bottom hem.

 

[Nigel Watts]

I don't do any hand-sewing on my curtains!

When you showed me your delightful house I'm afraid I was nosey enough to have a feel of those lovely silk curtains and have a quick peek at the back. No interlinings, I noticed, but for the light effect you have achieved I guess this was not appropriate. For my more formal and structured curtains I think interlining was necessary, and for that I cant see any substitute for lots of hand stitching - herringbone on the hems and sides, lock stitches to hold the layers together etc.

stiffen the top of the curtain with something like buckram. To keep it neat you'd need to fold a narrow hem over the top of the buckram and hold it in place with handsewing

Thanks Moo. This is what I have been doing with my yellow silk curtains. I made a poor choice of buckram though. I bought the thickest and stiffest grade and have found it really tough to get a needle through (must have broken nearly a dozen so far).

 

[JoceAndChris]

Have you tried leather needles? They're great.

Look, we all have our own ways with curtains, it's like the floors thing all over again. My mum's machine is for home furnishings and will go through just about any thickness. I just think life's too short for hand sewing, and who checks? But each to their own.

I do wish I'd used interlining though, and at some point I'll pick them apart and shove some in. That's the problem with making stuff in summertime!

Summer and winter curtains would be best though, so maybe I'll just make an extra pair of really heavy velvet ones.

 

[Nigel Watts]

Now this is fun. Not only have I landed well behind the lines, but I am starting to take the ladies on at their own game!

 

[ilona73]

Now this is fun. Not only have I landed well behind the lines, but I am starting to take the ladies on at their own game!

hahahaha you wont be saying that when we all drop our fabric at your house for you to make our window dressings for us hahaha! :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol: why stop at the window dressings? How about some pretty dresses too- he did say he fancied having a go at a regency frock!

I must say I think nigel is more skilled than I'll ever be, and he shouldn't allow himself to be lured into my slipshod ways!

 

[Moo]

I just think life's too short for hand sewing, and who checks?

It's not a question of 'checking', Joce; the difference is apparent to even the most cursory glance. While I'd always machine the main lengths of curtain fabric together, I still maintain that there's no substitute for the delicacy of hand-stitching when it comes to things like hems and attaching linings and interlinings. Machine stitching has a rigid quality that really shows, besides which it's all too easy to get a sort of puckered effect.

 

[ilona73]

:lol: why stop at the window dressings? How about some pretty dresses too- he did say he fancied having a go at a regency frock!

I must say I think nigel is more skilled than I'll ever be, and he shouldn't allow himself to be lured into my slipshod ways!

ack i don't know i doubt he would object to being LURED anywhere with you :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[JoceAndChris]

I just think life's too short for hand sewing, and who checks?

It's not a question of 'checking', Joce; the difference is apparent to even the most cursory glance. While I'd always machine the main lengths of curtain fabric together, I still maintain that there's no substitute for the delicacy of hand-stitching when it comes to things like hems and attaching linings and interlinings. Machine stitching has a rigid quality that really shows, besides which it's all too easy to get a sort of puckered effect.

we will just have to agree to disagree! I think you get a much better kind of seam with machining- almost invisible. And there shouldn 't be any puckering if the tension is correct.

 

[Nigel Watts]

Machine stitching has a rigid quality that really shows

My command of the sewing machine is so slim that I think I would be pretty pleased with rigid. How on earth do you make it sew straight? I have just done a lining hem and I am glad it wont be visible.

As to Joce's siren qualities, all I can say is that I am lashing myself to the mast as I type!

 

[Schoolmarm]

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Moo]

How on earth do you make it sew straight?

Once you've got the hang of it, Nigel, you'll realise that you've asked a question similar to "how on earth do you steer a car?"
When you're behind the wheel you are, I hope, looking at the road ahead rather than at the bonnet of the car. Steering the sewing machine (or, rather, the fabric that's being stitched) operates on much the same principle:

First, you need something (the edge of the fabric is usual) as your guide. Your aim will be to make the line of stitching stay parallel to this guide.

At the beginning of the seam, lower the needle through the fabric on what you intend to be the stitching line. Keep your foot away from the pedal.
Lower the presser foot, then assess the situation:

1 - Is the edge of the presser foot as near as dammit on the edge of the fabric? (unlikely);
2 - Is there a mark on the bed of the machine level with the needle and a hairsbreadth away from the edge of the fabric? - if there is, go on to step 4;
3 - If there isn't a convenient mark, make one. You can use a bit of masking tape, or a felt pen - anything that won't mark the fabric or damage the machine;
4 - Now begin to sew, slowly, keeping your eye on the edge of the fabric as it approaches the mark. I've italicised that word because it is crucial (this is where the car analogy comes in). By the time the cloth reaches the mark, the needle will be in the cloth and it'll be too late. You must give yourself sufficient milliseconds to adjust the direction before the stitching line reaches the needle.

That's really all there is to it. Just imagine you are learning to drive a different sort of car, do plenty of practice on offcuts, and don't try to go too fast.

 

[Nigel Watts]

Thanks Moo. Most helpful. This explains the bits of coloured tape my mother had stuck to the machine.

I think my problem with the hem was that I had only pinned it and not pressed it before I tried sewing. The fabric for each of my curtains, when seamed is about eight foot by ten, so I have also had some problems manipulating the sheer bulk of material, especially the silk, which is a bit slippery. I am hoping that by the time I have completed the curtains my technique will have improved enough to start making clothes, starting with a dress for my wife.

In the bath this morning I did a quick calculation. Ignoring the work in the headings, swags and tails I rekon I will have completed around a eighth of a mile of hand stitching by the time the curtains are complete.

 

[ilona73]

In the bath this morning I did a quick calculation. Ignoring the work in the headings, swags and tails I rekon I will have completed around a eighth of a mile of hand stitching by the time the curtains are complete.

Now thats some dedication especially by hand!
And of course we all want to see the fruits of your labour in situ once completed so we can all put our orders in heheh :wink: