It’s Curtains for Us!

John Waters: I’ve got the exact same curtains, only in my bathroom. Didn’t you just die when you found them?
Marge: Not really. They just had corn on them.

– The Simpsons

I have trouble taking any sort of textile-related risk. I go to the fabric place all excited, looking to add color and texture to our home. I waft in the door at Joann Etc. with every good and creative intention.

“Maybe we can do something bright in the living room and dining room!”

Or something relatively muted.

Or something relatively muted.

“With the lighter walls in the kitchen, maybe we could do something funky on the window!”

Or a plain cellular blind would maximize the light.

Or a plain cellular blind would maximize the light.

“Oooh, upholstered headboard … I could make a bunch of covers for it and try some different things!”

Umm, at least I got something with some texture?

Umm, at least I got something with some texture?

Now, I did and do like all of these choices — they work with other things we have going on, and we do have a fair bit of color in the house with accessories and paint. But I’m a bit impatient with my textile timidity, which might explain this:

Bedroom curtain fabric

Bedroom curtain fabric

I want the bedroom to be a really happy room, and those freaky birds are making me happy. The pattern is Richloom’s Whippoorwill, and I got it on super-clearance at Mill End Textiles for under six bucks a yard. SCORE! If you like freaky birds, that is.

There are two great fabric discounters in Minneapolis/St. Paul — Mill End Textiles as mentioned and the locally legendary S.R. Harris. Mill End has several smaller stores, with inventory varying among them. S.R. Harris is a single warehouse in a business park, and it is an overwhelming experience. There’s just So Much Fabric, and it’s in racks and stacks and miles of piles. This is just a tiny slice:

Both Mill End and S.R. Harris are mega-cheap, but they also have coupons on their websites from time to time. Definitely worth a look if you are fabric shopping in the Twin Cities. But if you are fabric shopping elsewhere, I’ve found great deals online at:

  • Fabric.com — good prices, and check out the clearance area.
  • Fabricguru.com — I find this site really easy to navigate, and the fixed-price shipping is great!
  • eBay and Etsy — both sites feature sellers with yardage of current fabrics, as well as vintage cloth. If you have something in mind and know the name of the pattern, it’s worth checking if someone has it on offer.

Let us know if you have any sewing projects in the works. This will be my first serious outing for my new sewing machine. Exciting times, people! This room is finally coming together.

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