Unique Window Treatment.

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Curtains. What an ugly word in my house. not because they are ugly but because I hate to buy them. I’d rather make what I really want on the windows then spend forever shopping around for what fits my taste and idea for the room

That’s one of the reasons I made Mackenzie’s Jean Curtains.

And another reason I sweetly asked Boy Toy if he could help me flesh out my idea for one of my kitchen windows.

We headed to Lowe’s and picked up:

• 1’’x6’’x6’
• 1’’ x 1’’ x 4’
• Any kind of natural fiber rope, not nylon. Cut 2 pieces of rope for each end with the length of tope equal to twice the distance from the top of your window to the bottom plus 6’’.
• 1’ 1/2’’ screws
• Round wooden pole to fit the size of your window.
• Pole brackets.
• Tools you’ll need for this project:
• Drill and drill bit to match the thickness of your rope.
• Tape measure
• Level
• Sand paper for the wood if needed.

Cut your 1’’x 6’’ x 6’ board into two pieces long enough to fit the length of your window. Mine was close to 36’’.  We’ll call this Board A and B.
Now cut four pieces of the smaller 1’''x 1’’x 4’ the width of the two boards above plus 2’’. These will be your end braces under the sides of each shelf.
Make the placement holes for the rope on the wide side of the braces about 1/2’’ from each end. Drill holes.

On the underside of the shelf, mark a line 2’’ from each end. This is the line where one of your braces will go. Place one of the braces against this line and screw into Board A or B 1 1/2’’ from the ends. The picture below is Boy Toy screwing the boards together, BEFORE he drilled the out holes for the rope.

This is how each end of Board A and B should look from the bottom. Screws on the inside hole and empty holes on the outside. Repeat for both sides of Boards A and B.

If you want to paint or stain your shelves, lightly sand them and then paint or stain away. Let it dry completely before moving on to the next step.
Attach your curtain rod to your window/wall however you like best and to whatever height you prefer.

A lot of this project is just putting this where you think looks and works best. (I didn’t mean to leave the fienial on the rod on the right for the picture, oops, you can leave them on if you like. I couldn’t because my curtain rod ended up really close to some of my cabinet doors and if left on would have kept them from opening)

Fold the 2 ropes in half. Tie each folded rope together by a simple overhand
knot near the folded end.
 
Leave about a 2 1/2’’ loop.

The loop Boy Toy is holding on the left side of the picture is the loop that’s going to hang around the curtain rod on the inside of the brackets.

Slide the wooden pole through the loops in the rope and if you decide to have finials attach them now.

Even though my picture shows the wooden pole already on the brackets don’t hand this up yet. You need too attach the shelves to the rest of the rope.
Once your loop is on the curtain rod you’ll have 2 ropes coming off the loop on both sides.

Take the back rope and thread it down through the holes of the brace on the back. Board A first, then Board B. Make sure you tie a knot underneath the braces as you bring your rope though, this is what makes the shelves stay in place. Here’s a picture of the top shelf.  
Do this for each side, decide where you want the two shelves to hang before you tie the knots. Place your level on the shelves as you tie them in place to make sure they are straight, not wonky.

Cut off the excess rope if you have any length left over, as short or long as you want it to hang.

I love my unique window treatment and can’t wait to plant some herbs in small pots to grow on the top shelf. 


~Jess
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