The saying, "everything is bigger in Texas," was proven correct when we moved into our home a few years ago. It seemed as if the doors were taller and the windows were wider than our previous home. I love having large windows, except for when it comes to window treatments. I found some beautiful striped window panels on sale at Restoration Hardware. I had to have them! However, the rod for our living room windows would have to be custom ordered due to the length. We are talking at least $200 for the rod alone. Although I have not always been frugal, I have always been a DIY person. My frugalness has grown over the years and now I am a bargain hunting queen. After wandering around Home Depot one day, I saw a row of wood dowels. My mind started racing...they were long enough and the correct diameter. Then I went to the window isle and saw a great selection of finials. I grabbed some traditional ball finials and went to the paint isle to match the wood stain. I had figured out a solution and it wouldn't cost $200! I had my wood stain, finials, rod brackets and drapery rings, now it was time to get my pine dowel. As I went to checkout, the man said, "sweetie...do you have a way to get this home?" At the time I was driving a sports sedan and in my excitement, I hadn't even thought about how I was going transport the extra long wooden dowel that was longer than my car. I started laughing and pointed him to my car. It was a major blond moment, but thankfully he had seen this before. He zip tied the dowel to my spoiler and side window. I had to stay in the right lane the entire way home so that the dowel wouldn't hit something. I felt like I was in a jousting competition at Medieval Times! I made it home safely without injuring anyone and started my DIY project.
I set-up two crates in my garage to hold each end of my dowel. I lightly sanded the dowel and then started the staining process to match the hardware I had purchased. It took about 3 coats of stain and drying in between coats to get the perfect match. Once it was dry, I screwed in the finials to the end to make sure it matched. It was perfect! I installed my window brackets just to the outside of the window and as high up as I could go. Nate Berkus always recommends placing your curtain rods as high as possible to make the room feel taller. I couldn't agree more! It is important to get your measurements right on this type of project. I made sure that the drapes would hit the ground just slightly with the ring attachment. After placing the rings on the rod and then the finials, I placed the rod in the brackets took a step back to admire my work. I hung the curtains and my window treatment was exactly what I wanted. Classic, simple and a beautiful addition to my Texas-sized window. All in a day's work and the entire project was less than $50.
This is a great solution for those custom size windows. There was no way I was going to pay over $200 for a custom rod. It does require some work, but the final product is worth it. I ended up doing this again for my bedroom window treatment. Remember, you can use stain, paint, metallic...whatever you want! That is the beauty of DIY! Have fun!
Living Room (Before)
Living Room (After)
Bedroom (Before)
Bedroom (After)
Products used (all from Home Depot):
