Long Island Sewing Teacher: No More Grommets! No more 'Pinch Pleats'. Hello 'Ripplefold'

A new home means I need to sew more window treatments. I thought I would be able to use some of my window treatments from my old home. No such luck.😞 Nothing fit. I still have them packed away.

Fabric Options: 1. Local big box fabric/craft stores: very limited selection. 2. Bed sheets: Inexpensive, great seamless yardage, easy to sew and clean. 3. Interior Design Shops: custom order, super expensive. Expect to pay $75. a yard and more. 4. Home Dec Warehouses offer the best selection and best prices if you can find them. 5. On-Line Shops - I'm not a fan of purchasing fabrics on line if they aren't willing to send samples.

Home Dec. on Long Island: I found some gorgeous embroidered linen fabric at the Mill End Shoppe in East Islip that just screamed "buy me, buy me". So I bought the whole bolt even though I didn't have a clue in the world what I was making. I only knew the fabric would be gone if I procrastinated. There's also the Fabric Mill in Plainview which has a HUGE selection.

Ideas: I spent days, weeks and months scanning through Pinterest to get some ideas for my windows. I wasn't about to cut into this fabric until I knew exactly what I wanted to create. The hardest part is the research and planning.

Planning: The main window in my bedroom is a triple window measuring 113 inches wide. Then there are two narrow windows on either side of the bed. (5 windows) The fabric is a very large embroidered design. If the window treatment is too shallow the entire embroidered design will be totally lost. I was pretty much convinced that I needed to do full length drapes to appreciate the overall design of the embroidery. I'm not a huge fan of pinch pleats because the pleats are NOT easy to sew if you are using a home sewing machine. Way too bulky getting the pleat under the presser foot. The header tape that mimics a pinch pleat with a three finger hook is not an appealing substitute to me. 'Ripple-Fold' snap tape is super easy to sew and the fullness is just as nice as a pinch pleat.

In the photo below you can see the ripple fold effect from using the snap tape. The traverse drapery rod is visible. I'm planning on creating a valance or a cornice to cover up the hardware.

The Valance is 15 running feet including the contrast inset pleats. The lining can be one continuous piece with no seams if you want to cut the valance out parallel to the selvage. That's five yards of lining fabric. The problem I have with that option has to do with 'grain'. The grainlines would be opposing and therefore the manner in which the valance hangs will have draping issues.

I want to keep all my grainlines going in the same direction so they all hang or drape in the same manner. Notice I did NOT cut out any shape on the lining. I merely placed the shaped valance on top of the lining. Then I used a lot of weights to keep it flat and smooth while I pinned the curved edge in place. I want to avoid the layers from shifting creating any ripples.

I used an electric staple gun to attach the valance to the wood. I did not cover the wood with fabric. I honestly do not understand why so many people do that. Painted wood is easier to dust off. I thought about using Velcro but the weight of the valance is fairly substantial.