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You are here: Home / Houses / Our Houses / Powder Room French Door Curtain

Powder Room French Door Curtain

April 17, 2011 by Jane F 30 Comments

 making a french door curtain for a vintage glass pane powder room door - Atticmag.comBefore and after: replacing the paper stick-up shade with a gathered French door curtain!

It might seem odd to have a glass door on the powder room but that’s what I have. I found 5 sets of salvage doors and used them throughout the house, including the downstairs guest bath because I knew I could make a french door curtain to insure privacy. The old doors are fir and had been removed from a 1920s house. The one on the powder room still had the original brass curtain rods and brackets for curtains intact. I removed and kept hardware from all the doors when I restored them by hand-scraping the loose paint. I wanted their age and patina to show and I didn’t fill any of the old bracket holes since I felt they are part of the look. The side of the door facing into our hallway is white with some old awning green showing through. Inside, the door is a different color.

french door curtain - temporary redi shade paper window covering on the powder room door - Atticmag.comTo give the powder room privacy, I threw up a $5 pleated paper stick-up Redi Shade I found at Home Depot and secured it to the top of the door with blue painter’s tape. By the time I found real fabric for the shade –a jacquard-stripe ivory cotton at a Scalamandre remnant sale — I was horrified to realize that the paper shade was 6 or 7 years old. Since we had only been using the house on weekends, the door shade hadn’t been a priority.

vintage curtain rods and brackets before cleaningRather than replace the old curtain hardware I decided to use it. It is solid brass, it fit the door and all the pieces were intact. But first, I had to clean the rods and brackets which hadn’t been touched in decades. After soaking them in Noxon metal cleaner, I rubbed and rubbed until tarnish gave way to brass-clad rods and brass brackets still dotted in some spots with old paint.
french door curtain - brackets, sleeves and screws in mineral spirits for cleaning - AtticmagAfter the Noxon rub-down, the brackets, sleeves and screws got a mineral spirits soak to finish the cleaning.

french door curtain - cotton jacquard scalamandre fabric for the curtain - Atticmag.comThe keys to making a french door curtain are the top and bottom rod pockets. Those allow the fabric to be stretched between them, then gathered and held taut rods above and below the window. Making the curtain requires a few yards of fabric, careful measuring and basic sewing machine skills. My door measures 79-inches high by 23-1/4-inches wide overall. The window area measured 66-1/2 inches high by 16-3/4-inches wide. My fabric was 53-inches wide (half  is 26-1/2) so my finished curtain would be a double width with generous gathers. As a precaution, I measured an extra 12-inches longer than the height of the door window.

The right/front side of the curtain is made to face into the powder room – the back visible through the glass. The first task was to create a 1-inch finished border on each side.

french door curtain - stitching down the selvege edges of the curtain - atticmag.comFor some reason the selvedge on this fabric were red so it was easy to fold them back, press them for a crisp line and stitch them down close to the folded edge.

french door curtain - measuring side borders for the powder room door curtain - Atticmag.comThen I finished the sides with 1-inch borders by turning the fabric back by 1-inch and stitching over the previous line of stitching. The finished side looked good and went quickly.

french door curtain - measuring the top edge of the rod pocket - Atticmag.comI needed to complete the top rod pocket so the curtain could be basted and put up to test for a snug fit. For the top pocket, I measured ½-inch from the top of the fabric, pressed that down, and stitched close to the edge.

french door curtain - double row of stitching for the top rod pocket - AtticmagThen I sewed a second row close to the first to secure the edge and trimmed away the excess fabric.

french door curtain - testing the size of the rod in the top pocket - AtticmagRod pockets usually range from 1-1/4 to 2 inches, depending on the rod thickness since the pocket should not be too snug. My old curtain rods were about ¼-inch thick so I calculated 1-1/4 inch pockets. Before sewing down the top pocket, I tested to be sure the rod would slide easily – and it did. So I made the top pocket 1-1/4 inches deep and sewed it down.

french door curtain - installing the top curtain rod on the door for measuring - Atticmag.comThe old bracket holes for the curtain rods were located about 2-inches above and below the glass. They were not in perfect condition but they worked with the rods. Those fit between the brackets and were held on each end by a threaded brass sleeve. I attached the rods and brackets loosely. Then I measured from the top of the top rod to the bottom of the bottom rod and got 70-1/4 inches. I added ½-inch (total diameter of the two rods) to that for uptake. My target finished length:  70-3/4-inches.

french door curtain - testing the top rod pocket to determine overall length - Atticmag,comNext came the test on the door. The curtain moved beautifully across the top rod. Then I basted in the bottom pocket and rehung the curtain for a second test.

french door curtain - finished curtain hung and gathered between the curtain rods - Atticmag.comOnce the curtain was hung, I could see it was slightly uneven on the bottom left side but it fit snugly enough that it didn’t need adjustment.

french door curtain - finished curtain seen on the door from the hallway - atticmag.comFrom the outside, the curtain is opaque enough for privacy. It’s not perfect, but it was my first curtain project! Happily, I was able to go from “do” to “done” for one item on my longstanding house punch list, though many projects remain.

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Filed Under: Our Houses Tagged With: Atticmag, fixed door window curtain, French door gathered curtain, gathered french door curtain, glass door curtain, Jane's powder room, powder room french door curtain, Redi Shades

Comments

  1. FABBY says

    April 17, 2011 at 11:25 pm

    Oh my…you’re a very talented lady! I sure love what you did and the end product looks great! You’re sure good with the sewing machine, I used to be a little, long ago, I used to make little dresses for my little daughters and sheets for my infant girls’s bassinets…but never curtains! Love it!
    Hugs
    FABBY

    Reply
  2. Shelia says

    April 17, 2011 at 11:26 pm

    Your curtain looks wonderful and you’ve done a great job in sewing it. Be a sweetie,
    Shelia 😉

    Reply
  3. Pam says

    April 18, 2011 at 12:06 am

    I love the door!! And love the way you were able to still showcase it, but also add some privacy. Beautifully done!

    Thanks for sharing.

    Pam

    Reply
  4. Tee says

    April 18, 2011 at 3:58 am

    Wow… that is just so charming a door! Love it and love the new curtain… you say it ain’t perfect… I say it is 😀

    Reply
  5. Ebenezer Adokwei says

    April 18, 2011 at 9:26 am

    Beautiful handy work and the choice of color just matches with the door and paintings.I guess you are an interior designer by gift.Great work.Keep it up.Love to see more of those.Meanwhile plz do check my blog on freeing your mind read it,follow,be inspired and comment to improve my works too.Have a wonderful day.Thanks.

    Reply
  6. black eyed susans kitchen says

    April 18, 2011 at 9:41 am

    This door speaks volumes to me! I love the look, and it brings back a childhood memory. When I was a very little girl, we lived above a store in an apartment. The building was older and I don’t actually remember much about the apartment, but I do remember that there was a woman who lived across the hall from us and her door had a similar curtain covering it except it was lace and the woman was French. Even at that early age I thought it was charming!

    Reply
  7. tammy says

    April 18, 2011 at 9:46 am

    i love the door and the curtain is perfect for it, great job!

    Reply
  8. Pat@Back Porch Musings says

    April 18, 2011 at 10:04 am

    Thanks so much for stopping by the Back Porch, Jane.

    I absolutely love your french door, wonderful idea. Great work with the curtain.

    Reply
  9. laxsupermom says

    April 18, 2011 at 10:11 am

    Love the door! The curtain looks terrific shirred on the rod. Such a pretty and unexpected touch for a powder room! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  10. Barbara aka Pink Overalls says

    April 18, 2011 at 10:33 am

    Fabric shirred on rods is always a winner with me. You’ve done a very nice job, not only with the sewing (and the fix you had to tackle), but the door and its hardware, too.

    Reply
  11. Christine says

    April 18, 2011 at 10:40 am

    I love the door, love the look and its chippiness….Christine

    Reply
  12. Jane F @ Atticmag says

    April 18, 2011 at 10:59 am

    Thanks for all the kind words. It’s just a plain curtain but it was also a test run to see whether I was up for doing it for the other doors. Still undecided. The powder room had to be done but closets? I wonder. Jane

    Reply
  13. pamela says

    April 18, 2011 at 11:38 am

    Ahhhhhh. So much better. Sometimes nothing is better than a classic and the classic here being that shirred curtain. So unexpected to have this door on a bathroom of course but the end result is fabulous. Your tutorial was spot on and so easy to follow. Well done girl.
    Thanks for visiting and inviting me over.
    Pam

    Reply
  14. Denise says

    April 18, 2011 at 11:52 am

    OMGosh I love your chippy french door and handmade curtain..French chic for a bathroom!

    Reply
  15. Rachelle says

    April 18, 2011 at 2:17 pm

    Love the new curtain! And I love the old door- the whole look is fabulous!

    Reply
  16. Bella's Rose Cottage says

    April 18, 2011 at 2:31 pm

    Hi Jane,
    This turned out gorgeous! The door is a beauty and your paint job turned out chippy perfection, I love it!
    In renovating I have learned 6-7 years pass at a blink of an eye, and yet sometimes it feels nothing changes :-))
    Thanks for stopping by!
    Bella

    Reply
  17. aneyefordetail says

    April 18, 2011 at 9:30 pm

    Very interesting! We have double French doors separating my husband’s study from the front hall. Right now they are “naked” and you see right through. I’ve looked and looked. I think I am wanting a more translucent look..but also have wonderful rods I bought in France! I even tried rice paper, which we had had up north on a small front door window and worked so well….but not here. Will keep trying for just the right look!

    Reply
  18. RHome410 says

    April 19, 2011 at 1:23 am

    A great improvement. I’m sorry for your little oops, as I know it’s tough to go to the work and have something like that happen, and you always know it’s there. But I’m glad the fix fell at the right place to not show. Still way better than the shade!

    Reply
  19. brandyo says

    April 19, 2011 at 12:18 pm

    I love it, Jane!! Looks fabulous, love the door, and great sewing!!

    Reply
    • Jane F says

      April 19, 2011 at 3:08 pm

      Thanks Brandy. You’re such a great sewer I’m happy to have the compliment.

      How are you doing? Getting close?

      Reply
      • brandyo says

        April 20, 2011 at 9:39 am

        July 15! Starting last trimester. 🙂

        Reply
  20. Sue says

    April 19, 2011 at 2:40 pm

    You did a great job!

    Reply
  21. Feng Shui By Fishgirl says

    April 19, 2011 at 2:55 pm

    Your curtain looks charming! We have an old farmhouse in Maine that also has a glass paned door on it. Our solution (since I’m too lazy to get my sewing machine out of storage–ha!) was to use a colorful rollout beach mat exactly like this one (except ours was turquoise not pink) which fit perfectly and also added insulation as well as privacy: http://amzn.to/fXaRCu

    Reply
  22. Cindy says

    April 19, 2011 at 8:37 pm

    Love your old door, the finish is wonderful. Great job on the curtain, perfect!

    Reply
  23. mindstorm says

    April 20, 2011 at 7:29 am

    Great project! Grand curtain and it looks wonderful on the door. It was wonderful to get another glimpse of your home projects. In fact, your step by step directions are inspiring me to get moving to create some closet curtains I’ve needed to make for the past few years.
    Wonderful post and congrats on your first curtain.

    Reply
  24. Holly says

    August 11, 2011 at 11:06 pm

    Ummm…have you done a tutorial on how to make that door?!? It’s uh-mazing!!!

    Reply
  25. Jane F @ Atticmag says

    August 15, 2011 at 7:16 pm

    Oh my, Holly. The door is a salvage piece probably from 1929 — we found a piece of a newspaper from then tucked into one of the mortise locks we removed. We got 12 of them in one haul for $375. Which really was amazing. Thanks for the sweet comment. Glad you stopped by. Jane

    Reply
  26. Emily says

    November 15, 2011 at 2:41 pm

    Very pretty! Great post 🙂

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Double Interior Barn Doors says:
    December 20, 2014 at 1:45 pm

    […] so much character to our previously vanilla house. (I showed the one we used downstairs for the powder room when I made a privacy curtain for it.) Every time I see a pair of double interior barn doors I  […]

    Reply
  2. Powder Room says:
    June 3, 2015 at 9:51 am

    […] in Farrow & Ball Green Ground but that turned radioactive at night. Last April, I added the French Door Curtain, which was Act 2 in this little space. An opaque gathered curtain is a must for a bathroom door […]

    Reply

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