Tuesday 8 January 2013

Bathroom curtain is finished!

Now, before I start talking about the momentus bathroom curtain that I've been rambling on about for months, let me show you how our bathroom looked.


I bought the house 6 years ago, it had been a student house for years and so was badly decorated and grimy.  We've started doing it up, but it's expensive and we have no money, so it's going slowly.  Check out the brown suite.  Seriously, who buys a brown suite??  Also note the grimy cabinet with chipped glass doors.  The bottom of the mirror was at the correct height to reflect my forehead!


Yucky stained ceiling (we did use to clean it often!) and horrible light fixture.


Grimy grouting and tiles that always look dirty, even when they're not, due to the horrible pattern.  You can also make out the mis-matched trim on the bath.


I bought this blind for a fiver from IKEA when I first moved in, just to give us some privacy.  It's horrible and dirty and marked.


The bathroom is tiny, the door opens directly onto the boiler-housing cupboard so you have to squeeze past.  The yellowish walls don't help matters.


Mr CA started by replacing the boiler cabinet doors which were ancient and chipped to show the green paint underneath.  Everywhere we've decorated in our house we've found layers of white gloss, then a layer or two of green.  Clearly at some stage in its 130-year old history, the entire house was painted green.


A couple of months ago we painted.  We painted the walls and ceiling white and the tiles white too.  How much cleaner does that look, even with the gross brown suite?  I removed the horrible cabinet and put this little one in its place.  There are to be shelves next to it.  One day, when Mr CA gets round to it.


I even Mod Podged some bathroom-themed fabric inside the cupboard!
 

The door could do with a coat of paint, but it does look a lot better.  I also want to get some new shower and light pulls and fixtures, I just keep forgetting.

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Oh, I wanted to show you that the tile paint isn't brilliant - it does come off in patches at some points, and I'd advise you not to scrub it!


A new clock, clean white walls and a book on Photography for Crafters!  Remember I added the crochet sail boats?

 
You can read about them here if you are so inclined.


That just left the window undressed.  For months.  And months.  Enter WIP 15

So, remember back in June when I started the granny square blocks for a bathroom curtain?


Then I showed you the otherday that I'd got this far?


I added some sashing.  Wider at the sides as the dimensions were a bit odd.  I then had to piece a backing as the piece of white fabric I had left was just not quite big enough!


I sewed it all together and then noticed this.  Ooops.  But, finally, it was finished.


Excuse the dark photo, it's very hard to take a photo of a dark room in Winter when the thing you are taking a photo of covers the window!


I love it!  Yes, that is the backing you can see through the curtain.  I also noticed that when the sun is very bright, you can see the threads and bits of lint trapped inside the two layers.

 
I had the brilliant idea of interfacing the front to make it less see-through.  Didn't work.


This is the back, I forgot to take a photo before I hung it but as it's visible through the front, I think you get the idea!


Spot the mistake?  Yep, I put the front on upside down.  Those birds are the only directional prints and I got them upside down.

To make the curtain I made the back and the front, interfaced the front and sewed them right sides together, trapping some tabs in the top.  I then turned it through and top stitched the gap closed.

As I finished, I realised that's not how you make curtains.  Ooops.










14 comments:

Maria said...

This bathroom brings back memories of living in the UK. LOLL
You did a wonderful job, it looks so much cleaner and fresher and I love your curtain. Kind of like cathedral windows.

Samantha said...

I love that curtain, it's like stained glass effect!

Also, why don't you just take the door off, swap the hinges to the other side and have it opening against the radiator? It won't open as far but it'll be easier to get in surely?

I say just....

AliMc said...

Love the curtain, makes it look like a stained glass window :)

Shirley said...

You think that browns, bad, I once lived in a place that had a chocolate brown bathroom suit! As I was reading your post, I was thinking oh it makes it look like a stained glass window, the colours are really nice and a great idea for covering the window. Anything that you think you might not of done quite right, then its something learned for next time, anyway I think it looks great.

Sandra :) said...

My bedroom curtains are string blocks backed with white fabric, so they look like stained glass too - I love the look! The curtain looks great, but the tile paint sucks - it should be designed to be scrubbed - it shouldn't peel or wear off like that!

Joy McD said...

Hmmm... we've had bathrooms that were pretty bad too.. you have done a great job of fixing it up, and the curtain is the icing on the cake! Don't notice any of the mistakes :) Well done xxx

Chrissie said...

The joys of renovations!? In one house we had a pink suite, with the walls painted deeper pink, looked like candy floss lol. I think you have done a grand job, fresh and much better. Like the curtain, as others have said just like stained glass

JoJo said...

It looks much fresher now! Love the curtain too.

Fiona said...

you've done lots there and the white has cheered up the room so much... I lvoe the stained glass look of the curtain..
Hugz

Allie said...

I lived with an aunt for awhile, in her massively huge home, decorated in the '70's....I had an orange counter and fixtures in my bathroom, with aqua blue accents. SEVENTIES orange and blue, not good. So your bathroom looks fine to me, girl! I love the fresh white look, and your curtain is stunning, it looks like stained glass and is just beautiful - well done!

Valspierssews said...

I love that curtain. The way it looks like a stained glass window is fabulous.

Anonymous said...

See, everyone likes the stained glass effect! I like holding my patchwork up the the window as I go for the same reason, so there :P

I really like it, and I think I made my second curtain the same way as yours so that the length was right. I don't believe there's a wrong way to make a curtain if it comes out the right shape and size for the job TBH.

Lisa said...

Love this idea for a window covering! It's very pretty even with the light shining through!

Celtic Thistle said...

Congrats on getting the curtain finished, it looks great. Will, hopefully, be the nudge needed to get the shelves up!