Learning to Get Shady...

Happy weekend, everyone!  Well...I guess technically the weekend is coming to an end, but I hope yours was filled with some good times.

As for me, I've been spending most of today browsing good ol' You Tube to see if I could find some instructional videos for making some Roman shades for my dining room windows.

You might remember this post about my thrifty trip to Savers where I found a duvet cover for $4.99.  Well, I've only used a small portion of that duvet cover to reupholster six of my dining room chairs, and I intend to use most of the remaining fabric for these Roman shades.

After searching high-and-low (and watching A-LOT of very interesting You Tube videos, like this one, and this one ... yikes!), I finally came across this helpful tutorial from Pam Damour.  Thank you, Pam!

I do plan to make some adjustments to the design, but I was happy with the step-by-step instructions that were provided in this video series...and I loved that Pam clearly labeled her videos so that you can easily follow her steps.

So, the shades that are made in the video demonstrate a special fabric that is designed to insulate your windows.  While I think this is a great idea (especially if you live in a cold area) I will be modifying my shades to have a similar approach, but without the special fabric and the magnets.

My plan is to use some quilt batting to add a bit of thickness between the lining and the decorative panel.  I also plan to add some thin dowel rods across the shades where the folds will be.  This is a technique that was featured in several other videos that I saw today, but was not featured in this video set from Pam.

Have any of you guys sewn a Roman shade before?  How were the results?  This will be my first attempt at it, and I am anxious to see what the finished product will be like.  I'm also wanting to try out a few ideas that I have for a double-sided shade, so we'll see how it goes.

Be sure to check back within the next few weeks.  I've already made some plans to paint over the upcoming holiday weekend, but this project will be next on the list.