Monday, April 25, 2011

Use holdbacks for curtains on multiple French doors

Trying to figure out how to hang curtains around several French doors in a row is challenging.  You can't hang curtains over the middle doors because there's nowhere to push the curtains.  If you don't want to leave the wall void of curtains all together, you can hang stationary, decorative curtains in between the sets of French doors.  You add tons of interest and color but nothing is in the way of opening and closing any of the French doors.

A great way to hang stationary curtains is to use stem holdbacks.  They came in a variety of styles and you can even build-your-own using different finials.  You could also buy very short curtain rods with finials.  A large rod, such as the 2" round rod, with 9516 finials would look great since the rods are so short.  All of this can be purchased online in any of our 15 finishes.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Extra long curtain rods

The great thing about our custom curtain rods is that they can go anywhere.  They can be as long as you need, stretching across several windows or a whole room.  They can bend and be placed on any bay window or curved wall or arched window.  They can be put in any corner at any angle for a bay window or a wall corner.

                            

Extra long curtain rods can be ordered and shipped in several sections.  They connect using a connector that is provided and finished in the same finish.  With the round rod, the connector goes inside the rod and is hidden by brackets (also included).  After they are hung, no one will ever know that it isn't one long curtain rod.

Corner curtain rods work the same way.  A connector, welded at the correct angle, is included with your rods.  So you simply stick the connector in the two rods and hang with brackets.

Arched curtain rods are bent to your specifications.  If too large for shipping, they might be spliced as well.  But, as with the others, a connector is included and the splice is hidden with brackets.

We can also do any custom job you have.  Please call us or email us today.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Masculine curtains

What do you hang in your son's room?  Or in your bachelor pad?  Here are some choices.
These striped curtains would look good with a 3/4" round rod and k683 finials in our matte stainless finish.

Use a 1" round rod with ball finials in hammered gray with these chocolate panels.

If you're looking for something a little more neutral, you can go with these beige panels Use a 1" round rod with ci7055 finials in the satin black finish.


IKEA has reasonably priced "unbleached" curtains for $49.99/pair.  Use our twisted rod with 8832 finials.  Use the antique bronze finish for a nice contrast.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Home theater curtains

Your home theater needs red velvet curtains! You can hang a rod above your projection screen and let the curtains hang to the sides or pull them back with holdbacks. Or you can cover an entire wall with them. In this case, order a round rod in a size that works with your curtains and two end caps. These allow you to butt the end caps against the wall so the whole wall is covered with no gaps.

If you want the curtains to cover multiple walls, go with a corner curtain rod so there is no breaks in the curtains. You can pull curtains over the brackets for a finished look.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Hang picture frames from a curtain rod


from http://confessionsofanewoldhomeowner.blogspot.com/

I thought this was an awesome way to use a curtain rod and to decorate a wall.  This blogger hung the curtain rod and then the pictures as normal with nails.  Then she put strips of ribbon hanging down from the rod and behind the pictures.

Remember that brackets are included with our rods, so to complete this look, you only need to order one rod and two curtain rod finials.  Chose a finish that matches or complements your frames.

Kids' stage at home

Do you have any little performers at home?  Most kids love to sing and dance.  I got this from a customer and thought it was a great idea.



The arched curtain rod is secured at the walls with end mount brackets.  A ceiling bracket is used in the middle to hold the rod in place.  Choose your finish and you are done.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Curtain Rods for Dummies, Part IV - Wands


twisted curtain wand with a ring

Curtain rod wands, also called drapery wands or batons, are used to move curtains along a curtain rod.  They can attach to the curtain rod by a curtain rod ring or hook to a ring.  They come in different lengths, styles and finishes.

Made of Metal offers a round wand or a twisted wand with a hook or a ring.  They are finished to your choice or to match the rest of your curtain rod order.

What length of drapery wand should you purchase?  Our recommendation is for the wand to end around your shoulder (or the shoulder of the shortest person in your house that's going to using it).  So measure from the top of the curtain rod to your shoulder and round up to the nearest foot.

Curtain Rods for Dummies, Part III - Holdbacks

Holdbacks or tiebacks are traditionally installed on the wall beside the window and used to hold curtains back, away from the window.  Hook holdbacks are shaped like a "U" or an "L" and designed to hold the curtains in the "U" or "L" section.  Stem holdbacks are usually made with a "post" with some sort of design on the front where the curtains go to one side of the "post."

Made of Metal has both stem and hook style holdbacks in different designs.  They are finished to match your rod and other curtain accessories.

There are also some creative ways to use holdbacks.  If you have an arched or other strangely-shaped window, you can hang holdbacks above or around your window to hang your curtains on.

Curtain Rods for Dummies, Part II - Rings

Curtain rings, also called drapery rings, are devices to hold curtains onto a curtain rod.  They are placed on the rod and can attach to curtains in different ways.  The rings can be sewn onto the curtains.  The rings can be hooked onto drapery pins and the pins are sewn on the curtains.  The rings can be attached to drapery clips which are clipped onto the curtains. 

Rings come in different sizes and styles.  We have plain rings, twisted rings and hammered rings and they are purchased individually.  Our sizes range from 1" to 3.5".  We recommend buying rings that are one-half inch larger than the diameter of your curtain rod.  This ensures they will move across the rod easily.  Our rings are finished to match your curtain rod and other accessories.

How many rings do you need?  Depending on your curtains and what look you are going for, 3 rings per linear foot seems to be the most popular response.  You might space them a little farther apart depending on gathering, what kind of fabric you're using and a number of other factors.

Curtain Rods for Dummies

So let's get back to basics.  What is a custom curtain rod?  First of all, it's a curtain rod that's cut to length.  Most stores sell curtain rods that are adjustable and can expand to a certain length.  Second of all, our rods are heavy duty.  Most store-bought rods are pretty lightweight metal or plastic.  Thirdly, we have many finish options and have brackets with screws, finials and other accessories that are finished the same.

Brackets are included with your rod.  Our standard brackets have a 3.5" projection.  Projection is the measurement from the wall to the middle of your rod.  Our brackets are made to fit your rod.

Finials are the decorative parts that go on the end of a curtain rod.  Ours are steel or cast iron.  We weld collars onto them and they attach securely to your rod with a set screw.  A rod, brackets and finials are all you need to have a beautiful rod for your window, but there are many more accessories and custom products available.  Check out my next posts for more.

Curtain rings in bulk for better prices


We got your feedback and offer curtain rod rings at bulk prices.  You can still order them individually so there's no waste, but you can also order packages of 24 at discounted prices.  This is available in all the styles, sizes and finishes.  Just let us know what you need!

Bamboo Curtain Rods

      

One of our newer curtain rods is the bamboo curtain rod .  It's tubing so it's lightweight and it comes in any of our finishes.  It's 1" in diameter and costs $13/foot.  Like all of our rods, it comes with standard brackets and you can use any finial with it.

Corner Curtain Rods

We've been making corner curtain rods for awhile and you can order them online.  They are mostly used for wall corners and bay windows.  They are very handy when you have windows close to a corner and can't fit a finial or it would look too crowded.

You can also use corner rods in the middle of a room with ceiling brackets.  The ceiling brackets can support the curtain rods wherever needed.

It may look complicated to measure for corner rods but it's actually pretty easy.  We have detailed instructions on how to measure for one, two or three angles.  If you have more than three angles, please contact us. 

To make the corners, the rods are mitered at the correct angle.  Then, we include a connector that is also welded at the correct angle.  You slide the connector into the two rods and tighten them with the set screws already in the rods.  It's easy to do and very secure.  As with all of our curtain rods, they include brackets.  We will include enough brackets to hang your rods and support the corners.  They are ordered with your choice of finish.

Valences on Rings

This is a cute way to hang a valence.  You just buy about three to five rings and attach them to the curtain.  A valence like this one hangs nicely on the rings.  Any size curtain rod and curtain rings would work and the possibilities for style are endless!

Curtain Holdbacks

Holdbacks can be used in some creative ways.  This is pretty cool.  They used a leading edge curtain and contrasting fabrics.  I really like the black and white with the hot pink.

from www.idealhomemagazine.co.uk

Here is another idea.  She used hook holdbacks and hung them upside down above the window.  Then she attached rings to her window treatment and hung the rings on the holdbacks.  Very nice.

www.allthingsgd.com

You can also use holdbacks as hooks in your room to match your curtain holdbacks.  Hang jackets or hats or whatever on them.

www.pointyproducts.com

Problem Window


Some windows are hard to figure out.  These windows go all the way to the ceiling.  If you don't want to hang something inside the window, your choices are limited.  A perfect solution is curtain rod ceiling brackets.  They are installed into the sheetrock on the ceiling and the rod hangs down.  It's a perfect answer to this furdown that doesn't allow you to hang traditional curtain rods.