At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

Duct Tape Trimmed Curtains

Howdy howdy friends! It’s the first day of Spring Break and we are so happy to have a week off!
My parents (a.k.a. “Nonna and Poppa”) are in town so if I seem a bit scarce around “b-town” you’ll know why. Oh, wait, what’s “b-town” you ask?
It’s Blog-town silly!
As in, “b-town is in da houzz yo”!
Ahem…I digress…

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I have realized that lately I am tackling projects in a “slow and steady wins the race” kind of way.
Which means that the mini-makeover I’m doing in my son’s room should be done by 2015.

Don’t go holdin’ your breath waiting for it, ok?

You may (or may not!) remember that the first thing I did was add some fun new lighting to his room with these Work Lights turned Gallery Lights!

He is into all things Electronic/Engineering/Lego-ing (that’s a word right?)/Gears etc.
So, I’m trying to incorporate some of his hobbies into his room and grow it up just a bit…only a bit mind you since I’m in no hurry for this room to be too “big boy”!

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I decided that the red curtains really needed to be replaced with something a bit more crisp and well, less red!
Oh, wait…ummm…can we tangent together for a minute?

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Do you see that horse lying there on the bed?
I would call him a “stuffed” animal but as you can see he has kind of lost his stuffing.
His name is Paco. Yep, Paco.
My parents gave him to our son for his first Christmas when he was only 6 months old.
Which means that Paco has been my son’s sidekick for 8 years (almost 9!).
He has been through a lot with my sweet boy.
Thrown up on, dragged around outside, blamed for disobedience.
(as in “no, mommy, it wasn’t me pushing the button to roll down the window, it was Paco!”)
If anything ever happens to Paco I will lose it.
When he is packed away someday I will lose it.
I will become a weepy ball of mommy goo and it won’t be pretty.
There will be ugly crying involved.
Just thought you all should know.

Now, back to the Mini-Makeover!
I decided we needed to neutralize a bit so I picked up this pack of 2 panels for $13 from Wal-Mart.

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But they were a bit too drab and I really wanted to add some electrical-y (that is a technical term by the way) character to them. Enter the red duct tape!
There are so many cool duct tape options out there right now, you know?
When I was buying it the cashier told me that her daughter’s friend makes hair bows out of duct tape!
To which I replied, “how does she keep it from sticking in her hair?”
To which she replied, “I don’t really know” and then gave me the “why did I bother talking to you” look.

I get that a lot.

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Now, the only thing I had to be careful of as I was doing this, was making sure that there was no bunching of the curtains as I went along and that the tape also didn’t get lumpy and bumpy.
This is hard stuff putting tape on panels. 
I thought about maybe doing a more extensive tutorial but I know you are all smart cookies and would somehow, someway be able to figure this out for yourselves!

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I finished off the ends by folding them over onto the backside.

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And that’s all she wrote folks!
What I love the most is that from far away it looks like a fabric trim instead of tape.

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Now, I was going to do something all cool and nifty and DIY-y for the curtain rod.
But, then I spotted this one at Lowes and loved how it had the feel of a pipe or a screw or something else kind of mechanical-y.
So, I bought it instead of doing something cool and nifty.
But, I hung it up myself which technically counts as a DIY project right?
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                         Before                                                                                        After
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My son thought they were super cool and that mommy was some kind of genius!
My hubby gave me a “did you know there was duct tape on our son’s curtains?” kind of look.

Of course, he then applauded my duct taping prowess and reminded me that the best part was that at least if we get tired of it all we have to do is rip it right off!

Hmmm…this has me thinking…maybe we could do seasonally related duct taped curtains…
Orange for Halloween!
Green for St. Patrick’s Day!
Pastels for Easter!

Oh the wheels of creativity are turning now folks!

Thanks so much for joining me at the Fence today,

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This post is partying here this week:
Coastal Charm: Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia: Tuesday’s Treasures
Chatty Chics: Wild Wednesday
Ruby Jean: Sew Crafty Tuesday
DIY By Design: Swing into Spring
Savvy Southern Style: Wow Us Wednesday
No Minimalist Here: Open House Party
Imparting Grace: Grace at Home
Stuff and Nonsense: Friday’s Unfolded
French Country Cottage: Feathered Nest Friday
Redoux: “Redone” Friday Linky Party
Common Ground: Vintage Inspiration Friday
It’s Overflowing: Overflowing with Creativity

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Comments

  1. Looking good! Love the genius idea of duct tape, perfect for his room and you really can just rip it off after he/you tires of it. The curtain rod looks cool too…this room is coming together s l o w l y but surely. 😉 Enjoy your visit with your parents!

    Reply

  4. I love trim on curtains! I love duct tape! I love your quirkey sense of humor! Paco looks to be in pretty good shape! My kids all had “nighnies” Blankets with the satin trim. I would sew the trim back on a million times until I had baby #3 and I got smart and bought three “nighnie” blankets at one time and stashed the other two away for safe keeping. Terrible when you come home from vacation missing the blankie.
    XO Cindy

    Reply

  5. Oh, you little smartie! 🙂 This is so cute and who would think of doing something like this? You did! I love the look and I’m sure you’re THE ONE in your son’s book. Thanks for popping in to see me.
    be a sweetie,
    Shelia 😉

    Reply

  10. Loved your humor in this post! I’m the same way with projects lately – slow and steady! The curtains are super creative – love them!!

    Have fun with your family!!

    Reply

  11. I agree…I think you are a mommy genius. Such a great idea using the duck tape. My daughter uses pink with white polka dot duck tape to cover all of her folders. I just love your new use for it. Awesome curtain rod as well.

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  15. OK….I have to pin this 🙂 I don’t have a duct tape board…..maybe it’s time I started one. Saw this on twitter and I started giggling and saying…..”what will they think up next” 🙂

    blessings,
    karianne

    Reply

  16. BRILLIANT, friend !! What a super cool and fun idea … and, let’s not forget super budget-friendly !! You’re such a great Mom … love, love his room. xoxo

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  17. GREAT IDEA!
    i just saw some floral duct tape at wally world…just think of the cute girly curtains you could create! 🙂
    and if you got sick of it…no worries!
    good job, mama!

    Reply

  19. Us no sew girls HAVE to be creative and I think you are a genius. Just think…when they pull those curtains shut with their dirty little paws…you can just wipe that tape right off! and if you want to change the color, there are so many to choose from…even zebra stripes! Duct tape can be used for everything. You could even cut out dots with a different color and add those to curtains! wouldn’t that be fun?!

    Genius. Pure Genius.

    Reply

  22. Oh- What a cute use for duct tape. My granddaughter called me this morning and she was making herself a pair of SANDALS out of duct tape. No kidding- Age 9! She was so serious about it, too!

    You will bawl your eyes out when you pack Paco away someday. Trust me- I packed Mikey away with tears in my eyes and teared up again when I unpacked him to give to my son- who is expecting HIS first son- God is sooo good! xo Diana

    Reply

  26. I think that’s a brilliant idea and looks perfect, especially for a boy’s room. It adds a sort of quirky boyish texture.

    As as for Paco? Yep. You’ll cry.
    Of course, I only suspect that because my daughter has yet to pack up her little nimmie. Hers is called Baby because apparently the creative naming gene wasn’t passed to her. Baby is (well, used to be) a mouse puffalump and is currently enrolled in college. He even went on foreign exchange to Germany. Such an accomplished puffalump he is.

    Reply

  28. I just love this. How cool to have something so custom-looking for just a little money and a little time. But I must say it took a lot of imagination! (Actually, you’re just being a good role model for your son, right?)

    Thanks so much for joining Grace at Home!

    Reply

  33. I love your duct tape trim but I am afraid I am bearer of bad news…. duct tape does not normally come off nicely after being applied to fabric for long periods of time. It has a tendency to leave behind a very nasty sticky surface…. 🙁 but on a much happier note… It will last a LONG time and it keeps the edges of curtains from fraying or getting all dirty as it wipes clean. (yes I’ve had experiences with duct tape especially with 3 teenage boys.) Here’s hoping your duct tape comes off cleaning with no stickiness or tearing of fabric. Oh wait… if it does leave a sticky surface then you will have better adhesion when you place the new color, right?! Love the lights and new curtains!!

    Reply

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