Patterned Curtains using canvas drop cloths and acrylic paint

 Hey guys, it's been a while since I've posted a DIY blog. I've been involved in several projects for my livingroom this summer and I'm eager to share this one with you!

So I have this extremely big sliding glass door and have spent several years trying to find the perfect curtains to go on it. Because it's so hot here, I try and get sun blocking curtains. But, as anyone else can attest to, those are not the "pretty" curtains you want to use to accent your home.

Last summer on a whim, I decided to buy the pre-packaged canvas dropcloths from Home Depot. They come with one side already pre-hemmed so they are no-sew. I cut them down the middle and then hot glued a hem at the top for the pole to go through. I'm telling you, hot glue is my best friend.

We have loved them and they have kept out that hot sun in our home, but their canvas color makes our white walls look, well pretty drab. I have spent months just staring at them, trying to come up with a solution. I have spent countless hours scouring pinterest, to no avail. I wanted some kind of pattern on them, but everything on pinterest seemed very complicated and I was terrified of messing up.

One day at Michaels I happened upon a Fleur De Lis stencil on clearance. I have always loved a bit of french charm and took a big leap and bought it and some wine colored acrylic paint. I bought 4 bottles of it. I spread out that curtain and measured (ok I somewhat eye-balled it) how I wanted to pattern to look and commenced painting. It took me a couple of hours.

This is the rough shot of what it looked like when I was half way finished. I think the hardest part of the project was replicating the same pattern on the second half of the curtain. It took some effort.

                           But this was the end result and I couldn't be more thrilled with it.

There were definitely splotches occasionally and each time I painted it, it always came out a little differently. But I actually like that they looked a bit different. It didn't seem like something I bought at Pottery Barn. It felt handmade; organic and a little retro.

In total, I spent $15 on the dropcloth, $5 on the stencil and $8 on the paint to make curtains that spanned the entire length of a very large wall. $28 isn't bad, and it's fun to know that I made them myself.

Can't wait to share my new office with you guys soon! For more DIY tutorials check out my DIY link at the top of the screen. I love to meet new friends, hit me up on Pinterest.

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