After rough-housing the shade on our bedroom window for the past 10 years or so, my husband, Anil, told me recently that we’re ready for a new one. The existing shade is fraying at the hem and although it’s a made of a plain ivory cotton fabric, it has also faded unevenly from exposure to the sun. Furthermore, the blackout roller shade that used to be mounted behind it has fallen down, so my husband needs to wear a mask when he sleeps to keep the early-morning light from waking him before he’s gotten a full night’s sleep.
I went to a press event the other day and saw a new fabric designed by Danita Harwood for Calvin Fabrics that I’m sure will provide the perfect solution to the problem. A lovely Belgian linen in the company’s new line Technical Linens, the fabric is called Nocturne and it’s backed with an integrated blackout flocking, so I don’t need two separate pieces of fabric to create a shade that will block the daylight. Since I’m reasonably proficient with a sewing machine, I plan to save a little money by fabricating and installing the shade myself. I also plan to reuse the existing mounting board, drawstring, shade pull and other mechanisms to keep costs down even further and make remounting the shade easier.
This will be the first of a series of minor—and maybe not so minor—home improvement projects that I plan to undertake in the coming year, which I hope will make the New York City condo I share with my husband a more comfortable and happier place to live. I also plan to post regular updates on the progress I make with these projects on this blog, so keep an eye out for step-by-step how-tos and possibly a video on how I make this new shade in the coming weeks. You can also find instructions on how to make curtains and other soft furnishings, including a few I made for my own home, in my book Curtains, Cushions, Covers & Blinds, published by British publisher Mitchell Beazley, or you can order the American soft cover version Curtains, Shades, Covers & Pillows (Creative Homeowner).
