It's so good to hear that translucent header tapes are sturdy ShadyLady. Thank you. The functional drapes in my living room have a traditional pinch pleat header tape and have held up fine after 3+ years of use. Sounds like we are looking at similar window treatments Laurie... My guest bedroom's window has existing shades (pulled down halfway in the photo below), but since it's quite large (100" W x 108" H), I decided to add black out draperies to help manage the light, add texture to the room, and give myself a sewing project (ha!). So yes, they will be functional. Opening and closing with a baton hung inside the on the center edges of the 2 panels. Also, I added 30% additional width to my rod length to allow room for the stack back as I didn't want the opened curtains to block any light. But I read thinner fabrics and/or curtains without blackout lining need as little as 20% additional rod length for stackback. I linked below to an online tutorial I found loaded with photos that might offer additional help since she goes into great detail. My Fabric: medium weight Robert Allen Bella Porte fabric in midnight aka blue. http://www.robertallendesign.com/trade/fabric_detail.aspx?product=207642 Lining: Hanes OutBlack lining. This lining has been described as having a soft hand and being easy to work with (compared to other blackout linings). http://www.hanesindustries.com/blackouts.htm I wish my shipment would hurry, all this sewing talk has me excited to start! =) Here is a link that might be useful: Blog Tutorial: Sewing Pinch Pleat Lined Curtains

Interesting thread. How often do I take a hard look at my home? Frequently, however that doesn't mean I do much, or anything, about it. I can relate to what stephf said and often play the game of "what would I change if I lived here" in other people's houses but also play âÂÂwhat could I change to improve my worldâ in my own. Most of the time I only change out accessories without buying anything new as have enough to rotate items. I satisfy my need for change by decorating seasonally. I'm not using as many accessories as I used to and my seasonal decor is much more subtle but there are changes to more seasonal colors. Now that it's fall I'm using accessories with fall colors, more natural and wooden items, and a few faux pumpkins/Jack-O-Lanterns. A few years ago we repainted and bought new upholstery with neutral colors so this works well. After many years of trial and error and sometimes not liking my house much I am finally happy with most of my choices and there's not much I want to change right now. When I move (likely in the next couple of years) I will be ready to buy all new upholstered items and will then change my color scheme and perhaps style. I'm a senior but will likely never stop changing things around in my house. I have never changed out everything all at once in 47 years. Have added and eliminated but never decorated from a clean slate. The only time I decorated 'from scratch' was when we moved to Europe for 3 years and bought almost everything new and a few things 2nd hand. Sold everything before we returned home as I had no attachment to any of it. I much prefer to collect over time and let my decor evolve as it will. Some of my old pieces have good memories such as pieces that belonged to DH's and my Grandmothers. I buy several new accessories every year, mostly handmade art pieces now. I have downsized and re-homed many items in recent years and continue to do this. I sell the better things thru a consignment shop and donate the rest to thrift stores. We had this house built 17 years ago and it now looks completely different from the way it did when we moved in. Different color walls, different flooring, different furniture. While I like to think I don't change things often my decor has definitely evolved over time. It has happened so gradually I have never realized until now how different it looks. I still have the same DR furniture, a chair that was DH's Grandmother's, and a small antique sideboard but everything else in the public areas has been acquired since we built. Only the upholstered furniture was purchased new, everything else is antique, vintage, or repurposed. I still have many of the same accessories but also many different ones, purchased new as well as from 2nd hand venues. Realistically I expect my house will continue to evolve subtly and will look quite different 10 years from now.

Graywings, one of the girls from another decor board did something similar for her LR drapes just a few years ago. She was in Paris at the time, and I remember several of us following her drape saga with interest. Wish I could find a photo of what she did. Her panels were heavier weight than what you are looking at using, something in a velvet or similar, I believe. She used one color for the main drape and then attached a length maybe 14" deep to the Bottom of her drape. I believe she used piping between the two fabrics. Anyway, it looked wonderful. And I think that perhaps flipping your idea and doing the bottom in the different color might look better? I think your idea could be pretty............maybe better without adding the red insert, or if you add red, just a line of piping rather than the 2" inset. So, here's what I would do..... You have those panels already. So, get out your dressmaker straight pins and pin your pieces together. Do it very carefully so that it looks as close to 'sewn together' as you can get with pins. Leave out the red for now so you can play with your panels. Do you have a rod hung already? Hanging your finished product from the rod, using the existing rod pocket in your panel, will give you the best idea of how it will appear, but if you don't have a rod up, you may be able to use a strong masking or duct type tape to get them in place. Now, arrange them so you can visualize. Leave the room, then, walk back in and 'surprise' yourself. If you don't love the blue at the top, try the same idea like I suggested, with the deep hem of blue at the bottom edge. Once you do this, I think you will know whether to go full-speed-ahead or go for something else. And if you love the look, then, perhaps you can find something red to tack on as your narrow band in the middle, to get an idea of how that will look when finished. In a lightweight fabric like the one you are using, that's the part that worries me, because trying to do something like this with the addition of the narrow middle piece might hang puckered..........does that make sense? I've included a link at half priced drapes.com where they show their bottom banding. My Paris friend's looked a little similar, although, I don't think she did a 27" band. Also, you may find something there. I saw some 50" wide panels in 120" length on sale for $79 per panel. And a fabric with a bit more weight and heft to it just might hang better if you are fusing two separate colors. Red Here is a link that might be useful: Banding idea from HalfPricedDrapes

If Otis is planning on buying ready made panels they would have to be long enough to go up on top of the board and still touch the floor. (They would be rod pocket panels). I wouldn't even go to the trouble of picking out the stitch lines for the rod pocket, but just gather the panels by hand and staple on top of the board. (As long as there isn't a 2 story balcony that you can look down on top of the boards - you don't have to be terribly picky about how the top looks.) This is just an easy suggestion for this window configuration. I do think that 2 panels will be needed for a nice full drapery on each window. You can use iron on tape or pins to keep the drapes together and then hide that join in the folds when you dress it out. I know how to sew and of course I would do them in a more professional manner. It just depends on a person's budget as to whether they can afford custom window treatments or if they need to make them or do something creative with ready mades! You can also use pinch pleat panels on a board and hang the drapery pins from screw eyes inserted on the 3/4" front lip of the board. I have drapes made like this in my own home. I've never posted a photo on this site but I will try to take a photo tomorrow and post it.