Thursday, May 24, 2012

DIY Headboard: No skill required


I live in a very small old house in Virginia. All the bedrooms are tiny. The master bedroom isn't large enough for us to have a bedframe or headboard. But a room just doesn't feel complete to me without a headboard. So I came up with this.

To do this project you will need the following:

1) A cut of medium wieght, or heavier, home decor fabric of your choice that is at least as long OR wide as your bed. I have a California King, which is 72" wide, so I got Two and a half yards to make sure I got enough to center the pattern on the fabric. Because mine is wider than the standard home decor fabric, I also was limited to a pattern option that could be turned on its side without affecting the intended pattern. Florals are great for this. If you have a sewing machine and want something like a stripe you could sew two pieces together to keep the stripe vertical. However, this requires twice as much fabric.


2) Quilters batting. I got 4 crib size quilters batting because I wanted mine to be extra coushy as I like to lean against the wall while I am in bed. But if this is just for looks two should suffice.

3) Four cuts of window trim casing. I chose a wooden fluted casing, but you may choose whichever you prefer. You will need two cuts whatever hieghth you want your headboard and you will need two cuts that are about four inches wider than the width of your bed.


4) With the wooden trim you will also find rosettes. You will need four rosettes for this project.



5) Next you wil need a wood stain in the color of your choice. I chose oak because I have hardwood floors throughout my house that are oak.



6) A paint brush to apply the wood stain. Plan on only using this brush once.

7) Wood filler to fill in the nail holes.

8) Next, A hammer:



9) Several 1.5" inch nails.



10) A heavy duty stapler.



11) Scissors to cut your fabric to size.

12) A level and pencil to mark where you will put the headboard.

Instructions:

1) Decide what width and heigth you would like your headboard to be. I recommend four inches wider than your mattress for the width.

a) cut your fabric and batting to this measurement.
b) cut your length and width trim with a saw to the specified width and heigth being sure to miter your corner as well so they fit together when placed on the wall. Sand edges.

2) Using your paint brush and stain, stain the wood trim, including the rosettes. Use a paper towel to soak up any puddling stain as that will create a darker patch of color where the puddling is occuring. Allow to dry completely.

3) Deciding where to place the headboard: I recommend six to eight inches below the highest point of the bed. I have outlet plugs that prevented me from putting it exaclty where I want to. So be sure to take these things into account when deciding on heigth.
I also recommend about two extra inches on either side of the bed. This is the matress plus four inches I was talking about earlier.

a) Use a level and pencil to outline where you want the headboard.



4) With your heavy duty stapler staple the batting to your wall inside the pencil marking you drew with your level one layer at a time until it is the desired fluffiness you want.

5) Staple the main fabric over the batting pulling it tightly across the wall and batting.

6) With dried wood trim, use your hammer and nails to hammer the trim in place over the edges of the fabric and batting, or over the pencil markings you made with your leveler.

7) Hamer and nail the rosettes over each mitered corner of the trim.

8) Fill the nail holes with wood filler.




9) Touch up the wood filler and naile holes with your wood stain.

10) And let's call it a head board!














Wednesday, May 23, 2012

New Finds for you! Spruce up for summer!

My clients often ask for fabric suggestions and I find myself suggesting the same things over and over again. So I set out to find the latest in home decor fabric fashion and just to get some new ideas. Here are some fabrics I found that I am in love with.



I'm not a huge Ikat dye fan, as some of you know. But I could not help but fall in LOVE with this print. It's just so fun!!!


It's called Rio Ikat floral. AND it's by Premier Prints!!!

And this next one is just fun.


This one is called Menagerie and it is also by Premier Prints.

So I may not care for Robert Allen's Khanjali Peacock, but I just discovered his Khanjali Adobe.


. . .  and I am loving it!

when looking for new geometric prints or trellis patterns I cam across the latest from Kelly Wearstler, who has graced the world with Imperial Trellis. This is called Emerald Cut, and it is fabulous!











See it here on this chair. FAB!


Have you seen anything here that you like?







Imperial Trellis knock off shades for SALE

We have THREE Imperial Trellis (knock off) shades for sale. The Imperial Trellis fabric is the the Imperial Trellis design on a polyester fabric. They are lined in regular drapery lining. Each one is on sale for $50.
22" wide by 35.5" long


35" wide by 35.5" long

52" wide by 30.5" long

Let me know if you are interested by leaving a comment here!
(pardon the wrinkles. They've been in packaging for a bit).


Thursday, May 17, 2012

Presenting: The Pouf

I must admit, when I had a client come to me about a "pouf" I thought she made a spelling mistake. I had no idea what a pouf was. But now, I am very much aware of The Pouf.

My initial thoughts: You paid what for a glorified bean bag? Your going to use that as an accent piece? What is it's function?

Now that I have seen one in life and used it I have new thoughts: Movie night with the kids! Perfect while playing wii! Soft yet sturdy for propping up feet and relaxing. Easy to move around. Handles kids, pets, feet, etc very well.

So, my friend Trena at Rainey Creek Home and myself have joined forces to see what the pouf craize was all about. Here is the result. Grab a drool bucket for the Imperial Trellis pouf.


Yes, that is white piping around the top, and yes, it does add that finishing touch that makes it more gorgeous than it already is!


Zoom Zoom!

And finally *Que the theme to 2001, A Space Oddysey*


Genuine Imperial Trellis in Citrine WITH Imperial Trellis piping!


WITH a handle for moving convenience.

PIN IT, BABY!




Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Don't forget about Brenna! Coupon code inside!


May's Sponsor: Brenna Helen Marie

I was so touched by the story and life of this baby girl, and I know you all will be too.

This is the Westlake family:

and this is baby Brenna:




Brenna was born with a very rare skin condition.




Her mom tells us about it:

"Our daughter, Brenna Helen Marie, was born on December 19 with a rare skin condition called Harlequin Ichthyosis. Brenna's skin lacks a certain protein which helps it form correctly, and instead it was formed as thick, white scales with deep ridges. She spent almost 6 weeks in the NICU at St. John's Hospital in Springfield, the majority of which was in a warm and moist environment as she "shed" the thick, tight scales of skin she was born with. She has beat one very aggressive blood infection, staph infection, undergone eye surgery at three weeks, and has battled many of the odds against her. Brenna is now home with her family, where she adheres to a strict skin care regimen that includes a long daily bath - sometimes with bleach to ward off infection - and treatments with Aquaphor every 3-4 hours to help her skin stay moist and hydrated. You can read more about Brenna's story at blessedbybrenna.blogspot.com"

We hope to be of some help to this courageous family. If you have any words of comfort or inspiration please feel free to leave them in the comments section of this post.



Please use coupon code "Brenna" in our etsy shop to receive free shipping on your next order and to help Brenna! We will be donating $5 from each order placed in the month of May to the Westlake family.

And please, if you know of anyone that could benefit from our modest contribution, please contact us at windowsbymelissa@gmail.com. We would love to help!

Please leave a comment of encouragement for this family in our comments section. Baby Brenna is just 4 months old and has a long journey ahead of her.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

I don't just sew window treatments. . .

. . .  as a matter of fact, when I started with Etsy I had a shop where I sold items like children's clothing, etc. I also made baby dresses for a little boutique toddler shop in the town I used to live in when I was first married.

So, my latest project. . . .

A dress for my daughter, Miriam.


The dress is the pattern "Princess Bella" from Izzy and Ivy.


She loves it!


This picture shows a bit of the detail. On ALL the visible edges I did a scalloped edge. It turned out really nice, but probably wouldn't work for all fabrics. I used Toile fabrics and it worked well.


More detail. . . .


My little princess. I thought making curduroy pants and ties for my little boy was fun. But having a girl to dress up sure is great!!!

*** Sorry, they are phone pictures. . . .


Sunday, May 13, 2012

Our New Wesbite!

Winodw Treatments by Melissa, LLC is proud to present






Use our new website to order your next window treatments with ease. Browse our selection of the most popular fabrics. See the latest available products. We have a price quote calculator that will allow you to view the cost of your window treatments in various fabrics to find one that fits both your style and budget.

When ordering, the website also allows you to choose the option to have matching pillow covers with your treatments in addition to several other upgrades.

Check it out!    Tell me what you think!




Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Clue #2

Clue #2 for the big giveaway at the end of the month:



Yes, that's right, babies! I made these sexy bad boys!

I made them for Fran from greenstreet blog.

This fabric is one of our options on our new website. Wait! Did I say website?! Surprise!!! We have a new user friendly website that I will be annoucning later this week. I know these pictures make you want to put on your party clohes and do a little dance, but you need to hang on another day or so. It's still in the beginning stages just yet. But I promise to deliver a wicked party!

Just be careful if you are going ot buy some of these. If sex could hang from your window frame, it would look like this. I don't want to responsible for a sex riot.

Monday, May 7, 2012

Summer Palace Fret in smoke, part 2

(Some of you may remember this post from a few weeks ago. We still have this item)!

Hello readers! I have a client that has some Schumacher Summer Palace Fret in Smoke wall paper that she would like to sell to my readers for A STEAL!!! It is gorgeous and absiluely stunning!




It lists at $65/yard before shipping and taxes, etc. My client has five rolls to sell for $40 and will cover ship cost!!!

Please leave a comment here if you are interested.

I am not noramlly a fan of wallpaper, but I have been imagining all the places I would like to use this in my house. I thought just on one wall in my bathroom would be perfect! I may have to jump on this deal and get a roll!

What are your thoughts on wallpaper? I've never even considered it in my own home until I saw this. Then I looked up other popular patterns like Imperial Trellis. There are som many great wall papers out there! I'm still not sure how I feel about it though. Thoughts? I also just don't know enough about it. Are the better places than others to use it in your home? Would it peel in a bathroom with the humidity? Or the kitchen? I'd love to hear your thoughts. I am not savvy with this sort of thing. Just fabric and textiles :)

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Window Treatment Style Education: Valances

Valances

Every valance we make is either my own design or has been inspired by a picture someone sent to us. We love a challenge here at Window Treatments by Melissa and invite you to send us your inspiration photos and we will see if we can recreate it for you!



Our Standard Valance

This is our standard valance and is my own pattern. This requires on one type of fabric. Home Decor fabric is always best. Not ideal for long windows unless you do two or three of the swoops with jabbots inbetween each swoop. It is mounted with brackets on a 2x3 or 2x4.

Ruffled Rod Pocket Valance, or Rod Pocket Valance

This is a standard ruffled rod pocket valance. It can be made with or without the ruffle at the top. This valance only rquires one type of fabric. It can be made lined or unlined. Home Decor Fabric is always best, but technically we can make this valance from a light weight quilters cotton. I made my son's "book nook" curtain from some "Cars" quilters fabric (below):


Ideal for any size window. It requires a curtain rod for hanging.

Penant Valance

The above is called a penant valance.. I recreated this for someone from a photo. It requires TWO fabrics: a main fabric and a coordinating fabric. Home Decor fabric is the only appropriate fabric for this style of valance. Ideal for any size window. It requires a curtain rod for hanging, however there is not pole pocket. It is simply draped over the curtain rod. Where it is hanging from the rod in the picture is actually the center of the treatment. It is all one piece. Very simple! Easy to remove for cleaning!

Ring Clip Valance


Above is a ring clip valance. This can made with or without the jabbots on the sides. It rquires TWO fabrics: a main fabric and a coordinating fabric. Home Decor fabric is best for this style, however, a light weight quilters cotton can be used. Ideal for any size window. Requires both a curtain rod and ring clips

Tapered Valance


I recreated the above valance from a photo for the Southern Virginia University allumni house. It is a tapered valance and is not ideal for wide windows. The ideal windows size would be 40" or narrower. It requires TWO fabrics: a main fabric and a coordinating fabric to line it. Home Decor fabrics are ideal, as always. Mounted on wall with brackets on a 2x3 or 2x4, or can be mounted inside window frame on 2x1.

Ribbon Valance


Above is a ribbon valance. This was recreated from a photo. It requires TWO fabrics: a main fabric and a coordinating fabric for lining and making the ribbon out of it. It is fized and is not meant for window covering, but decoration only. Ideal for anyh window size.
Below is the ribbon valance and how it looks in the window frame for an inside mount. Mounted on a 2x3 or 2x4 and requires brackets. Can be mounted inside frame with screws instead of brackets.



 I have several different photos of the ribbon valance to show you how much a difference fabric choice can make. They all look so different even though they are all teh same style.
We have been able to recreate almost everything that our clients have provided us a picture for. When the shop opened in 2010 we only had the first valance in our shop. Everhything else we have available now is because someone sent us a photo and asked if we could recreate it.

We love a challenge! Don't hesitate to send us a picture of something you have seen or like and ask us if we can recreate it for you.

Which valance do you like best? I am partial to the penant valance, myself.