Ugly Valance No More!

I really wanted to update the window treatments in my kitchen, but for fairly cheap.  I'd love some roman blinds, but I know that I'll be bored of them quick.  And, even if I'm not, when I reno my kitchen in the future, I'll want to fork out the dough for something really nice.  Not going to waste my money on something that is temporary.

Valances seemed to be a fair solution.  The rod was already up, and I didn't need to blow my budget on a ton of fabric.  Valances tend to look dated and cheap quickly, so I wanted something that had a custom look.

I searched through my fabric box an found these old brown curtain panels I had from our Jarvis house.  I saved them because I liked the texture of the fabric.  Here's how I made 2 old curtain panels into 4 custom looking valances.

First, I sprayed the valance rod black.

Then I cut a strip of fabric from my banquette and pressed it nice and even.

I cut the tabs off the curtain panel and cut the panel in half.  Next, I cut my 2 panels to 16" long, which is the basic length of a valance.  

I went bananas pinning my strip to the bottom of my valance to make sure I sewed it straight.

I could have just left the valance like that, but I decided to add some grommets.  I think that grommets made the valances a little more modern.  

Grommets are so easy to add.  Just mark your holes, cut your holes and snap the grommets in place.  

Most important, add an even amount of grommets (6, 8, 10 etc...) so both your ends are facing in.  Also make sure not to leave too much space between each grommet.  Once hung, your fabric between each hole will stick out too far if you leave too much space.. Yea, I made both those mistakes!!!  whoops.

Voila...here they are.  I actually like how they turned out.