It’s Week 2 of the One Room Challenge, and I feel like I just keep chipping away at all the projects I have planned for this space. My first project was to hang bay window curtains. It had been over a year since we finished the renovation on the first floor. I just needed to bite the bullet and actually figure out how to hang bay window curtains.
A little backstory on these bay windows… we weren’t able to hang blinds because the middle window is so large that there was no way to get them to hang and actually stay up. So we decided on curtains. And since the window is so large, finding a curtain rod and curtains was a challenge. But we have an easy way to hang that will make any space look lovely!
Last week I shared my design plans, now this week I have gotten to work on one large project…
How To Hang Bay Window Curtains On An Oversized Window
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Hanging Curtains Tips
Measure Your Space
I know what you are thinking… duh, of course, I have to measure. But I am talking about measuring like 10-24 times before you are sure of the exact length. Ok, maybe that is an exaggeration, but alas, if you want to get window treatments for bay windows you want them to be the right fit! Especially if you are making them.
We measured the full window, along with measuring from corner to corner. We ended up having to go with three rods to create the illusion of a bay window curtain rod.
Go Rod To Rod
Since the window is very large, we needed three separate rods. We found these beauties at Bed, Bath, and Beyond.
We measured again, decided where to hang the rods, and installed them rod to rod. It was incredibly tricky, but thanks to my amazing husband and a laser level, we got the rods to line up.
We started with the side window. Then moved to the oversized window. The last window was tough because my husband is left-handed, so the laser kept getting blocked by his hand!
Hanging Curtains
Since the bay window is oversized, I used ring clips to hang the curtains. This will make it easy to open and close the curtains without having them get bunched up or tug on the curtain rod.
Related: How To Quickly Declutter Your Living Room
Add Fabric
Since I knew the exact pattern I wanted on the curtains, finding the exact sizes was difficult. We finally decided to just add fabric to the curtains to make sure they covered the entire window.
I found this amazing print and just knew I had to have it! It was the perfect addition to the space since I was going for a blue/purple color scheme.
Now, these two chairs are not going to stay near the bay window curtains, but I do love how the patterns really play well with each other!
Next up is to paint the fireplace and mantel! Can’t wait to say goodbye to the yellow/orange brick and hello to white!!
Related: The Best Way To Create White Brick Fireplaces
Plus, we found this bubble that looks like water is coming in through the ceiling… so I have an unexpected project for this challenge!!
Don’t forget to check out all the other amazing designers sharing their spaces for the One Room Challenge!!
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I absolutely love the pattern on those curtains! Can’t wait to see how everything else comes together
I’m having this same issue with my bay window as the middle window is 90” and I can’t find any rods longer than 72” in the center. What kind of rods did you use to create this illusion?
It is so tricky! You may want to try two curtains that meet in the middle!
I just saw a Pinterest hack to use metal electrical conduit piping to make a bay window curtain rod for cheap! My windows are also 90″ in the middle so a 10 foot pipe is perfect and less than $10
We were going to try doing that but because of the angle of our window we couldn’t get the corners to fit. Since our home was built in the 50s there are some weird quirks. But if you have a normal bay window, I think it would totally work!
Jessica,
What great taste in fabric you have (we hung identical curtains in our first house’s dining room) 🙂 This tutorial was so awesome! Thanks for sharing it!
Meghan
Thank you for this information! We have a large bay window as well and I am having trouble finding already made bay window rods that will fit. How did you join the rods at the corners?
We didn’t join the rods. They just touch. It was the only way I could make it all work!
Having read this I thought it was really enlightening.
I appreciate you finding the time and energy to put this content
together. I once again find myself spending a significant amount of time both reading and commenting.
But so what, it was still worth it!
Thank you so much!!
This is so beautiful! thank you for sharing!!
So glad you found this helpful!