I am so excited to be here with you today to share with you how to sew your very own ruffle valance curtains. I have been making these for a little over a year for my
Etsy Shop and thought I would share with you all how to make them. I also use this same method for crib skirts.
A few things that I have learned after making about a million of these curtains (or I do the same exact thing for crib skirts and bed dust ruffles):
Sewing ruffles is time consuming. No way around it. BUT with that being said, there are ways to make it quicker.
Remember I didn't say that it is hard, because it really is simple, but it does take time.
So here are a few tools you might want to have in your arsenal
BUT you don't have to have them.
- A serger that does a rolled hem
- A ruffler foot for your sewing machine
Finished curtain size: 42" wide by 18" tall
Materials required (assuming width of fabric is 44 inches):
1/3 yard of 4 cotton fabrics for the 4 different tiers (the fabrics I used are
Gray Matters More Mosaic,
Gray Matters More Medallions,
Yellow Essential Dots by Moda , and
Gray Shades by Riley Blake
1/2 yard of the fabric you will use for the back of the curtain
Cutting:
Cut from each of your 4 tier fabrics 2-5" wide by the width of the fabric
Cut 4-4.5" wide pieces from your backing fabric.
Sew each of of the 2 pieces of fabric that match each along the short end of the fabrics
IF you have a serger that does a rolled hem sew along the bottom edge of the 4 tier fabrics.
If you aren't able to do a rolled hem, then hem the bottom edges however you prefer
Hem each of the short ends of the tier fabrics and the backing fabrics.
I serged the ends to prevent fraying and then I folded the fabric over 1/4 inch and sewed
If you have a ruffler foot, ruffle all the tier pieces of fabric along the top edge (you haven't done any sewing along that edge yet)
Now comes the assembly of the curtain. Take your bottom tier fabric and one of the backing pieces. Put your ruffled piece of fabric on the bottom with the backing fabric on top of it with right sides facing each other.
Serge (or sew if you don't have a serger) the two pieces together
Flip up the backing piece, then grab your 2nd tier piece. Layer your backing piece that is sewn to the first tier on the bottom, with right side facing up, then the 2nd tier fabric, and lastly the backing fabric with the right side facing down. Sew the pieces together.
Repeat with your remaining 2 tiers. On the last row you will need to fold your backing piece in half so that you are sewing a tube for your curtain rod to go through. In this step you will be sewing 4 pieces of fabric at the same time and not 3 like in the previous 2 steps.
You might need to iron your ruffles down a little after you are all done. Just make sure that while you are ironing that you don't smash the ruffles so they aren't fluffy.
Now you have a beautiful ruffled curtain valance! I hope you enjoyed this little tutorial!
If you enjoyed this tutorial make sure to check out:
How to sew Ruffle Curtains
How to Add Minky to a Quilt:
Follow A Vision to Remember:
Then the Gray, Green, and Red color scheme
The Green and Gray colors
The blue and gray one
These would be great Christmas gifts for neighbors, teachers, friends, and even family. 
