DIY Drapes { Dining Room Update }

I really like our simple white Ikea Vivan Curtains with the Dahlia Fabric I added to the bottom, it added extra color to our otherwise pretty white dining room. After we completed out Dining room head to toe makeover, I wasn't ready to commit to anything to bold, so the bottom pattern  fabric was perfect. I thought about sewing full length Dahlia Curtains but at $ 26 bucks a yard on Sale for 5.5 yards for fabric would be $143 bucks plus shipping. I wasn't feeling the price. I decided if I came across some pretty fabric for under $15 bucks a yard, I'd go for it.

Well months passed and nothing. Enter Home Fabrics, I've heard about them on different blogs and my girl friend Summer (she just started a blog, check it out!) that lives in So Cal shops there all time. Anyways they finally opened a new store in Northern Cali, praise the Lord. So one after noon a few weeks ago Avery and I stopped in to check it out. Within in minutes I was in fabric heaven, they had a ton of fabrics. Originally I was there shopping for Navy Linen fabric for my living room, I mention wanting to change the look a few weeks ago.

I didn't find any navy fabric, I got distracted when I saw the large print floral fabric, I like the shades of aqua and teal mixed with the greys and browns. It was perfect for my dining room, except one minor problem. Hasani wasn't with me and I was afraid he'd nix the fabric because it was floral. We make it a point to agree on major changes and going from pretty much all white to a floral print was a major change! I texted him the picture, and 10 minutes later with no response I went with my gut and purchased 5.5 yards of fabric. Lucky for me he texted back saying he liked the fabric and to go for it. The best thing of all is the fabric was only 5.99 per yard!!! I paid $ 33 smackaroos for 5.5 yards of fabrics which breaks down to 198 inches of material!! Can I get a high five! Woo Hoo!

Before I share the afters, here's how I transformed 198 inches of material into two back tab style drapes for our dining room. Cutting material that long can be a challenge, so first I folded the fabric in half width wise, then folded it in half. I then cut the fabric in half leaving me with two 99 inch pieces of fabric. I decided I wanted my panels to be 93 inches each.

I sewed the sides of each panel first, then I folded the hem over one inch two times. Next I ironed the hem flat and then pinned and sewed each side. For the bottom hem and folded the fabric up two inches pinned and sewed.

I really like the look of back tab drapes, they look clean and almost like pinch pleat drapes without the fuss. It's the same style curtains I had in the dinning room, they can be back tab or you can use the rod pocket. I decided to sew the same style. I folded the top hem down four inches and iron then pinned. Instead of sewing individual tabs, I used ribbon as the tabs. I got this idea from Jenny at Little Green Notebook. I bought two rolls of dollar ribbon from Micheal's and spaced the ribbon five inches apart and pinned the ribbon top and bottom to the fabric. Next I sewed the ribbon onto the fabric.

I really like how the new drapes for the dining room turned out. The pretty large floral drapes bring in so much color into the dining room. The new panels are 93 inches long, 3 inches shorter then our old curtains. Hasani moved the new curtain rod down and the new drapes rest on the floors perfectly. I love for how finished the back tabs make the panels look, so pretty. Here's our new panels. Sewing the panels was super easy, the longest part of the whole process is pinning and iron the panels.

Here's how the fabric looks pulled out, I love the fabric. The fabric is super heavy and like a woven style. I forgot to mention, before I began sewing the panels Hasani and I had decided which way the print would hang. Either the leaves up or down, after much discussion we decided we liked how the leaves looked down.

Sorry for the bad lighting in this pic!

Here's a quick breakdown of how much the new back tab drapes cost to make. I spent $ 33 bucks on fabric and $ 2 bucks on two rolls of ribbon, total $ 35 for a pair of custom back tab drapes. Each panel only $ 17.50 crazy affordable!!

What do you think of our new drapes? Have you sewn drapes for your home?

Do You Coupon?

You all know I love a good bargain, thrifting, Craigslist, but do I use coupons? Yeah, not like I should. I've got some good deals using coupons ( nursery chair, light fixtures and fabrics ) and I almost never pay for shipping thanks coupon codes. When I'm hunt for a good deal as mentioned above, I'm all about coupons. In everyday life (shopping at Target, Groceries) coupons are almost non existent. I am good about using my Safeway Club card while grocery shopping to save on 'club card specials.' After talking with girlfriend about how much she's been saving on grocery bills & household items, its finally time I tackle coupons like a pro. She suggested I check out The Krazy Coupon Lady website, where I'll really learn how to get my coupon on!

{ Screen Shot Krazycouponlady.com }

It's easy for a newbie couponer (is that a word) to get overwhelmed, thankful there's a beginners tab. I learned so much about how to use coupons the right way. Normally if I have a coupon and I want to use it, the generic brand or another brand is cheaper, so my coupons go unused. I learned to use my coupon when the item goes on sale! For the most savings. The site recommends starting a binder, and saving all your coupons. I started my new coupon routine on last Sunday { we only get the Sunday paper } which is perfect because I can save the coupons & look at the sales ads to use my coupons. The binder option didn't work for me { to bulky }, instead I got a pocket folder with individual pockets to store my coupons by type. I have a pocket for; health & beauty, cleaning products, groceries, Starbucks, baby stuff and dog care. I like that I can carry my folder with me in my diaper bag, without looking Krazy :) I sat down when it was quiet on my living room floor and starting sorting and cutting out my coupons. I have a pretty good little stash so far.

Each page contains a clear pocket, perfect spot for me to store coupons. I now know to use the Carter's 20% off coupon I have when a sale is going on, lucky for me there's an outlet near my house that has sales! I'll be stocking up on my baby clothes for Avery soon. It's had for me to resist cute baby clothes, so the extra savings make me happy.

Since getting my feet wet so to speak in this coupon world, I've already been seeing savings. Yesterday I had to buy to food for Mojo, which was perfect timing his dog food regular price is $12.99, using my club card it was

$10.99. I had a coupon for $4 bucks off the same brand! I only paid $ 6.99 - its so unreal I saved $6 bucks! Just by taking a few moments out of my day to clip coupons!

Thanks to my girlfriend I also learned about a free 8x10 Canvas Special that's mention on the Krazy Coupon Lady site, all you pay is $ 14.95 for shipping and handling! The canvas is from Canvas People, I placed my order last week and its shipped and on its way to my house. We decided to order our new family blog picture. I'm so excited can't wait to see how it will look in person. Such a great deal for under $15 bucks! Click here for the link I will share our canvas when it arrives. I'm going to order another canvas from our wedding. These make great gifts.

I'm looking forward to fine tuning my coupon shopping skills and saving some money in our everyday life. I love that her site list coupons by store, I so need to use coupons when I shop in Target! I'll up date how I'm doing with coupons and will keep track of my savings for the next month and see how it all adds up.

Do you use Coupons? How often? What are some of your coupon tips? Could you be on Extreme Couponing? How do you organize your coupons? What sites do you love for coupon tips??? So many questions!!!