Step 6: Make up the Fabric panels
Printable Worksheet
CHECK YOUR FABRIC
Check your fabric for faults and that the correct length has been supplied NOW before making any cuts or presssing. Also if using a patterned fabric measure and check the quoted pattern repeat is correct.
Press your fabric* before measuring and cutting so any shrinkage will be before the curtain is made up. As once the curtain is made it will probably be quite creased and if you have not already ironed the panels they will shrink if you press/steam them later having not done this first.
This video shows you
- How to check your fabric.
- How to press your fabric.
"I just love your videos and am following them at the moment to make my first pair of curtains. I did an evening course, but find your methods really easy to follow and straightforward so thank you"……Anna-Marie
"I love your videos they have given me the confidence to make my own curtains and blinds"....Julie
"I have absolutely loved your videos for curtain making, I have learnt so much from you".....Charlotte
"Once again, I should say that I think the video tutorials are extremely well done. Although I've been sewing for years I've learnt lots of techniques that are new to me and that give a much more professional finish"........Heather
"The videos really are super"……Anna-Marie
"Once again, I should say that I think the video tutorials are extremely well done. Although I've been sewing for years I've learnt lots of techniques that are new to me and that give a much more professional finish"........Heather
"I have absolutely loved your videos for curtain making, I have learnt so much from you".....Charlotte
"The videos really are super"……Anna-Marie
PLAIN and PATTERNED FABRIC are treated differently at this stage
PLAIN FABRIC
CUT PLAIN FABRIC DROPS
- Cut the widths of plain fabric the length of the FABRIC CUT DROP calculated in step 3
- As with the lining if you are working with an odd number of widths each curtain will contain a half width. Cut down one of the widths to split it into 2 equal halves.
- Check the bottom of the panels are straight, if not trim.
This video shows you
- How to measure and mark your cut drops.
- How to cut your cut drops.
- How to split a width in half.
- How to make sure you use the correct sides the right way up later.
"I just love your videos and am following them at the moment to make my first pair of curtains. I did an evening course, but find your methods really easy to follow and straightforward so thank you"……Anna-Marie
"I love your videos they have given me the confidence to make my own curtains and blinds"....Julie
"I have absolutely loved your videos for curtain making, I have learnt so much from you".....Charlotte
"Once again, I should say that I think the video tutorials are extremely well done. Although I've been sewing for years I've learnt lots of techniques that are new to me and that give a much more professional finish"........Heather
"The videos really are super"……Anna-Marie
"Once again, I should say that I think the video tutorials are extremely well done. Although I've been sewing for years I've learnt lots of techniques that are new to me and that give a much more professional finish"........Heather
"I have absolutely loved your videos for curtain making, I have learnt so much from you".....Charlotte
"The videos really are super"……Anna-Marie
If each curtain is more than one width wide, we now need to join the required widths to make each curtain fabric panel.
JOINING PLAIN FABRIC
- Lay fabric panels to be joined right side together (make sure the panels are the same way up) align bottoms and edges.
- If you are working with an odd number of widths each curtain will contain a half width. The half widths should be on the outer edges of the curtain. Join the selvedge to selvedge.
- Join the panels with a plain seam.
- Press the seams open
- Check the bottom of the panels are straight, if not trim.
This video shows you
- How to make sure you are joining correct sides and the right way up.
- How to sew a plain seam.
- How to press a plain seam.
"I just love your videos and am following them at the moment to make my first pair of curtains. I did an evening course, but find your methods really easy to follow and straightforward so thank you"……Anna-Marie
"I love your videos they have given me the confidence to make my own curtains and blinds"....Julie
"I have absolutely loved your videos for curtain making, I have learnt so much from you".....Charlotte
"Once again, I should say that I think the video tutorials are extremely well done. Although I've been sewing for years I've learnt lots of techniques that are new to me and that give a much more professional finish"........Heather
"The videos really are super"……Anna-Marie
"Once again, I should say that I think the video tutorials are extremely well done. Although I've been sewing for years I've learnt lots of techniques that are new to me and that give a much more professional finish"........Heather
"I have absolutely loved your videos for curtain making, I have learnt so much from you".....Charlotte
"The videos really are super"……Anna-Marie
How to deal with PATTERNED FABRIC is covered next.
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Questions & Comments
Hi, how do i find out if I am able to steam/iron a face fabric? I am working with 100% polyester, is this a fabric i can steam? thanks
I wouldn’t iron polyester, just very cool iron but always test first.
I am trying to cut out my patterned fabric with a metre ruler, metal tape measure and a set square, but the line seems to be out by quite a bit on each side of the fabric. Is it possible that the pattern isn't quite level?
This is very probable. Quite often fabrics are not printed straight across the width and it can cause quite a problem (particularly if your adjusted cut drop is close/same as your actual cut drop). If the pattern is random, then it is less noticeable but when the pattern is very definite and noticeable, you will notice the run off, more so with a roman blind. Unfortunately, there is little that can be done although I have returned fabrics before for this problem. You need to cut the fabric at right angles to the selvedge and not in line with the pattern. This will mean that when all widths are joined, you’ll have a step up or down where each panel is joined. You can see I had the same problem with the fabric in the image below….
This means that when you level off the bottom, you will lose more fabric than you planned. If this leaves you short, you may need to adjust your hem. Hope that helps. God luck. Cindy
Do I have to pay to see these videos?
Yes
I am making my first pair of curtains (full length) and have just successfully pattern matched what I consider to be a tricky Sanderson patten - thin decorative tail feathers of birds of paradise! The instructions given here and in the accompanying video are superb! They are so clear and easy to follow and enabled me, as a complete beginner, to join fabric lengths with confidence and relative ease. A big thank you to Sew Helpful x
Where can I find a long tbar ruler like the one you've got?! Many thanks for your great videos!
Try Merrick and Day
Merrick and Day tools
My query is about aligning the fabric panels. My pattern stops about 5cm in from selvedge. The horizontal pattern repeat is 44cm. The nearest point that I can align the pattern when folding the top layer back is about 27cm away from selvedge, clearly i cannot pin & sew at this point or would lose too much fabric. How would you proceed to get the best join? ( my fabric is clarke & clarke halcyon melrose)
Have you followed the instructions correctly for patterned fabric and cut adjusted cut drops (where each drop of fabric has been cut so it starts at the same point in the pattern repeat) .