Making New Curtains

[keynsham1]

I have a 1987 T25 Devon Eurovette Hi top and I have decided that the curtains have seen better days. I plan to make my own as I have a sewing machine and, I believe , the skills to have a good go! As I have a cabin bunk for my son over the front seats, my existing curtains have splits sewn in at each windscreen pillar to allow them to hang around the bunk supporting pole when it is in place. Also the curtain along the side and across the sliding door doesn't sit well and needs a rethink. I decided that custom made would cost a fortune, hence my uncontrollable enthusiasm to have a go!

My first question, of many I expect, is this. When buying curtains for a house, you measure the width and then multiply by around 2 give or take, to allow them to hang nicely. I don't think this is such a good idea in a van as there would be too much extra material!

If anyone has done this before and knows any hints or tricks I would love to hear about them, and of course, loads of photos would also be greatly appreciated. I plan to keep this topic going with my progress so hopefully it will be of interest to others, but I suspect it will take all winter!

[DaveyP2004]

Theres a link here to info about making curtains for a Westfalia T25 - Some curtains may be different due to the layout of the Westfalia van but should be good starting point:
http://camperinterior.co.uk/1987_Westfa ... ainsWM.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

And theres a link here to someone making curtains for a Bay window that may have some useful tips:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Volkswa ... -Curtains/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Cheers,
Dave
(http://www.camperinterior.co.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;)

[Oldiebut goodie]

Certainly don't need x2 material. I made mine for various applications with just enough to give a little ripple effect which is more pleasing on the eye than stretched taut. Agree with having far too much material with x2 as there is nowhere to put it all when the curtains are drawn back.

[keynsham1]

Played a bit more today. I went to a local curtain shop to look at material and just got confused as there were hundreds of rolls available. I think a bit of searching through pictures on the web will help there. I also got out my sewing machine. It is a sturdy 1927 hand driven Singer machine won by my grandmother in the same year as first prize in a beauty contest!! After a bit of messing about and setting up, I have got it giving really good results. It was definitely built to last and frankly a great piece of engineering. I ended up buying a metre of red 1" Gingham cloth and lining material on the web just to have a play with. I will attempt to make the small curtain that goes across the window in my High top first. I have a few old pillow cases to practice on first though!

[keynsham1]

I have made my first prototype curtain from an old pillow case and a white tee shirt! I copied the design from the curtains we have in the lounge. They are lined but the lining is not attached along the lower edge.

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I have upgraded from my 1927 Singer to a modernish Brother electric sewing machine so that should help out with my wobbly sewing lines. I have decided that the prototype curtain is too complicated for a camper van and so I am now planning to just cut a rectangle of material and hem all the way around the four sides, stitching in the lining as I go. I'll post some pictures of my success/failure when I have had another go!

[sydny-punka]

My curtains are connected at both top and bottom of window so the spring runners across top and at bottom...if that makes sense,,

Four small holes in the metal allow the curtains , square as yours are, to be closed neatly ....then a peg in the middle so no gaps

[sandancer]

(Dawn here)
If you use smaller hems on the sides and use the same material for the lining, your curtains will look better, same on the inside as the outside

You could also add small magnets to the bottom hem instead of using the spring runner

[keynsham1]

At last I have made my first curtain! I used the old 1927 Singer machine in the end as the control is much better than the electric one! I basically decided to just sew the lining on to the curtain material around three edges and then turn in inside out. This gives a fully lined inner face and is by far the easiest way to do it! I then just folded the top edge over and sewed the curtain tape along the top. After a lot of ironing, I am very pleased with the result!

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At the end of the day and keeping some perspective here, it is a curtain in a camper van........perfection is not required!

[DoubleOSeven]

...and if it becomes too much effort, Brickwerks have a fine product.

https://www.brickwerks.co.uk/curtain-set-t3-black.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Timwhy]

I made mine with help from a friend with sewing skills. I used double the material as to block out the sun and eliminate that shadow puppet affect of the originals. The back side of the curtains is black.




We used these instructions
http://t3wiki.org/wiki/Westy_curtains" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;