How to Turn Tab Top Curtains to Back Tab Curtains...

Hi everyone. We're just finishing up on 2 rooms that have new floors, baseboard trim and new paint on the walls. The final step is window treatments and I've been on the hunt for new curtains for 3 large windows for a while. I would love to sew them myself, but with 3 windows, that's over 18 yards of fabric and 18 yards of lining...that would be hundreds of dollars. Financially not possible right now.

Sometimes when you can't find exactly what you're looking for, a little transformation of one thing can lead to just what you need! I found tab top curtains at Ikea for $19.00 for TWO panels!! Yes, you read that correctly. Two panels per package for $19…unheard of these days.

I wasn't looking for tab top curtains, but the color was perfect and the 98 inch length was the yardage I needed. So, this is what I turned them into with just 2 straight lines of stitching…

Pop in to see how easy…

These are the tab top curtains.

First way to sew them "without" the ruffle at the top

To transform the tab top to back tab curtains, just lay the curtains with the wrong side facing up.

Fold over each tab…

and pin the end of the each tab down. Sew all the way across the curtain, catching each tab end in the stitching.

This will create a loop for the curtain rod, but there won't be a ruffle at the top. It will lay flat on the rod.

This is the back with the rod in, if I had sewn the tabs down.

Second way to sew them "with" a ruffle at the top

To get a classic ruffle look without a lot of fabric gathering, you will need to sew 2 lines of stitching.

Still fold over the tab, but pin in 2 spots.

Stitch the bottom of the tabs again as before and then stitch another line depending on how wide your curtain rods is.

Third way to hem the curtains from the top and make the ruffle!

These next pictures are the actual way I sewed mine. To avoid hemming the bottom up 2 inches, I turned down the top 2 inches on the original stitch line shown by the arrow.

This was a coincidence that I needed to hem them 2 inches and the casing was 2 inches. If you need to hem your curtains too, just fold down what you need to shorten at the bottom.

I pinned all the way across on the edge (top arrow) and also pinned each tab down (bottom arrow).

Here is the whole panel pinned.

First, I sewed the line of stitching on the right. I just followed the manufacturer's stitching.

Then I sewed another continuous line of stitching, 2 inches apart from that, catching the tabs. My rods are narrow, so adjust the width for your rods.

 Here are the finished stitching lines.

Then here again with part of the rod through the back tabs, so you can see what it looks like.

Finished in just minutes!!

I chose the curtains in the same color family as the walls, because I change the decorations throughout the house with the colors of the seasons and holidays. It makes it fun and easy to add inexpensive splashes of color with accessories and have the walls and curtains as a neutral backdrop.

When I'm all done, I show you the finished rooms.

Hope you enjoyed this post…one more reason to visit Ikea...$20 curtains and the meatballs, gravy and lingonberry sauce!!

Take care,
~Karen~