New Curtains and DIY Curtain Rods

Living in the city,
 it's a necessity to have some type of window coverings. 

There are many times I wished I could go without,
at least for the Summer, 

but I know it would not feel right somehow...

especially at night with my massive windows bare for all to see inside.

I grew tired of my cream lace dining/sitting room curtains,

and I needed a solution that would
let the light in, 

give us privacy,
but not cost a fortune.

I decided on cafe style curtains.
It seemed the best of all worlds.

I found the curtains online at JC Penney.  

Here is a close up:  

The fabric reminds me of what burlap would look like

  (if  burlap was more of a fabric),

 with ivory embroidered flowers and vines all over.

There is another obstacle with curtains for this room.
The windows are so large it makes it difficult to find curtain rods.  

When I do find them,
  aside from the fact that they cost more than the curtains,

 the rods are so big and heavy,
they require middle brackets to keep them from buckling.

With cafe style curtains,
I couldn't put a bracket in the middle of the window,
so I needed another plan!

I researched a bit and decided to make my own curtain rods!

 My husband thought I'd lost my marbles when I suggested it,
but he dove in and got to work on it anyway.

It's nothing more than electrical conduit, spray painted,
along with L brackets and hole straps.

Then I capped off the ends with furniture knobs from Hobby Lobby.  

Piece of cake and so inexpensive!

The best part for us is the conduit isn't super heavy,

 so they don't require a middle bracket to hold them in place.  

See?  Kind of cute, huh?

Here's how it all looks now:

I have no problem sliding the curtains aside if I want,

like in the photo below.

I love this new look for my dining/sitting room.

It was just what I was looking for.

Thanks for stopping by!