How to sew curtains with grommets: how to sew grommet tape with your own hands

Sewing curtains with eyelet rings yourself is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. The main thing is desire and availability of free time. If both are available, then watch the step-by-step master class on how to sew curtains with eyelets with your own hands.

Curtains with eyelets are great in themselves and can add style to the surrounding interior.

This is always a good solution for decorating a window area.

Sewing materials

A piece of fabric (future curtain), eyelets, pencil, thread, needle, eyelet tape, scissors, ruler or tape measure - a set of materials that will be needed for sewing. You also need a sewing machine and minimal ability to work with it.

The designs attract attention not only with the quality of the textiles, but also with the unconventional method of attaching the canvases to the cornice.

Many housewives dream of owning a similar model of curtains.

Sewing curtains with eyelets with your own hands: pros and cons

It’s worth noting right away that wasting time on taking measurements, sewing, and selecting the necessary materials are the main points that can become an obstacle to starting to sew curtains with grommets in person, with your own hands. However, all this is incomparable with the following points.

Curtains hung on grommets are almost impossible to tear off even with a good tug or sharp pull.

The neat, even waves formed by the curtains look impressive in the interior design of any stylistic orientation.

The ability to choose and purchase fabric of the desired size, color and quality.
A real chance to save money without having to send the fabric for sewing with eyelets to the studio.
Demonstration of creativity and skills, the result of which is a unique author’s performance.

The fixtures themselves will also decorate the interior.

Note! To save time before you start looking for fasteners and fabric for curtains (drapes) in stores, take measurements of both materials, mentally imagine their colors and quality.

Today, eyelets are offered in a wide variety of shades and shapes.

How to calculate the length of the braid

Usually the store that sells curtains and tulle has curtain tape. The seller can offer available options. But if there was no suitable option, then you will have to use the services elsewhere. To buy the right amount of tape you need to know the width of the tulle. Add another 10 cm to this number and buy. Why make such a reserve:

Firstly, during the sewing process the fabric may stretch a little and if you take the same length, the tape simply will not be enough.
Secondly, you need to make hems so that the fabric of the curtain tape does not fray.

Advice. Before purchasing tulle, consider how tightly you will tighten the lacing. If you want clear folds and gathers, then take 3-3.5 times more material than the space you plan to close.

What are eyelets

Eyelets are fasteners with a groove, with the help of which you put the curtain fabric on the cornice. Round grommets are often chosen because this shape slides easily along the rod (string) of the cornice. Each circle consists of two separate parts. At the moment of joining, they create holes in the fabric necessary for stringing the curtains onto the curtain rod.

Eyelets are easy to choose for decorating rooms with a wide range of functionality and design.

Since the fasteners do not have sharp teeth that can deform the fabric and leave unsightly puffs on it, the curtains will last for decades.

The main advantages of eyelet fasteners, which serve as a reliable fastening to both thick curtains and thin tulle:

evenly distributed waviness of folds;
long-term preservation of the material in its original form;
quick and easy opening and closing of the curtain;
laconic look, suitable for any interior.

Curtains are equally easy to hang and remove. They do not lose their shape when washed.

Important! The height of the rings should be 2-3mm greater than the thickness of the fabric. The internal diameter should be at least 1 cm greater than the thickness of the cornice.

The reliability of the fasteners and the ease of their movement along the cornice will make it easy for even a child to curtain the window.

Conclusion

Eyelet nylon strips are very convenient and useful if used correctly. A similar approach can also be used if the eyelets are located at the bottom of the curtains - this is a very original decorative move, in which all the details are important. Subsequently, muslin or ropes are passed through the holes, which also needs to be taken into account (the folds will be soft or embossed as a result).

When purchasing a functional element, you do not need to make provisions for the future. The adhesive strip may soften and even come off if stored improperly. You should not use colored products - they are attractive in themselves, but during use they can unexpectedly change color.

Grommet tape: how to sew it to a curtain with your own hands

At the very beginning, you need to correctly sew the grommet tape, since it is the basis for these fasteners. It makes the upper edge of the fabric denser so that the curtain gathers beautifully and forms wavy folds.

The ease of installation, functionality and durability of the fittings made the scope of its application almost unlimited.

Note! You need to buy a tape no wider than 8 cm. Otherwise, it will either need to be cut or used for smaller rings with a diameter of no more than 4 mm.

Plastic eyelets slide along the curtain rod quietly, with a pleasant rustling sound.

So, how to sew grommet tape onto a curtain? Detailed instructions:

Stepping back 1 cm from the top edge, lay the tape with the adhesive part (on the wrong side of the fabric!);
Iron the tape with a well-heated iron, thereby sizing it;
Carefully trim the remaining part of the tape with scissors without damaging the curtain fabric;
Fold the remaining top edge onto the grommet tape and iron it;
Fold the top edge with the ribbon, iron and stitch along the bottom edge.

Installing the eyelets yourself is not difficult.

Important! You need to sew the grommet tape along the edge, carefully pulling the curtain fabric from below. The stitch should not come out onto the canvas, but should go strictly along the grommet tape. Therefore, you need to sew carefully, slowly.

Types of curtain tape

The product is used not only to form drapery of various types, it can act as an element of the fixing structure of curtains with smooth or slightly gathered surfaces:

There are special strips for fixing curtains with lifting mechanisms: for example, in Roman or Austrian curtains.

Roman curtain rod

You can sew curtain tape as a drawstring that fits onto a curtain rod and create a light, drapery with shallow, loose folds.
If you sew a curtain tape to tulle not of the classic type, but of the grommet type, the curtain will form a soft drapery, covering the cornice rod with folds protruding at the top.

How to install eyelets on curtains with your own hands

After sewing on the grommet tape, the final step remains - installing the grommet rings. To do this you need:

Select eyelets of the required material and size;
Make the correct markings for installing the rings;
Securely secure the grommet rings in the holes.

With good quality, the parts will last a long time and without incidents.

Important! To make the markings, you need to lay out the top of the curtain fabric perfectly evenly, prepare a pencil, scissors and a ruler.

Which rings are better - metal or plastic?

When choosing grommet fasteners for a future curtain, you should know that:

metal ones are suitable for thick, plain fabrics;
plastic ones are suitable for absolutely any fabric.

To make your own curtains with metal eyelets, you can choose bronze, gold-plated, or chrome-plated models.

In this case, it is better to give preference to plastic fasteners. They are silent, easy to care for, do not rust or peel, and come in different colors and shades. In addition, plastic fasteners can be snapped in place independently without additional equipment.

The fittings can be transparent, have a pattern or be plain, or be an imitation of natural textures and other materials.

Additional Information. When choosing between matte and shiny eyelets, you should give preference to a matte shade. Shiny eyelets quickly lose their shine due to constant mechanical stress - the movement of the curtain along the cornice.

Marking holes and installing rings: detailed instructions

So, when the grommet tape is sewn, you can move on to the most important thing - installing the grommets. To do this, you need to prepare an even number of eyelets based on the markings of the holes on the curtain.

Usually, eyelets with a diametrical size of the inner ring of up to 5 cm are used for window decoration.

To make markup you need:

Measure the length of the fabric from one edge to the other;
Determine the desired depth of folds;
Decide on the indentation from the top edge.

The color of the fasteners should be correlated with the design of the cornice, curtains or furniture available in the interior.

Important! For light fabrics (tulle, organza, muslin) the ideal space at the top is 4-6 cm, for dense fabrics - no more than 7 cm.

The distance between the rings, which will give the desired depth of the folds, is determined as follows.

On both sides, half the specified distance should be marked. That is, if you decide to take 15 cm between the rings, then you need to mark 7.5 cm on both sides.
From one of the edges (from the given starting mark), measure the selected number of centimeters and put a new mark. Then repeat the marking to the other end of the curtain.

The color scheme for the design of the window area should echo the style of the interior of the room.

Important! Large intervals between rings lead to sagging fabric. Therefore, the distance should not exceed 22cm. The ideal distance is 15cm.

After the marked distance, you need to determine the center of each eyelet and install them.

To do this, you will need to complete the following steps.

Measure the height of the hemmed eyelet tape and divide by 2.
At each distance mark, place a new mark for the center.
Take the grommet, place it in the center of the resulting marking and trace it from the inside.
On the outside, at a distance of 0.5 cm, draw another ring.
Make a cut from the center of the marking and cut the fabric inside along the outer circle.
Open the eyelet, install it in the hole and snap it into place.
Follow steps 3-6 along the entire length of the curtain.

To ensure that the product looks beautiful and the fastenings do not bulge in all directions, you need to install an even number of elements.

Sewing on ribbon: step-by-step instructions

Having decided on the type and design of the product for simulating folds, all that remains is a small task - to sew the curtain tape correctly. Once you familiarize yourself with some of the tricks and features of materials, the work will not seem difficult to you.

Since we chose light tulle curtains for decoration, we will need transparent braid.

Sewing begins with cutting. We measure the length of the product and calculate the width by multiplying the length of the cornice by the selected assembly factor. Along the entire perimeter, do not forget to add centimeters (at least three) for processing the cuts.
First we process the side edges of the curtain fabric. The bottom of organza tulle is usually initially finished with a seam with a “built-in” weight. All we have to do is sew the curtain tape onto the tulle at the top.

Since we chose transparent materials, the size of the fabric hem (on the wrong side) should match the width of the braid.

For organza, it is important to process the loose cut line well. You can wrap the material twice, forming a double hem, or pre-process the edge with an overlocker.

Loose cut organza

If we need to sew curtain tape onto tulle, no additional finishing of the edge is required: this fabric does not fray or rip. Moreover, the upper cut will hide behind the braid.

Iron the folded fabric (double or single fold).
We measure and cut the braid to the required length: allowances for hemming the side parts on both sides are added to the width of the curtain.

Important! When working with tulle, it is better to take stripes of at least 0.5 m in reserve. Tulle is a material that stretches when sewn.

We take out the gathering cords from the side parts bent for processing the edges.
To carefully sew the ribbon to the tulle, place it below the edge of the curtain at least 5 mm. In no case should the braid stick out above the edge of the curtain; it is better to leave wide strips to form a decorative fold at the top.

It is very difficult even for an experienced seamstress to sew curtain tape onto organza without preliminary basting: the surface of the material is smooth and slippery. Out-of-control fabric will result in a sloppy seam at best. Therefore, we first baste the product or secure the braid and tulle with pins.
First we sew the fastened parts in the upper part. To sew a ribbon to an organza curtain using the second bottom seam, when sewing, pull the curtain fabric and braid evenly (to prevent wrinkles from appearing on the fabric).

Features of sewing curtains with eyelets. Sewing tips

Sewing curtains with eyelets at home is undoubtedly a good idea that will not take much effort and time. It is enough to follow the strict instructions given above and recommendations.

If you decide to sew curtains with eyelets yourself, do not use cheap metal.

The piece of fabric should be at least 2 times longer than the cornice. The height of the canvas does not matter.
Before installing the eyelets, you need to turn them in (by 1-2.5 cm) and stitch the edges of the fabric.
The eyelet tape should be sewn after processing the cuts of all edges of the fabric, except the top.
If the fabric is too thick, there is no need to glue the grommet tape.
When attaching two identical curtains, the folds must be laid in mirror images.

As you can see, even beginners in handmade can do such a job as putting grommets on curtains with their own hands.

It is also worth remembering that soft material holds its shape worse than dense material. Therefore, it is better to make a bend from the top edge of about 5 cm, and install eyelets with a diameter of 3 to 4 cm.