A New Look ~ Dish-Towel Curtains

I've been itching for a change of scenery around my kitchen window.  My window is over the sink and, as you can imagine, it is my window on the world.  From time to time, I like a change.  I've kind of been longing for open windows and curtains blowing in the breeze.  I knew I wanted something light-weight -- and something that would work for a valance as well as a cafe' style bottom tier.  I wanted to get a little creative and "different" with little-to-no sewing, and so I thought of dish-towels.  There are so many pretty patterns out there.  The problem is, many are sold in 4-packs with four DIFFERENT patterns or solids.  That doesn't help when it comes to making curtains, though.  On the other hand, if I bought single dish towels, they tend to be more expensive -- and since I like to change up my curtains from time to time, I'm not usually looking to spend a lot.

The other day I was strolling through Target (I know -- just feign surprise, would ya?), and I noticed this pack of 30" x 30" gauze-y dishtowels and thought they might be just the ticket.  At $3.99 for a set of four, I couldn't go wrong.  RIGHT?

I already had some cafe' rings and a tension-rod that I'd used in this window before -- so I was all set.  The 30" towels were long for the bottom section of my window, so I merely folded the top edge over, estimating where to put the cafe' rings so there were no huge gaps.  I estimated on where to fold the towel too.  I just held it up and eyeballed it, clipping it into the cafe' rings as I went.  I'm pretty sure some of these cafe' rings have been lost over the years, because I only had a grand total of 9 -- which meant I could use an even FOUR on each side.  I wasn't sure if that would be enough, but I DO like the end result.  It gives a "looser," and less tailored look. 

As for the top valance, I simply folded the remaining two dish-towels in half, and placed them over a wide tension rod.  I spread each towel along the rod in ruffle-style, and had them meet in the middle.  Admittedly, these dish-towels are not perfectly square.  As I pressed them, I realized this -- so I was prepared for imperfection as I hung them.  I tweeked them here and there, but you can see that the result is a casual, unstructured look.  Just what I was going for!

It's a PERFECTly fresh new look for spring and summer -- and I can tell you that I've already gotten my $3.99 out of the project!!!  I am so tickled with the result!    

I started and completed this project on Friday night.  So easy.  I took these pictures on Saturday morning when the sunlight was streaming into my kitchen, and a gentle breeze was blowing.  I love the light that is cast on the room as the sun lights the room through the wispy towels, and I love how they move in the breeze.  This simple project really gives a whole different look to the room!

FOUR dish-towels for curtains = $3.99

The smile on my face when I walk into my kitchen each morning = PRICELESS.