This is our master bedroom, and since changing out the carpet to wood floors, and adding curtains this past weekend, I love how serene it all feels. I loved the burlap and cheesecloth solution we’ve used for many years, but I was growing tired of it. Plus, every time I tied up the window (I love wide open windows), all the little fibers would get everywhere. Here is a before with the burlap and cheesecloth window coverings…

The girls say that the curtains make it feel like a hotel and they love it. One day I’d love to put some cafe-style shutters, but with recently putting in the wood floors upstairs and on the stairs (and our current front yard project), our wallets need some time to recover. Thus, I’m content with the simple act of switching out the burlap window coverings for these linen curtains. The change has made the world of a difference in our bedroom. I didn’t anticipate the drama they would add to our bedroom, but I don’t mind the drama one bit.

I had been wanting some white, linen, blackout curtains, but those can get costly at about $150 per panel (and I needed about 5-6!). I looked at different websites to find some that weren’t as heavy on my pocketbook, but they all cost about the same. After deliberating between a couple ideas (even sewing my own), I decided to get these linen curtains from IKEA (we use them downstairs and I really like them) and then backed them with blackout fabric. I knew I wanted to do clip ring style curtains, so I thought if I cut out blackout fabric to match the size of my curtain and just clip them behind, maybe it would work that way. Obviously, it did! I didn’t want to sew them in because in case we ever got cafe shutters, I wouldn’t need the blackout part any longer. Plus, if the blackout curtains were sewn in, then the whole thing would be dry clean only, and I like the idea that I can separate the two and throw my linen curtains in the wash if I wanted to.

I picked up about 16 yards of blackout fabric from Jo-Ann’s (with a coupon it came out to about $80) and 3 packs of linen curtains from IKEA. The width of the blackout fabric is the same as the curtain panel, so I only had to cut the length. I cut them about 3″ shorter than the curtain because I didn’t want them to kiss the floor like the curtains. Then, I just clipped them in at the back of the curtain (with the white side facing out). I didn’t bother sewing the raw edges of the blackout curtain because the folds would be too bulky and you don’t really see it, so it’s no big deal to me. I’m pretty happy to have my black-out curtains for way less the price. Now, it’s so much easier to let all the light in during the day and close them for privacy at night. I’m loving all the light that streams in our bedroom and my plants are pretty happy about all the light too.

room details: curtain rods, IKEA. king size bed, casper (the most comfortable! use this link to get $50 off and I get it too). platform bed frame, wayfair. cot, vintage via ebay. rocker, modernica. george nelson crisscross saucer light, dwr. dresser, IKEA (got it when I was 18 and it’s still going strong, though I did change out all the knobs). vintage fishing net (hanging over dresser), elsie green. basket (by dresser), michaels. acapulco chair, amazon. fan, amazon. and pretty much everything else is vintage.

p.s. we have a twin bed hiding under our bed, and on the weekends, our room looks like this.