Advice on measuring etc. for making curtains please!

[Thefearlessfreak]

Hi
I want to buy the material for ds's curtains & then get someone to make them. I don't have time to get someone round first as we're off to Ikea on Sunday & that's where the fabric is!

So, please help with bits of my plan!

1. measure the length - is there a standard extra bit for the hem?
   
2. measure the width - x2 ish for a gathered effect?
   
3. Currently we have a pole & I'd prefer not to replace it if possible but I don't want tab tops really - can I get a gathered effect without a track hanging?
   
4. I want blackout lining but the soft kind anything I need to know about that?
   
   Any advice would be gratefully received as I don't want to balls mess it up as is quite likely!

[Wolfcub]

Right if you have a pole and you don't want tab tops then you need a pocket top curtain. So you need enough length plus enough for a deepish hem at the bottom plus enough to go over the top of the pole, leaving enough slack for it to slide along with a little extra to hem. Basically (and I am by no means an expert but I made our nursery curtains in a similar style) I would add about 20 inches to your length to be safe.
I'm not sure about the gathered effect without a track hanging, with 2x fabric on a pocket top it might just look lumpy but I guess a lot of that depends on the width of your window,

[slng]

This is the website I used for making our curtains. I got fabric from Ikea measured as instructed, got the tape from a local haberdashery (and once from John Lewis). Then sew them all up very roughly (just a stitch here and there to mark where things should go) as instructed and took them to a local laundrette-type place which does alteration - they charged 7-15 pounds to sew them up.

I didn't buy the ikea heading tape - I don't know if they work for blackout linings. They seem to only have one line or two for the hooks. I got our blackout linings from mothercare and GLTC and they hang on the tapes of the curtains with curtain hooks.

We got a curtain pole like this with curtain rings which let you hang curtain hooks on them and you do get a gathered effect.

Phew!

Ikea does have the most beautiful fabric.

[Thefearlessfreak]

thanks a lot both of you for good advice & very handy links!