Because I entertain a lot in December, I decorate every square inch of my “public” space: living room, family and dining rooms, kitchen, entry, and even the bathrooms. But I rarely decorate the upstairs, mostly because I run out of time (and steam), which is too bad, since my office and craft rooms are on my second floor. I spend so much time in these rooms; they should be decked out, too.
I get lots of natural light in my craft room. The single window overlooks my backyard, so I have a nice view.
For the holidays, I took down the curtain but left the rod. It’s white and perfect for hanging lots of ornaments.
What I love about an ornament valance is that you have so many options. You can match your room’s décor or try something totally different. I chose the latter. A few years ago, I went shopping during Christmas and picked up tubes of colorful ornaments for 75% off. That’s practically free, and who doesn’t like a bargain?
At first, I thought I would stick with the turquoise and lime green balls, but in the end, I decided to add the hot pink ones, too. I found a spool of lime green curling ribbon in my wrapping box left over from a bridal shower. I had yards and yards of it and the color is perfect. I cut extra-long pieces of ribbon and tied one end to each ornament.
Before you start, plan your layout. Arrange and rearrange the ornaments until you get a pattern you like. I started with blue in the center, moved on to green and ended up with fuchsia, and then repeated the colors.
It’s so much easier to work with the curtain rod in place. I started in the middle of the window with the first ornament. Once I settled on a length I liked, I worked left, and then repeated the pattern on the right.
I’m pretty good at eyeballing length, height and width, but if you aren’t, expect a lot of up and down on the ladder. It turned out to be a good workout! Win-win!
Don’t tie a double knot until you get an arrangement you like. The pattern options are endless. It can be perfectly symmetrical or totally random—whatever suits your mood.
Tie a sturdy knot at the rod so they don’t slip or come off. I strongly recommend you use plastic shatterproof balls!
Final question: To trim the ribbon or not to trim? I ended up liking the way the ribbon tails had a gentle curve and actually added more. If I were doing antique ornaments and fancier ribbon, I would probably cut the ends close to the rod for a clean and polished look. These ornaments, in bright colors, called for streamers.
In what other creative ways have you utilized your extra ornaments around the house?
Merri Cvetan is an interior designer who writes about her many DIY projects, including window treatments and crafts, for Home Depot. Merri started her design career when she bought the ultimate “fixer-upper,” a 1890s farm house. To view the online selection of Home Depot’s window treatments, you can visit the Home Depot website.