Lazy Seamstress Kitchen Window Panel

Do you hate blinds as much as I do? They gather dust, they're always in my way, the cords get tangled...yeah, I hate blinds. I like curtains and drapes much better. Sure, they get dusty, too, but you can just throw 'em in the washer.

So House No. 3 has a west-facing kitchen window, and the heat has been BRUTAL in the afternoons. Also, I'm practically blinded when trying to cook dinner.

I had a little spare time the other morning, so I decided to sew up a panel for the window. I am definitely a lazy seamstress. I figure the less sewing I actually do, the better my project will look! I went to the store and bought a yard of this bright, cheerful fabric:

The dimensions of the fabric were near perfect, so I didn't cut anything at all! It was 5 inches longer and 3 inches wider than my window, so I pressed and hemmed accordingly, using a zig-zag stitch. (I didn't take pictures of any actual sewing --sorry)! The bottom edge was the selvage edge, and like I said, the less sewing I do, the better it will look. So I left it raw. I sewed a pocket hem at the top and used a tension spring rod to hang it.

I love the bright zing of color it adds to my very neutral kitchen. I just push it open to one side when I want the natural light to come in.

All said and done, this little sewing project cost $7.00 for the fabric, $3.50 for the rod, and took a little less than an hour to do!