Easy DIY Vintage Linen Cafe Curtains

Rediscover the beauty of cherished vintage linens and turn them into charming cafe-style curtains that showcase their history and handmade detail. With just a few simple supplies and a little sewing (or even no-sew!) you can give these fabrics new life and add unique character to your windows and your home.

Over the years I’ve found lots of vintage linens I loved in thrift stores: pillowcases, small tablecloths, napkins, and doilies.

Most of the time I had no idea how I would use them but they were so beautiful that I couldn’t bear to see these handmade creations moldering in a pile of junk. I knew from experience how long embroidery took, but drawn-thread work like some of the intricate pieces? I can’t imagine.

Which leads me to the second reason I like buying linens (and other things) at thrift stores (just slightly below the savings factor) :

It honors, in a way, the time, love, and talent that went into handmade (or even quality made manufactured) vintage items from days when everything wasn’t outsourced to China.

One of the ways I’ve found to use some of these vintage linens is to make simple cafe curtains. It’s a way we can transform these treasures into something functional that also allows you to enjoy their beauty and uniqueness on a daily basis.

Vintage Linen Cafe Curtains

When we remodeled our bathrooms, we replaced the dated, foggy windows with clear single-hung versions since we wanted to maximize the natural light in the rooms. Cafe curtains were an easy solution for both bathroom windows – they provide privacy, but still let in light above the curtain.

I just love how they turned out – and how easy they were to make!

How To Make Cafe Curtains with Vintage Linens

With nothing but a single line of straight-stitching, I was able to use two pieces of vintage linen – one a pulled-thread cotton and the other a hemstitched pure linen – to create one-of-a-kind cafe curtains.

Supplies

• Vintage tea towel, small tablecloth, runners, napkins, etc.
• Tape measure
• Sewing machine, or needle and thread for hand sewing, or fabric glue.
• Small tension rod (for inside window placement) or cafe curtain rod-and-holder set (for outside placement)

Directions

1. Measure your window. The width is the most important part, but you’ll also want to know how much length you’ll want from your rod to the window sill.
2. Choose a vintage linen piece that fits your measurements. For the simplest curtains, choose pieces that fit perfectly the width and have only enough over-hang to create a self-valance for the height (as pictured above).
3. Measure your rod width to know how wide to make the pocket for the rod on the curtain (1-inch will usually cover most cafe-sized rods for smaller windows).
4. Make the rod pocket. There are two ways you can choose: a) Simply fold over the end of the linen piece, and mark where your pocket seam should be to create a pocket the width you need (based on your rod measurements). Sew a loose (set the machine stitch to 3.5 or by hand or fabric glue) seam straight across at the mark. OR b) Cut the linen, leaving enough to make your pocket and fold a raw edge under – sewing or gluing as above.
5. Hang your curtain.

I chose to simply fold over the linens for both our curtains not only because it was simple, but also because I didn’t want to cut into the linens. This way, if I want to do something else with them, I can simply use a seam ripper to remove the stitching, wash and iron them and they will be back to their original state.

However, what if you have a wonderfully embroidered tablecloth you’d like to use, but the decoration is only in a corner and it’s way too long? This is a case where you’d want to cut and add a side-hem as well as a rod-pocket.

I just love how these turned out and that I was able to use these unique pieces. It’s easy to do and takes relatively no sewing so you, too, can liberate any sweet, old linens you may have to live again as curtains.