Hang a beaded curtain in a child's window.
Curtains are the quickest---and among the cheapest---way change the look of any room. This is particularly important in a child's bedroom, because children's tastes change often. Of course it's simple to simply pick up a package of Sponge Bob or Tinkerbell curtains at your local department store, but that won't personalize your child's room. For a unique look, work with your child to create curtains that are one-of-a-kind.
Beaded Curtain
You can buy beaded curtains at import stores or novelty shops in the mall, but even a very young child can make them for a fraction of the price. Simply hook a dowel over your child's window frame (use cup hooks) and give him a bowl of beads and some string. The strings should be about eight inches longer than the window to allow for knotting them at the end and tying them to the dowel. You can space the beaded strings as thickly as you like across the window, and threading a few bells in among the beads will transform the curtain into a wind chime when the window is open. If privacy is an issue, hang the beaded curtain over a roller shade or conventional sheers. If you like, tie the room together by making matching curtains for closet doors and room dividers.
Ribbon Curtain
Another fun window treatment for a kid's room is ribbon curtains. Simply fasten ribbon streamers to a standard curtain rod using double-sided tape and attaching each length of ribbon so that it's adjacent to the previous one. Vary the colors and widths of the ribbons for different looks. Cut the ribbons so that their free ends skim the bottom of the window frame, or trim the bottom into scallops or points. Ribbon curtains also look pretty hung behind standard curtains, so that when the draperies are pulled back the ribbons show through. You can sew charms, gems or tassels to the ends of the ribbons for extra sparkle.
Iron-on Transfers
To jazz up plain fabric curtains, create your own iron-on patches. Use your own color printer and special transfer paper to print any design you like, then iron it directly onto the curtain fabric and remove the paper. You can use this technique to make a pictorial family tree using family photographs (sketch in a trunk, branches and leaves with fabric pens), hang a gallery of her friends' photos (autographed with fabric pens) or showcase the child's own artwork.
Tags: your child, beaded curtain, child window, curtains that, fabric pens, window frame