altering pleated sheers

11 years ago

Hi. I'm going to alter ready-made pleated sheers for my mother-in-law. Need to make them less wide. I'm a bit paralyzed with fear about the whole deal.

The traverse rod is not installed yet and I've got maybe 3 or 4 inches of width wiggle room with the rod installation.

I've done the math to account for the center overlap (center draw) and the returns on each end. I should be able to get a pleat right at the corners where each return to the wall starts.

What I don't get is should I include a little extra for ease in the total width? And if yes, how much?

My mother-in-law is a perfectionist and has always had custom drapes before this, so she'll notice if I screw it up. Thanks.

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Comments (4)

bananafana
Original Author
11 years ago
I forgot to say that I'm not re-pleating or anything like that. Just altering from the outer edge and eliminating one pleat and the original return from each panel. I've been sewing for 40 years, so the execution should be ok. I'm mostly worried about the overall measurement and amount of ease, if any.
lazy_gardens
11 years ago
The traverse rod is not installed yet and I've got maybe 3 or 4 inches of width wiggle room with the rod installation.

Wait until the rod is installed, hang the sheers, adjust them to hang nicely starting at the center overlap, and see what needs to be removed.

How much are you planning to remove?
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bananafana
Original Author
11 years ago
lazygardens---yes, that would make more sense, although I do want to get the last pleat right in the corners. But mostly, I wanted to do the job in one trip over to her house so I was hoping to get the drapes done before I put up her rod. Your idea makes a lot of sense....I just wanted the one trip. Thanks.
Annie Deighnaugh
11 years ago
Well if the rods aren't hung yet, then you can hang them to match your alteration....so long as your alteration didn't make them too narrow...