Custom Window Treatments : The Process
When requesting blog topics earlier this year, many of you asked for additional posts and information pertaining to window treatments- including custom drapery. If you’ve been following along for awhile now, you know that I like to mix all types of window treatments: readymade options, budget options, DIY options, designer options, and of course- my favorite is custom… I am a designer, after all! I had the opportunity to partner with Calico to share the process of tailored drapery with you, and I knew it would be the perfect time to chat about taking the custom route. Click through to learn about the process, the cost, and how I landed on these gorgeous window treatments for my home office!
*This post is sponsored by Calico. All content, ideas, and words are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that allow us to create unique content while featuring products we actually use & enjoy!
The most asked about window treatments in my home are the drapery panels in our formal living room that flank our french doors… and for good reason- they’re beautiful! I had those window treatments custom made. As a designer and a trade member of the design industry, I have resources and skills I know not everyone has access to. Specifying window treatments actually used to be a big part of my job as a designer. The firm I used to work for had our own studio workroom and talented seamstresses on staff to create whatever we could dream up with an array of designer fabrics.
Most homeowners don’t have libraries of designer fabric at their disposal or a talented team to whip up custom window treatments. Unless you’re working with a designer, it can be an overwhelming process. That’s why when Calico reached out, I jumped at the opportunity- knowing it would be an awesome resource and a good educational post to share with you! I’ve actually had clients work with them in the past and can attest to their quality. I was excited to go through the process myself! Since we had planned to tackle my home office at the beginning of the year, I knew that was the room I wanted to get window treatments for. I designed these with that renovation in mind! Can you already tell what direction I’m headed with the design, based on the below image?
Let me walk you through the entire process for these window treatments. First, I made a private appointment with my local Calico store, here in Salt Lake City. Since this used to be part of my job, I went in knowing what I wanted, BUT the beauty of the process is… you don’t have to know! Your Calico designer can walk you through all of the options, choose fabrics, help you hone it in, and will design your window treatments for free. Kaye was my designer (who is the sweetest), and I had the best time brainstorming with her! Most days I miss being apart of a design team and bouncing ideas. I shared my vision with her, she grabbed a ton of fabric choices for me, and we sketched it out together. It was really a fun morning.
The next step was scheduling a professional at-home measure. Given we’re social distancing and I used to do this sort of thing for a living, I actually opted to take my own measurements. However, this is another service that Calico offers with their custom window treatments. They’ll come to your home (safely masked up) and take measurements for you… that way the end result is perfectly tailored to your windows. Once the measurements are submitted, your window treatments will go into production. This is what my office windows looked like BEFORE (please remember- my office has been in progress for two years, haha)…
Calico called once my window treatments were completed to schedule a professional installation. Emmett was thrilled- one less project on his to-do list! Joel showed up at our house for the installation and both windows took less than an hour… he even removed our existing plantation shutters for me. He immediately guessed I was a designer, which made me laugh. I spewed off how high I wanted the drapery panels to hang above the floor and of course- he already knew how it should look (because it’s his job and he’s very good at it). It’s nice to work with people who know these design measurements! I even asked him to hold up the cornice so I could “eyeball it” (such a Sarah thing to do) and he happily obliged. It ended up right where my designer, Kaye, had noted. What can I say, I’m an admitted perfectionist. Argh. Joel cleaned everything up and was on his way, leaving me with these stunning window treatments to admire.
Let’s talk design, now! I wanted to keep the window treatments in my office traditional and a bit more formal. I love the feminine look of pinch pleat drapery, and this time around- I wanted to add a cornice (that’s the geometric board at the top). It really makes the room seem so much taller and leads your eye toward the ceiling and crown moulding, while looking more formal. I knew I wanted a patterned band on the leading edge of the panels for added interest. Kaye had the idea to add a piped welted edge around the cornice board, as well- which we color matched to the patterned band. Calico has a huge fabric and trim library, but I landed on this combination rather quickly! The panels themselves are a heavy linen / cotton blend and are of super quality. They work for privacy, but still allow filtered light inside… perfect for a home office. I know I’m going to love these for years to come!
I’m really happy with the end result! What’s not to love about stunning custom drapery? I also promised to share the cost. You know I have a taste for higher-end fabric, and the pricing totally reflects what type of fabric you’d like, how many details you want to add (like trim pieces, a contrast welt, a cornice board, hardware, etc)… these two windows cost around $3,500. That’s honestly an excellent price (coming from someone who used to quote custom window treatments). To break it down- the two cornice boards were around $1,400, the hardware was $100, and the remaining cost was the drapery itself. I hope that’s helpful! Basically, everything is custom made to fit your windows perfectly. It’s an easy way to streamline the custom window treatment process (without hiring a designer or trying to figure it out on your own). If you’d like more information, I’ll copy some helpful links below:
- To make a Calico appointment, click here.
- To request a professional measure, click here.
- To check out their window treatment brochure, click here.
- This is the main fabric I used– a linen cotton blend.
Now that I’ve shared this post and photographed my beautiful window treatments, I’m going to carefully take them down and store them for safe keeping, so we can begin demo on my office (totally backwards, I know… but I couldn’t say no to this opportunity!). Once we renovate, rework the millwork, and the dust has settled, these beauties will be reinstalled in their rightful place. I’m already looking forward to the day! I think they’re really going to elevate the space and will be the cherry on top once this room is totally finished. Let me know if you have any questions about the process, Calico, or window treatments in general… I’m all ears and happy to help!