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How to Make Roman Shades

Roman shades are a beautiful and simple way to treat the windows of your home. They can let in as little or as much light as you need, and they’re easily customizable to fit the decor of your home. I’ve put together a tutorial on how to make roman shades yourself. Good luck!

Howtobuildit.org is all about creating the perfect living space with your own hands. Find tons of amazing and easy DIY projects anyone can take on. Create the perfect window treatment for your home with these DIY roman shades.

How To Make Roman Shades

1. First you’ll need to gather your materials. For this version of roman shades you’ll need blinds to fit the window, fabric of your choosing, fabric glue, scissors, clothespins, and a small paint brush.

How To Make Roman Shades

2. Once you’ve gathered your materials, you’ll need to cut the fabric to fit the blinds. But first you need to know how wide and long to make the fabric. Cut the thin string that keeps the slats lined up. Image via Domestically Speaking.

How To Make Roman Shades

3. Next, decide how many folds you want in your shade and how far apart you want them. Take out all the slats except the ones where you want the folds. Then tie the string after the last one. Image via I Heart Nap Time.

How To Make Roman Shades

4. Now you can finally cut your fabric. Lay the blinds out on the fabric and cut around leaving a few inches around the sides. Image via Simply Mrs. Edwards.

How To Make Roman Shades

5. Now you need to glue the slats to the fabric. Use the paint brush so that you cover the entire slat. You don’t want these falling off! If you need to secure this while it dries, use the clothespins. Image via Better Homes & Gardens.

How To Make Roman Shades

6. Now you’ll need to finish the edges of the shade as well. Just use the fabric glue to make a nice clean edge. Image via Made 2 Style.

How To Make Roman Shades

7. Now you can hang up your roman shade! With that quick and easy tutorial you’ve got a beautiful roman shade at a fraction of the price! Image via Better Homes & Gardens.

How To Make Roman Shades

19 thoughts on “How to Make Roman Shades”

    • Yes, I have wanted to do this for over a year and now I have one up on my window. The first one took some time as to make sure it fits the window right and it was worth it! Now the next window has all measurements done n it should not take as long. The first one took about 4 hours and the window is 26-1/2″ w x 67-1/2″ L. Once I got the ‘spacing’ measurements for each mini blind n finished length, I was good to go.

      Reply
    • Yes I have made a couple of these. Not hard to do. The only thing I dislike is that they look unfinished on the back side, so if you don’t like that unfinished look you would have to repeat the process on the back.

      Reply
  1. I’m curios what this looks like from the outside? I’m wondering if anyone has tried lining it so that it’s just as pretty for your neighbors as it is for you.

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    • I have made 3 and it’s soooooo easy. After the first one, the next 2 were easier. I lined the material with white muslim type material and the blinds were white so it just looks white, not bad.

      Reply
  2. I am using a linen fabric – since the fabric is thin, what type of glue should i use that won’t show through the right side when it dries? I used E6000 glue and when it dried the right side of the fabric shows the glue as if it were wet. The roman shade turned out great – but when all the way down – glue lines appear across each slat that i glued. Any ideas on what type of glue to use on Linen?

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      • Other sites I have viewed have suggested using Mod Podge. I haven’t tried it yet but that is what I’m going to use when I make my first attempt at making a Roman shade using blinds.

        Reply
  3. I wish there were a way to sew “pockets” for the blinds rather than using glue. I know you can’t encase them in fabric, as the cords are on the back, but maybe some occasional tabs sewn on can hold them in place? But then will the stitching look bad on the front? I also want to line them to keep the sun out, so I find it hard to believe that the glue will penetrate enough through both fabric layers to keep them on the blind vane nicely and long term. Also, glue may yellow with time. I’m afraid to try this, although people seem to have had good results.

    Reply

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