The Dollar Tree DIY That Gives Your Curtains An Elegant Touch

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Looking for an inexpensive yet effective way to upgrade the appearance of your curtains? A set of curtain tiebacks could be an excellent option for your home. Practically speaking, these simple accessories wrap around the middle of your curtains to prevent the fabric from covering up the edges of your windows whenever you're trying to let in light. Although they're relatively small fixtures, tiebacks can actually have a significant decorative impact. If you make a set of them for your living or dining room with jute rope and twine, they could definitely give your home the perfect little boost of elegance. Plus, they might complement your rustic home decor ideas or farmhouse-style interiors.

To DIY your own curtain tiebacks, you'll need thick jute rope, thin jute twine, and a pack of Home Collection Clear Plastic Shower Curtain Rings from Dollar Tree. With a little bit of hot glue, you can wrap the twine around the outside of the rings, then loop some of your rope through them. You can use these fixtures for either indoor or outdoor curtains. You don't necessarily need wall hooks to hold them up, but if you're frequently opening and closing your curtains, you might want hooks anyway, since they give you a place to hang the tiebacks when they're not in use. A product like DeSS Wall-Mounted Curtain Tieback Hooks, for example, should look nice with this DIY's design. Your rope tiebacks could also help make your curtains the focus of your decor.

If your shower curtain rings snap together or have a latching mechanism, make sure they're closed before you start this project. The first thing you'll need to do is pick up one of your rings and apply a small bead of hot glue along an inch or two of its surface. Then, begin wrapping some of your jute cord around the part of the ring where you placed the glue. Repeat the process of applying glue and wrapping more of the cord around the ring until you've completely covered it. Cut the cord, and glue down the end. Next, break out your larger rope and cut it down to a length of approximately 20 to 25 inches. Loop 2 to 3 inches of the rope through your completed ring, and pinch the loop you've created shut. Tie down the exact point where you're now holding the rope with a generous amount of your thinner jute cord.

Now, turn your attention toward the other side of the rope. A few inches from the end, tie more jute string around your rope so that it matches the look of the cord you're using to hold down the rope loop. Finally, pull at the end of the rope to fray it slightly. Now, you'll need to make an identical tieback for the other side of your window. If you're using hooks for the tiebacks, simply screw them into the wall at your preferred height.

The jute-brown color of the twine and the rope gives this particular curtain tieback design a rustic, countryside-style appearance. However, if this sort of look is too bland for your home, you could try replacing the twine with some colorful macrame cord instead. A natural hue, like this ZXCDINO Olive Green Cotton Macrame Cord, will probably mesh best with the rope. Not a fan of the original design's tasseled edges? First, cover up the end of your rope with some masking tape. Then, cut an 8 to 10 inch length of twine, and glue its ends down on either side of your rope end to make a loop. Finally, wrap some more twine around the taped up area, and use some hot glue to hold it in place. The tape shouldn't be visible, and the completed tieback should now have a neat little pull handle.

For another alternative look, skip wrapping up your plastic shower curtain rings and replace them with normal gold or brass curtain rings. If you have goblet or french pleat curtains at home, you might already have some of these fixtures to spare. But if you don't, you can easily pick up a set from a hardware store or order them online. Ivilon Decorative Drapery Rings, for example, are a great pick — just remove the clip. You could also use some thinner, less rugged-looking rope to give the tiebacks more elegance and make your budget-friendly curtains look way more expensive than they are.