10 Creative Ways to Use Household Items As Curtain Hardware

Many women's bracelets and men's cuffs are the right size for cinching single-width drapery panels. Put bracelets and cuffs to creative use as tiebacks by placing them around drapery panels and hanging freely, or create a more permanent look by attaching them to the wall with Velcro.

Sometimes the perfect object for a lightweight drapery rod may be sitting right outside your window. Branches can make for excellent, sculptural drapery rods with a few simple do-it-yourself updates. Search for a branch with the proper length and width to fit above a window and handle the weight of the chosen drapery panel. Next, cut it to size and spray-paint it in a color which contrasts well against the wall. Lastly, secure standoffs, ready-made drapery rod brackets or L-brackets directly to the wall using plastic drywall anchors, then attach the branch with screws or bailing wire.

When draperies need to be pulled back from or tied back in the middle of a window, neckties are a stylish solution. While freestanding tiebacks simply require a proper Windsor knot slipped up along the bottom of a drapery panel, fixed tiebacks are created with Velcro placed along the back of the neck loop and attached directly to the wall.

Sisal rope has endless uses when it comes to decorating. To add a nautical touch to windows, consider adding small two-by-two-inch wooden blocks above a window. Then, after cutting a spool of rope to size, knotting each end and sliding drapery rings or panels directly onto it, attach rope securely to blocks with decorative screws and washers. Depending on how tight the rope is pulled before being secured to each block, a more tailored or relaxed look can be achieved.