P.S. BOO-HOO

I hung the third panel of sheers late Saturday night, pleased as punch with the results--the flowing, filmy voil that graced the windows had the effect I'd dreamed of. (I love to bury my face in the middle of all that fluff because it reminds me of a bridal dress.) The next morning I walked into the living room to admire my work in the light of day, but to my horror, the third panel of sheers was shorter than the others...and not just a teensy, weensy bit shorter, but a full inch and a half shorter!!! All this after I'd carefully measured, pinned and ironed the hem and taken the trouble to hang the drapes before sewing to compare lengths.

I don't know what the moral of this story is, but if you do, please let me in on the secret.

HELPFUL HINTS ON MAKING CURTAINS

I'm in the process of making curtains for the livingroom and altering old curtains for new windows. I've acquired a lot of savvy from my experience and would love to share it with you.

1) Take a refresher course in math before buying material. That way you won't have to look "dumb" when the clerk asks you how many yards you want.
2 It is smart to listen to the clerk who has way more experience in figuring out yardage than you do.
3) Listen to your husband (if he happens to be with you).
4) If you didn't listen to your husband OR the clerk and have to return to the store for MORE material, try to find a different clerk to wait on you. (Hint: less embarrassing)
5) Avoid sticking yourself with straight pins. It creates pain, and at times, blood.
6) If you notice blood stains on the material, follow this advice I heard somewhere: spit on the blood. Well, they didn't exactly say spit, but the idea is the same...use your saliva which has enzymes that begin to act on the blood stain before you make yourself get up and wash it out.
7) If you can actually make these curtains look nice, Congratulations, you have achieved your goal.