I am always surprised at how expensive curtain rods can be. Ikea tends to have the best prices for them, but their selection is very slim. So, we decided to try our hand at making our own.
We purchased electrical conduit at our local home improvement store for $1.67 for a 10 foot rod that was one-half inch in diameter. The 10 ft. rod would not fit into our car, so they were kind enough to cut it for us. We did need to cut it again when we got home (because the piece was still too large for the space) but it cut very easily with a hack saw.
We also purchased a can of black semi-gloss spray paint for a couple of dollars. We chose black because we wanted it to blend in with the library walls. We only used a third of the can.
I was a little worried at first about finding the brackets and knobs for the ends of the curtain rods. I looked in many home improvement and department stores but could only find the brackets sold as a combo with the curtain rods. I finally ended up finding them at a second hand store. I was so excited! There were three brackets and two knobs for the ends for $1.50.
The end of the knobs had a skinny screw at one end which made them difficult to attach them to the conduit. They were also quite heavy. My husband came up with the idea of cutting a square piece of wood just the right size to put into the opening of the conduit. So he wedged in the wood piece with a hammer, then he drilled a hole right in the center of the wood piece. So it was easy to screw the knobs right into the rod. It worked perfectly.
There you have it. Curtain rods for our library for about $5 ( it would only be a little over $3 if you already have the paint on hand). Now that is a deal! We plan to do the same thing for the upstairs living room curtains.
{New to Redfly? Many more great ideas to come!}
