Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Product Review: Drapery Rings



I went to Joann's because it was on my way home from work. I was thinking that maybe I should buy some solid fabric for the OSU quilt which may be commissioned. When I got there, I did get smart, and decided to wait until I had a commission before buying any fabric. Even though I could technically make an OSU quilt and maybe sell it to someone else, I have enough quilts on my to-do list to not add another project on the list.

I didn't buy any fabric (thank you, thank you - it did take some will power). I saw that the Christopher Lowell collection of drapery stuff was 70% off. All other drapery stuff was also 40% off. I thought about buying some more curtain rods, because they were at fantastic prices, but I didn't think I had enough wall space. I did get these drapery rings instead. Even though I could have gotten smaller rings, I decided to get the ones with big clips. The rings just hang on the curtain rod. There are clips that you can use to hang up the quilts. This way, the quilts that don't have hanging sleeves can still have their chance to shine. Also I think it will make it easier to switch out the quilts, since I won't have to take the curtain rod down to do it.

It does pinch the quilt, so time will tell if that does any damage. I did test it first, and it doesn't seem to cause any damage in the short run. I also will have to be very careful to put on and take out the quilt on the clips. They grab about a quarter of an inch of the quilt, which means that the edge is right where the binding stitches are.

Pros
  • Convenience of Removing and Adding Quilts
  • Don't Need Hanging Sleeves
  • Better View of Smaller Quilts
  • Works with Many Quilt Sizes
  • Great price - regular price is $10-$12.00
  • Comes in a variety of finishes - silver, gold, black

Cons
  • Pinches Quilt Tight
  • Clips May Damage Stitches if Improperly Handled
  • Have to work at Spacing the Rings (which I didn't do very well for this picture)
  • I don't know if the clips would rust in a humid environment

I really like these, and I think I will continue to use these for a majority of my quilts. If and when I ever make that heirloom quilt, I might save it from the pinchers, but the rest of my quilts will be just fine.

4 comments:

wishes, true and kind said...

My friend and long arm quilter uses those and easily changes quilts with the seasons and holidays. I want to give it a try one of these days.

Allie said...

This is how I hang all my curtains - including the quilt I made for my sewing room window. I never thought of using it for the wall, duh. I love it! Wouldn't a tiny quilt hung on one of those magnetic curtain rods look cute on the fridge?

Gari in AL said...

I have been thinking about setting something like this up but on the outside, for picture taking. I have aluminum rods that won't rust and would just have to find rod holders that will withstand the weather. But I could put it up at a 11' length and display any size quilt. Still working on this idea.

Tanya said...

Great idea! I've never thought to use rings. I wonder if they'd rust in humidity (which I've got!). I hate changing quilts and putting on a sleeve etc so the rings sound like they would be just my thing... I'll have a look next time I'm in the States and JoAnns having a sale.