DIY: Making Your Own Customized Roller Shades for Your Windows

Roller shades are great, inexpensive way to get privacy and cover your windows in just about any room in your home. Unfortunately, though, most roller shades are less-than-exciting to look at and are usually just plain white. If you try to buy decorated roller shades instead the cost can jump significantly. Rather than buying roller shades already decorated, why not buy plain roller shades and decorate them yourself? Not only will you save money, but you will be able to make your own customized roller shades that perfectly match your decor. Here are some ideas for decorating your own custom roller shades to get you started.

One of the easiest ways to spruce up a plain, boring roller shade is using paint. Acrylic paints work wonderfully for painting roller shades since they have a bit of flexibility when they are dry and they come in a huge assortment of colors. Head to your local craft store and pick up some paints in colors that match your room. Then, unroll your roller shades and paint away to your heart's content. You can either paint your shades all one color or get creative and add swirls, dots, stripes or any other decorative elements you please.

Fabric covered roller shades are also beautiful and are easy to make. Head to the fabric store and buy some pretty fabric that matches with your decor. Be sure to get enough of the fabric to cover as many shades as you need in your room. Also grab a can of spray adhesive. Cut the fabric slightly larger than roller shade, then spray the shade with the spray adhesive and lay your fabric down on it, smoothing out any wrinkles or bubbles. Cut off any excess fabric around the edges of the shade and you are good to go.

While you can't go crazy adding embellishments to the shade itself since it will keep it from rolling up and down properly, the bottom edge of the shade is fair game and can be decorated with a wide variety of objects. You can glue a row of seashells along the bottom edge of the shade if it is going in the bathroom. Or try adding tassels to make it a bit more glamorous. Beaded fringe looks beautiful along the bottom of a shade and can be purchased at any fabric store. Or, you can make your own beaded fringe by making strings of beads and sewing them on to the bottom of the shade.

Use your imagination and be creative when decorating the bottom of your shades. You can use just about any item to attach to it including beads, buttons, stones, shells, ribbons, tassels, fringe or just about anything else you can think of that doesn't weight too much and would be a cool decorative touch. Most importantly, have fun and choose something you like. That way you'll create roller shades that you love and that make you feel at home.