Simply DIY Fourth of July Window Treatments

Create your own Fourth of July Window Treatments. You probably already have everything you need. If you have stars left over from other holiday decorations start with them. If not, use old greeting cards or calendar pictures to cut out stars and starbursts for your windows.

The brighter the colors, the better. Whenever possible use red, white and blue and gold or yellow. These colors represent the US flag and the bright lights that blazed through the nights as the American colonists struggled for independence from Great Britain's rule in 1776.

Get a ball of yarn or string to tie these stars and starbursts onto. You will be hanging them from the curtain rod. Use enough string for the stars to have a little sag in it and it is more attractive from the outside. And enough to string it from one end of the window to the other. Put a good knot in the ends attaching your string to the curtain rod.

Tie a length of string or ribbon or yarn to each star you have made, go ahead and let them be different lengths that increases interest. Attach each star to the string that will hang at the curtain rods. Be sure to secure the stars to they will not slide from one end to the other when you are hanging them. That will complete your stars and starbursts window treatment for this season.

A variation on this craft is to use a pin to poke holes in the stars so the sun will shine through with interesting patterns. This works well using old greeting cards and push pins. But remember to work on a surface that will not be damaged by the poking pins, a thick magazine may be just right to protect your table, floor or workspace.

If you have a picture window, you may want to add a painted image to the project. In this case, you will need washable paint, like tempura paint from a craft store and brushes.

Look over some patriotic images to decide what you want to paint on the inside of the window. Keep in mind, if it is words, you need to look at it from the outside too. Which way do you want the words to face? I recommend painting the words so they can be read from the outside.

I like to use the opening line from the Declaration of Independence, "We the People..." and have it face the outside. By writing this in large free hand letters on the window on the outside with a wax pencil or a small bar of soap, I then have the outline to fill in with tempura paint from the inside.

I choose this for my window treatment in combination with the pinhole starbursts because I want to remind myself and others why we are celebrating the Fourth of July.

If you choose symbols instead of words, the direction they face is less critical. Make an outline with a wax pencil on the window to illustrate your choice and then paint in the sections as if they were parts of stained glass. Your reward is your own Fourth of July window treatment.