Pinch pleat curtains - can the pinch pleats be removed ?

[whoknowsyou]

We have rather large windows (very long) unfortunately without the budget to match.

Have seen some nice curtains in a charity shop with the right length and in lovely condition but... the headers are pinch pleated so they not quite wide enough. Can pinch pleats be unpicked/removed to give more width at the top of the curtain ?

Am a sewing numpty and need advice here so that I can bag a charity shop bargain if possible.

[marriedinwhiteagain]

No. You will never get rid of the marks/fold lines and overall even if you unpick if the windows are wider than the finished curtains they willnot be fullenough to hand properly and will look mean.

If you are on a really tight budget it would be better to run up several lengths of sheer muslin with a shop bought header tape and just dress the windows with them.

[marriedinwhiteagain]

No. You will never get rid of the marks/fold lines and overall even if you unpick if the windows are wider than the finished curtains they willnot be fullenough to hand properly and will look mean.

If you are on a really tight budget it would be better to run up several lengths of sheer muslin with a shop bought header tape and just dress the windows with them.

[whoknowsyou]

That's what I was afraid of but I was hoping that the marks/lines in the unpicked header would all be well above head height hence barely noticeable.

Thanks for the advice.

[whoknowsyou]

Can the pinch pleated top bit of the curtain be cut off, particularly if the curtains are longer that needed by at least the depth of the pinch pleat heading ?

[Pudden]

I did it with some curtains I bought from Ebay; they were very wide but pinch pleated to a fraction of this. They look brilliant and not skimped or 'mean' in the slightest and you cannot tell they were anything other than what they are now

[whoknowsyou]

Thanks Pudden, I may get the tape measure out and hot foot it back to the charity shop to see what I'd be left with length wise if I cut of the pinch pleat heading. Hope the curtains are still there.

[whoknowsyou]

Oops, just thought, do you mean that you cut off the top bit with pinch pleats or that you unpicked the pinch pleats and pressed out the marks left behind ?

[Dumpylump]

Maybe you could eyelet them if you unpicked the pinch pleat? Eyelet curtains are usually not that full because they sort of fold when they're opened, rather than being bunched, iykwim?

[Pudden]

I didn't cut the top off; just unpicked and pressed

[whoknowsyou]

marriedinwhite

lovely idea re the muslin but the draughts through/around old style large windows have to be felt to be believed. We need oversized curtains interlined with fleece/blanket to block the chilly winds experienced across the fields round our house.