If you would like to save money when decorating or replacing your window treatments this article will tell you how to make curtain rods. Purchasing curtain rods can be costly. You may spend as much as $50 per window if you buy them from a home improvement store.

You don't have to purchase expensive window treatment hardware to hang your curtains. Look around the house, the garage, do some dumpster diving, go to the hardware store, or even the Dollar Store. You don’t need much technical know-how to do this; in fact all you really need is a little imagination.

Measure the Window

The first step is to measure the window. Use a standard tape measure and run it along the top of the window frame. Make sure to add a few inches to each side where the rod will extend beyond the window frame. It is better to have too much length than not enough. When in doubt go longer, you can always shorten the rod at home.

The next step is to purchase the rods. You have many options. You can use simple wooden dowel rods and paint them whatever color you want to match the décor of the room. You can also use metal or just about any long cylindrical material. Just make sure that the diameter of the rod isn’t too large for your curtains.

Brackets

You will also need to purchase brackets. This hardware can be found at any DIY store. When you have all the materials needed simply mount the brackets on the wall, insert the rod into the curtain, hang the rod in the brackets and enjoy your handiwork.

You can also use cup holder hooks that screw into the wood. Just be sure that your curtain rod fits into the 'hook' part. These do come in various sizes, although they aren't for really big rods. You can also bend them out to get the rod to fit in better if need be. Just use a pair of pliers.

Other Creative Curtain Rod Ideas

Get creative! Say you want to put curtains up in your sewing or crafts room, use a yard stick to hold your curtains up. For a nautical look, hang your curtains over a large rope, stretched between two large curtain rod brackets that have been anchored to the wall.

Boys love sports and there are many things in their world that could be creatively manipulated into a curtain rod. Keep your eye out for vintage sports supplies at yard sales and flea markets. Golf clubs will be a favorite with the grown men while the younger boys will probably gush over a fishing pole.

A bamboo torch that you find at import stores makes an adorable curtain rod as long as you remove the inside torch portion of it. These pair nicely with sheer, breezy panels and add a summer vacation-like feel to a room.

Start making a list of possible items. If rustic will compliment your room, take a walk through the woods. Locate fallen branches that are at least as wide as your windows. Find one for each window to be dressed in this décor that are about the same size. Bring the wooden branches home, along with any good looking pine cones or other dry decorative items you may run across.

Put your hardware up on the wall, along with the scoop style brackets, and rest your finished ‘curtain rods’ in the brackets. You can secure the rods to the brackets with a bit of glue if necessary to keep them from rolling in the bracket. The tab style curtains will fold over the limbs perfectly.

There are many ways to create an individual style. Use a very basic rod with simple ball finials and paint the unit a color that contrasts with the curtains and matches the bedding or wallpaper. You could cover the rod with the same fabric as the curtains, which would simplify the window treatments by creating symmetry. Other ways to dress up curtain rods are by wrapping a vine of plastic flowers around it, or a feather boa for an over-the-top look.