How to Make a Fabric Covered Window Cornice

Design and Decor, Doors and Windows, Video by Danny Lipford

A fabric covered cornice over a window can really dress up a room. Since this window was almost 10’ long, the cornice was made from two pieces of 1/2” plywood 24” wide joined together with metal mending plates. The arch in the middle of the cornice was cutout with a jigsaw then sides and a top were applied to give it depth.

Once the woodworking had been completed, upholstery batting was stapled to the frame from the back, followed by fabric. Multiple cuts with scissors and some creative stapling were required to fit the fabric around the curves in the arch. The back was then covered with white fabric to hide the unfinished plywood, and decorative fringe hot glued to the bottom edge. The cornice was then mounted with “L” brackets screwed into wall studs above the window.

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5 Comments on “How to Make a Fabric Covered Window Cornice”

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  1. Frank Says:
    December 2nd, 2008 at 23:32

    Real NICE! You have a video for fabric covered cornice and it ends where they are walking to make & cover it. What happened to the rest of the video?? This is USELESS!!!!!!

  2. Official Comment:

    Ben Erickson Says:
    December 3rd, 2008 at 11:29

    Hi Frank,
    Try playing the video again. It worked fine for me all the way through until the finished cornice is hung on the wall.

  3. Erika Says:
    March 7th, 2009 at 08:03

    Hey!! what happened to the rest of the video (Iplayed it 3 times) . It cuts out after he jigsaws the cutout !! I need more…please !

  4. Sue Says:
    October 19th, 2009 at 13:57

    How was the cornice mounted using the L bracket? It doesn’t show how.

  5. Official Comment:

    Ben Erickson Says:
    October 20th, 2009 at 07:56

    Hi Sue,
    The L shaped metal brackets are attached to the wall 1/2″ below the height you want the top of the cornice. The cornice has a 1/2″ plywood top frame which rests on top of the bracket. The bracket is then attached to the cornice frame with screws.

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