If you’ve ever wished your shower curtain was a little bit longer, you’re not alone. In fact, I couldn’t find many longer shower curtain options on the market, so I decided to buy an affordable standard-sized shower curtain and lengthen it myself.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the process of how I lengthened my shower curtain using a DIY process, along with tips and tricks.
Why lengthen your shower curtain?
The main reason has to do with the look. Lengthening your shower curtain can actually make your bathroom look taller and bigger.
By raising the curtain rod higher and using a longer curtain, you create the illusion of more space. This is especially helpful in bathrooms with low ceilings or cramped quarters.
However, the standard shower curtain length is only 72” (6 feet). So when you put that shower curtain in a standard bathroom which has an 8-foot ceiling, it doesn’t look so great.
This photo is the 72″ shower curtain in my bathroom. It barely kiss the bathtub – it is fine, but not so great.
To make your bathroom and shower area look more polished and even grander, I recommend hanging the shower curtain 6”-10” below the ceiling to let steam escape during a shower, and just a couple of inches above the bathroom floor.
So let’s do the simple math here: 96” (room height) – 8” (distance to ceiling)- 2” (distance to floor) – 2” (curtain rod & hooks) = 84”. So an 84” or 7-foot curtain will work better!
There are some nice options for an 84” shower curtain, such as this one, but the style and design are very limited and tend to be pricier. If you are looking for a shower curtain design to match your beautiful bathroom interiors, it can be hard to find the right one.
So lengthening a standard 72” x 72” shower curtain is an easy way to achieve an extra-long shower curtain and make your bathroom instantly look more luxurious. Plus, the DIY is super easy and takes less than 1 hour.
How much should you lengthen a shower curtain?
Now that we’ve done the math, let’s talk about how much to lengthen your shower curtain.
You can use 84” as your base number and adjust based on your ceiling height and style preference. If you have a 72” standard shower curtain and want to extend it to 84”, just extend it by 12”.
So, for me, I wanted my shower curtain to be 4” above the floor and ended up extending my standard 72” shower curtain by 10”.
Another reason for this is that I’m doing a double curtain: fabric shower curtain + plastic liner behind it. Although I want to extend my shower curtain for a more luxe look, I don’t want to have the curtain liner hanging above the bathtub and let water seep through.
So in my case, I lengthened the curtain enough to make my bathroom look taller visually while keeping my shower curtain liner overlapping with the bathtub for a couple of inches to provide coverage.
If you don’t plan to reuse the shower curtain liner, definitely get an extra long liner so you have more flexibility with the length.
Ready to Get Started to Lengthen Your Shower Curtain That’s Too Short? Let’s Jump Right into the Steps.
Step-by-step guide to lengthening shower curtain:
The easier way to lengthen a shower curtain is to add a fabric panel to the bottom of your existing shower curtain. This is a simple and affordable solution whether you sew or not (I’ll cover both cases in the following steps).
Step 1: Choose the Curtain to Lengthen
The first step in lengthening a shower curtain is to choose the right one. Look for a shower curtain that has a pattern or trim going horizontally, so that it doesn’t look obvious that you’ve pieced two panels together vertically.
Colored panels or stripes are great options. In my case, I used a shower curtain with macrame trims, which is perfect to hide the seam.
If your shower curtain is solid and doesn’t have horizontal lines to camouflage the seam, don’t worry. You can add a trim later to conceal it.
Step 2: Cut the Extra Curtain
Using the extra curtain that you have, cut a horizontal panel to the height you’ve determined.
In my case, I cut 11 inches: 10 inches to extend and 1 inch as seam allowance to connect to my existing shower curtain.
I also trimmed off the hem from my original shower curtain.
Step 3: Piece the Curtain Panels Together
To piece the curtain panels together, first remove any trims on the bottom if your curtain has them and you plan to reuse them.
Then place the two fabric panels together, matching up the patterns and/or stripes.
There are two methods to join the panels together:
Method 1: with hem tape
Use hem tape and an iron to fuse the two panels together. This method works well if you don’t have a sewing machine.
Method 2: with a sewing machine
If you have a sewing machine, sew the two panels together with a straight line. Then use a zigzag stitch to finish the seams or serge them. This allows you to wash your shower curtain many times without the fabric fraying.
Step 4: Add Trim to Cover the Seam
Once the panels are joined, add a trim to cover up the seam. You can use the trim you set aside earlier, or grab a piece of ribbon to cover up the seam and add a cute design detail.
I recommend choosing ribbons with a ribbed more matte look, like this one, instead of a satin sheen. It just looks more high-end in this case.
To attach them, you can use hem tape and iron them on. By adding this extra detail, it will look very seamless, and your shower curtain will look like it comes with that extra length.
If you own a sewing machine, you have a little more flexibility here: you can topstitch the trims on or skip the trim altogether and just topstitch ⅛” next to the seam to finish it off nicely.
Step 5: Hang the Curtain Back Up and Enjoy
Hang the curtain back up on the rod and enjoy your newly lengthened shower curtain.
You’ll be left with extra fabric from the second curtain. You can use it to make pillows, seat cushions, or other craft projects. This is a great way to repurpose the fabric and get the most out of your purchase.
How to lengthen shower curtain summary
In conclusion, lengthening a shower curtain in just a few simple steps is a very affordable way to solve the problem of your current shower curtain being too short.
In addition, a longer shower curtain makes your bathroom look more luxurious and opens up the space. So I highly recommend giving it a try!
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