Over a year ago, I picked up some fabric I ran across for $3 per yard and knew that I wanted to do something with it on the 2 single windows in our master bathroom. So, I finally got inspired to get it done, after saving an inspiration post from Jenny, at Little Green Notebook. She has lots of great ideas and this one was perfect for what I wanted in my space.
See how pretty and simple this pelmet or cornice board is? You can click over to Jenny’s blog to see how she did it, but I’ll share my method here too. And the good thing is this: it’s made from foamcore board and duct tape! Yeah, I knew you’d like that too.
Come on in and I’ll show you my version.
I”m really loving this cornice board and how easy it was to put together too. Well, relatively easy. 
One thing I can mention on this project is, you may not want to use a stripe, because it’s impossible to keep them straight when you have curves and angles. But, I’m pretty happy with the way this turned out in spite of the wavy stripes.
The hardest part is getting your fabric to lay taut around this little curve, but I’ll show you the back of it down below in my how-to and you can see that you have to clip the fabric with scissors to get it around the curve. I still have a slight pucker on the fabric, but most of that is covered by the trim and button. I found this pretty braided blue trim at Hancocks and I covered the buttons myself from other fabric I had. 
Just a shot of the white nightstand I painted last year, along with some storage boxes in my paisley blue fabric. 
The cornice is simple, but adds a lot, I think. I kept this space to blue, gold-yellow, and white.
The same treatment goes in the toilet room too. 
You can read all about the beadboard wallpaper I did here in this post. That really added a big punch to this little room. 
Buttons and trim add lots of interest to this simple treatment. 
Another peek at the DIY subway tile I added in here earlier this year too. I think I can now say that the master bathroom is done! 🙂
So, if you’d like to read all about how these cornices were put together, keep on reading.
I made a simple pattern out of packing paper. You may have to work on this, it took me 2 attempts to get my angles and curves the way I wanted them. Once you have one side drawn, it helps to fold the paper in half, so that both sides match.
Then, just place it on your foam board and trace.
Cut along the lines and you have this. I used an Exacto knife to cut mine. Remember those? 
My box needed a little extra on each side, so I cut out 1″ strips to go on either side to make it a little wider. I duct taped both sides, front and back to keep it steady. 
I decided to have my board sit 2 1/2 inches out from the window, so I cut 4 pieces that were 2 1/2″ wide and taped those on each side of my 2 boxes. Now you have a box that needs to be covered. Who would know that underneath your pretty fabric is THIS. 🙂 No one but YOU! 
Be sure and iron your fabric well before you start. 
I roughly cut my fabric into 2 pieces and left extra on each, just to be sure I had enough. Luckily, no one will see behind your board so you don’t have to worry about the backside. Lay down some batting first, then your fabric on top. I used a staple gun with 3/8″ staples to adhere all the fabric. Start in one spot and pull taut, moving all the way around.
The toughest spots, as I mentioned were right there on the curve insets. You can see that I cut the fabric all the way down to the board to be able to pull the fabric as tight as I could here. Lots of staples! The batting helps keep the fabric smooth too, so don’t skip that step. I had to work on this curved part longer than all the rest, but just keep going until you get all the fabric adhered.
And here they are, both covered with fabric. 
I wanted that little extra pizazz, so added some pretty braided flat trim that I found at Hancock’s Fabrics. It was my lucky week and it was all 30% off.  I glued on all the trim with fabric glue. My favorite fabric glue is Fabri-Tac, but I’ve been out of it for awhile. I picked up some fabric glue from Hobby Lobby, called Crafter’s Pick and I hate it. It doesn’t stick worth a darn and it won’t squeeze out the small hole in the top, so I definitely would tell you to stay away from that one. Fabri-Tac is the BEST! 
Hot glued a ring onto the back top corner of the board on either side. This thing is so lightweight, it doesn’t take much to hang it. Just 2 small nails will do it. 
And that’s how to make a cornice board out of foamcore.
I hope this inspires you to try this project. It just takes a little time and patience to get the fabric stretched over it, but I’m so happy with how it came out.
What do you think? Do you have a window to try this one on?
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And the giveaway winner for the 2 Tea books is: Georgia from Grandma G’s. Congrats, enjoy those books!
Nice job Rhoda. I made one many years ago ( and it is still hanging) by stiffening fabric with iron on interfacing and hanging it from a cheap rod. Reminds me if probably needs to come down for a good vacuuming.
Hi Rhoda! Thanks for your inspiration and tutorial! I tried it, and posted about it. I made sure to give you a shout out! 🙂 Come over and see if you get a chance!
wow, you would never know that was a home made foam core cornice! it looks very designer/professional! great job!
Hey Rhoda!
I have a question that is window covering related…I am wanting to put up curtains in my bedroom. We have a window that is 41 w and a set of french doors that are 79.25 w. They both measure about 96′ from the floor (we have tall ceilings). Because of the height, store-bought panels of 95′ inches will be too short, right? Or is it OK to have the bottom 3-4′ of the door showing?
I love it! I am going to try it this weekend.
Got here from a google search on how to make cornice boards. I was not looking forward to telling my husband that he had yet another project….this means he doesn’t!! Thanks!
I’m making one of these now from your tutorial – I’m so excited to finish the project and see what it adds to our kitchen. Thanks for the tute!
Thank you soooooooooooo much!I always wanted cornice on my windows but dreaded the price tag it came with.Now I will start on this new project soon.Thanks again.
Saw this on Pinterest & boy am I glad I followed the link! Redoing my house on a tight budget and this is a GORGEOUS tutorial that I’ll definitely be using. Thanks so much!
I’m so going to do this project and I’m pinning you too! <3 Lesli
This is exactly what my little boy needs in his room and the kids need in their bathroom. Weekend project idea here I come! Thank you so much for this tutorial. Who knew foam board would be such an inexpensive way to really dress up a window. Jenny
Gonna try this one!!
These are just what I was looking for, to decorate our new home inexpensively and to add a fresh pop of color!!!
I do have a question though. How long were your cornices, at the front part of the window at the curve?
Thanks so much for posting this DYI. I’m tackling it tomorrow !!
Omg!!! I love it…I needed a simple way to do this for my daughters bedroom. These are going up as a headbord…thank you!!!!!
I just did this project and have a word of advice: DON’T USE A PATTERN!! I have a 43″ window, and the pattern on the fabric I bought goes horizontally from salvage to salvage edge, which made this seemingly easy project quite a headache! Also, if you don’t mind the look of a simple rectangle cornice box, I would recommend doing that. I tried an arched box and ended up not being able to get the fabric pulled tight, so it has some bunching around the arch (which I actually love for my baby girl nursery…but it was not the look I was expecting!) Don’t mean to discourage people from trying this project…but for me it was a lot more involved than it seemed! But aren’t all DIY projects that way? Haha. Good luck, all!
great idea! thanks i will use this for my windows in the den!
Fantastic idea….I have a question..my window is 40″ long and will be using an outside mount,what would be a good length for the cornice? I will be hanging the cornice at the top of the window.
Thanks
Gail, I think you’ll have to play around with it, but generally 15 to 18″ might be a starting point. You can eyeball the length before you commit, but that’s what I’d do.
Rhonda,
I understood everything except how to hang them. Could you send a clearer picture or explain it again to me? Thank you so much!!! These are wonderful!
HI, Ann, I don’t have these hung in my new house, but it’s just a small D-bracket glued on the backside and hung on a nail. Very simple!