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Martha Stewart's twist on the chic café curtain uses material you already have in your home

There was nothing stylish about dishtowels until we saw how Martha Stewart styles hers – this is how to replicate the look

Martha Stewart
(Image credit: GettyImages)

If you've got a preloved dishtowel hiding in your drawer, it's unlikely that you'd think to hang it in your kitchen window. And we were the same – until we saw what Martha Stewart could do. 

The lifestyle tycoon is no stranger to a few surprising kitchen (and garden) tips, most of which she shares via her media empire – and this one is no different.

'If your hunt for a window treatment to fit a tricky space has you ready to throw in the towel, try sewing several together instead. That's how we created this chic and simple café curtain.' It is hard to believe the curtain in question (below) ever had a life as a place in your dishwashing routine. 

Okay, we admit some of our more eclectic (shall we say) towels are not fit for purpose – but it is certainly possible to create new kitchen curtains from the material we already have in our home. And we love this trick so much that we'd be tempted to invest in specially selected towels for this purpose. Whichever way you choose– this is what it involves. 

'Cut an assortment of same-size dishcloths (we used semi-sheer linen ones) up the middle, and hem the raw edges; then mix and match the panels, alternating prints, and colors,' she says. 

After finding the perfect dishtowels for your kitchen window curtains, Martha says we should stitch the sections together before simply attaching the finished product to a rod – 'for a custom creation that's easy – and breezy.'

The process of turning a dishtowel into a certain is refreshingly simple – but knowing which towel to use can take longer. It's important that the chosen material is the right size to fit the window frame – while leaving a little gap – to achieve the unmistakable café curtain aesthetic. 

Martha Stewart's Amazon collection

(Image credit: Amazon)

Of course, we love the semi-sheer linen material seen in Martha's kitchen (of course), but a thicker material (like microfiber) will block out more sun, while still allowing for a fashionable finish. 

Curtains aside, it's no secret that Martha is a force in the kitchen – so of course, you can still tap into her style in ways beyond your windowscape. We're starting with these picks from her recent Amazon collection.

Megan Slack
Head of Celebrity Style News

Megan is the Head of Celebrity Style News at Homes & Gardens. She first joined Future Plc as a News Writer across their interiors titles, including Livingetc and Real Homes, before becoming H&G's News Editor in April 2022. She now leads the Celebrity/ News team. Before joining Future, Megan worked as a News Explainer at The Telegraph, following her MA in International Journalism at the University of Leeds. During her BA in English Literature and Creative Writing, she gained writing experience in the US while studying in New York. Megan also focused on travel writing during her time living in Paris, where she produced content for a French travel site. She currently lives in London with her antique typewriter and an expansive collection of houseplants.