apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I might have planned to host Thanksgiving this year if I could ever get my house to a good state.

Speaking of which, I have very very high windows of uneven heights (got to love these old Victorian miners' houses), plus close neighbors, which means I need to get curtains made.

After a long and fruitless search for the right thing (beyond height issues, everything is either incredibly expensive and/or super formal)... and I am very frustrated....

Does anyone have a seamstress recommednation? Please!? Or an innovative solution to this same problem?

k1ate, is it possible for you to hang all the curtain rods at one height, or are there window cornices in the way? I'm a huge fan of IKEA's 10' hem-them-yourself curtains, especially the plain velvet ones ($40 a pair? something like that). I think you can "hem" them with iron-in interfacing, the kind that sticks to the fabric when you iron.

We had delusions of hosting Thanksgiving (I used to take the train to my parents' house and cook there, when we lived in California), but no one got around to making plans.

The chi-chi grocery store is open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. I figure if I can't figure out what we're having for lunch before 2 p.m., I'm in no shape to cook anyway. Since we can no longer go hang out in Chinatown on major holidays, I'm thinking it might be a good day to hike up Camelback Mountain.

I'm visiting my friend in San Francisco over Thanksgiving (From Wed to Wed). We have yet to decide what we're doing...either crashing at her friend's place or cooking in the cool kitchen at her sublet! Though, we might be going to a restaurant...who knows! But, any other recommendations are welcome! I'm pretty excited to be switching coasts for the holiday!

Christine, if you're eating out on Thanksgiving, you may want to think in terms of doing something utterly frivolous and stereotypically touristy. The tourist-focused places tend to be open on holidays, but there's much less certainty with neighborhood restaurants (though I've been to Kim Thanh on Geary on something improbable like Xmas -- but it's more a bargain than festive). And you'll have a whole week for authenticity, too (lucky you!).