Stage Designs

Throwback: Tied

Jake Wandel from The Crossing in Columbia, MO brings us this design inspired by Pinterest. (Originally from Jan 2012)

Each curtain was 2 sections of 4ft wide burlap hung at the top using zip ties and safety pins (burlap is super cheap fabric!). They knotted the burlap together at the bottom. It took several hours to hang.

Their back curtain was about 40ft. x 22ft. and they used only one bolt of burlap.

Top: Make sure to add a couple feet to the length of each strip if you plan to knot it at the bottom.

For lighting, they hung 4 edison lamps in between each curtain on dimmers and then lit the black curtain around it with 575 Source4 ParNels to give the appearance that the light bulb gave off more light than it actually does.

Mixed Media Jesus Most Popular Stages – January 2018

25 responses to “Throwback: Tied”

  1. James says:

    This looks amazing. Seriously amazing.

    My only concern with that much fabric on the back wall.
    Did you do any sort fire treatment to the fabric?

    • Jake says:

      We didn’t treat the burlap and we had no problems. It’s always best to fire treat any fabric you have by a light source, but the bulbs we used don’t have a high enough wattage to be a concern.

      I must say, the one problem we had with the burlap were all the little fuzzies that stuck to the back curtain when we took it all down!

      • I would suggest you check with your local fire department on the requirements for fabrics that are used in public buildings. Burlap is HIGHLY flammable and I am guessing ALL fabrics for any public building (church, town hall, school) must be fire retardant or inherently fire retardant.

  2. Bethany Schmitt says:

    Does burlap light up well with LED’s? like if i hit it with my RGB’s does it work?

  3. Aaron Springer says:

    I really love the elegance this design has. I work at a church with a lot of cranky seniors, and I think they might even like this… Great work!

  4. Jacob says:

    I love this. Love it. Looks modern and classic at the same time. But if I used that much fabric and didn’t have it treated my fire marshal would cite me for sure. Might try to get a look like this with some time of IFR fabric or treated fabric.

  5. nils says:

    where did you source the burlap fabric?

  6. LindaAnn Joslin says:

    Are these lined?

    Are they serged on the edges or hemmed?

    Are there weights at the bottom to hold them down?

    What weight of burlap was used? 10 oz?

    Thanks

    • Jake says:

      The burlap is neither lined, serged, hemmed nor weighted, and I am unaware of the weight of the burlap itself. Despite the fact that we did not put that much thought into the type of burlap, prudence in hemming the edges would most definitely make it last longer. I do know that the burlap is heavy enough not to need weights.

      Good thoughts.

  7. Nathan says:

    Where would you find those kind of lights (not just bulbs but rope/wiring)?

  8. LindaAnn Joslin says:

    Hearty Spools, group of ladies in our church that sew items for mission trips, made them. They look great. Thanks so much.

  9. LindaAnn Joslin says:

    We first made shorts, t-shirts, pillowcases and bought pillows for the children in the Texas Valley. Our church goes to South Texas and works with the children.

    Our drape design is exactly like yours except we finished the seems and edges with serging. They look pretty and everybody likes them. The ladies worked hard. I will send you a picture, soon.

    Thanks for being so nice, helpful and interested.

  10. Brittany Perry says:

    Hey. We are looking at doing this stage design also. Looks Great! Could you email me a picture of the stage without lighting. Also, could you let me know which type of burlap you used? Thanks so much!
    Brittany Perry. brittp_33@hotmail.com

  11. LindaAnn Joslin says:

    We got the fabric at Hobby Lobby. When you get the 40% off coupon it really helps. I think it was about $4.99 per yd. I’m not sure about that, but that’s close. We bought 150 yds. I’m going to make tableclothes for the entrance that have the same look as the drapes. When I get done, I’ll also send a picture of them.

    We are the Church at Canyon Creek, so we received an additional 10% off of the total. They are great Christian people at Hobby Lobby. I’ll send you a picture as soon as I figure out how.

    • Bekah says:

      Hi there! Our church is considering this design. I would be so appreciative if you could send me some pics of how your set turned out! Could you possibly include the dimensions of each panel and also the back curtain of burlap? Do you have a black curtain that goes behind it? Do you feel this is necessary in order to achieve this look, or could we get away with just the curtain of burlap in the back? We love how welcoming this set is!

      Thanks so much!!
      Bekah Bowman
      osubowmans@yahoo.com

  12. LindaAnn Joslin says:

    Brittany

    I hope you received my emails with all of the pictures and measurements.

    If I can be of help, let me know.

    LindaAnn Joslin

  13. Janel says:

    Love love love this design. I have a few questions about the lighting and stage itself. Linda or Jake, Can you please email me at J L Sohl (no spaces) at hotmail.com?

    I’m looking for similar information to what you may have shared with Brittany. Also is the burlap backed by a black curtain? How were the hanging lights created? How exactly is he curtain mounted and how did you go about attaching it? Thanks in advance for any information you can provide!

    Janel

  14. Debbie Parish says:

    How many yards were each panel? Also, how would I make the lights? I’m new at this?

  15. Jake says:

    You can buy light sockets at a hardware store and connect them with 2-wire cabling to a plug that you can also get at a hardware store. If you see an associate, they will help you. It’s pretty self explanatory once you get going.

  16. tabitha says:

    hey Jake, where did you get your burlap panels from and what color did you use?

  17. Susan Simendinger says:

    I love this design! I would love to have the dimensions for this project,.

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