Pinch pleat valances

Last week I delivered 3 separate orders for simple pinch pleated valances.  The fanciest they got was matching covered buttons.  This fabric was railroaded, so the striated weave runs vertically.

For this valance, I didn't need to cut the sections and pleats separately; the width of the sections and the horizontal repeat worked out so I could simply join the widths.  The pleat had slightly more fabric in it than usual, about 10",  so I made a four-finger pleat.

One simple step turns a utilitarian pleat into a decorative pleat: instead of tacking through the pleat by machine, I like to hand-tack over the pleat, so the thread is visible.  I use fusible 4" buckram from Rowley Company for valances like this: it folds well and holds its shape without crumpling, and keeps the top line straight.

I also like a four-finger pleat when covered buttons are being added; the center fold is a good nestling spot for the button shank.  There is about 9" in these pleats.

There were three or four of these little shorties, for a kitchen, all different widths.  The buckram was split to create a dainty 2" pleat on these 10" long valances.  The sections and pleats were cut separately and joined, so the pattern matches from one to the next- standard operating procedure for me and my fellow workroom colleagues.  This step might be unavailable, or upcharged, from a factory workroom.

I thought a 4-finger pleat would look out of proportions on these short pleats.  There's about 7.5" in each pleat section- still generous for a three-finger pleat.

Some workrooms line all valances with blackout; some also interline everything.  Since I work to the trade, I lined these with plain lining as per the designer's specifications.
For those of you who have read this far, I will add an explanation of why I have not posted every day as I had hoped: an event occurred in our family and my attention was necessarily focused there.  But I'm back!