Sometimes you want to cover your windows or dress them up with window blinds, and whether you’re looking to imbue your home with luxury and opulence, simple affiance, or quirky style, a window dressing can be a natural answer. If people need custom tint for any vehicle, they can get it from here!
There are several decisions you have to make when designing a window dressing, from the choice between blinds and curtains to the material to the color to the amount of material and even whether you want something that covers the window completely or not. If you can imagine it, someone has done it to dress their windows.
Take these five ideas as suggestions for inspiration, perfect for reinterpretation to create the right dressing for your personal aesthetic.
1. Extra long, flowing linen
Sometimes simple is best. High-quality linen is timeless in its elegant spareness. Hang it on a high curtain rod and make it extra long so it flows and puddles on the floor just a bit to create a feeling of warmth and to add texture and movement. This is especially effective with tall windows or those that are high up which you can see here. It ensures that instead of making the wall fill stubby and short, the curtains emphasize a sense of height and being grounded.
Linen is also a perfect compromise material because it’s not too heavy for summer but still offers some extra insulation during winter. The material cuts down on direct sunlight when you want to keep the room cool too.
Long linen curtains are especially well-suited to living rooms and more casual homes.
2. Patterns and tassels
Although most curtains are made of cloth and have simple hems, you can add some fun and energy with tasseled material or dynamic patterns. There are a number of ways to have curtains made from a fabric you choose, so if you like the idea of some extra flair, find a fabric with tasseled fringe that matches the room.
Tassels also go well with printed curtains. Choosing the right print or pattern can be difficult because you don’t want the window dressing to make a room too busy. Popular options include chevrons, stripes, zebra stripes, flower patterns, and classical geometric designs.
Patterns are especially effective when you have to cover a lot of space or the windows are on a large wall, because the turn that space into a focus point without feeling cluttered.
Bear in mind light material may need another layer of curtains behind the pattern if you don’t want them to throw odd shadows when the shades are drawn.
3. Match the print of a major item in the room
Prints, like flowers, designs like paisley and animals can work in both children’s and adult’s rooms. They are even more effective if you use them to pull out the details on a subtle accent, like a bedspread, throw pillow or dresser.
Prints work well on both curtains and certain types of blinds. You can even make your own by applying wallpaper that matches an item in the room to wood blinds. This effect is usually the most effective in a bedroom or living room where there is one dominant piece of furniture that you can match or use as inspiration for the print.
However, you have to be careful that you don’t put too many prints in a room, which is why you might also want to reserve the technique for smaller windows and muted prints.
4. Light materials and wood
If you want to set up a window dressing in an especially dark room, consider using thin, light-colored fabric curtains and light woods for blinds. You can mix the two elements to give as much privacy, construction and form as you want without cutting out too much light.
In fact, if you use a cloth that is in the white family, your window dressing can even make the room feel brighter and warmer, which is very helpful in north-facing rooms that don’t get enough sunlight.
5. Layers
Layering fabrics or types of window covers adds volume and gives you more flexibility in your choices without sacrificing function. This makes more sense in living rooms where you can add a lot of power to the window without shifting the focus of the room.
Try combining shades made out of a textured, solid-colored fabric or very nice wood blinds set within the window box with bright, colorful, and heavy fabric curtains, for example, to create juxtaposition and depth.
You can do a lot for a room with the right window dressing. They help you add an extra accent or splash of style to a room while also increasing privacy. Try these ideas to personalize your next window treatment.
Featured images:
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
License: Creative Commons image source
Rachel Wright is a home improvement editor and writer at QualitySmith with more than 10 years editing experience and five years working within digital media. For more resources, see her comprehensive window reviews.
