Curtain Call
Finally! Our living room window limbo is no more. This weekend we actually got around to picking up some bamboo blinds to bridge the gap between the top of the window and the curtain rod. Gotta love making windows look bigger and taller while introducing some texture in the process.
Here’s the w.b.b. (window before blinds) totally begging for something under that rod:
And the finished product thanks to two wood blinds from Wal-mart (for 25 bucks a pop) and John’s manly muscles (free of course):
We actually have the same exact blinds in the den and above the laundry nook in lieu of pricey cabinet doors. We love that we could tie them into yet another space to keep things consistent and create the illusion height. White Ikea floor length curtains flanking these simple wood blinds is absolutely our favorite combination for big picture windows (and one that we often suggest to everyone who will listen) but what say you lovely readers? Think we did our home’s biggest window proud?
Psst- Wanna know more about finding the right window treatments for your home? Check out this exhaustive answer.
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Comments
ahh, I have the EXACT same problem as joanne! i’ve been racking my brain on how to make it work with our window being so far to the left and the bed being centered. this totally helps!
p.s. love your blog, we’ve used quite a few of y’alls ideas in our houses! (like the hanging lanterns on the front porch! we snagged ours for $1 each at thrift stores!)
Hi – We are looking to do the exact same treatment in our sunroom. How many blinds did you use for your wide window – where is the seam? It looks like one continuos blind from the picture.
Thanks!
Jeff
The seam’s right in the middle but you can’t see it since we hung them flush right next to each other and the texture/pattern in the blinds makes it virtually undetectable. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hi, just found your site looking for a way to deal with my window dilemma and I have been looking through all the pages for hours now! We just bought a condo and will be renovating the entire thing so I have gotten tonnes of ideas already. As for my window problem, In the living area there is a sliding glass door with a window to the left of it (only about half a foot apart). There are built in valances (we will eventually be tearing out but need window coverings asap) and there is a electric baseboard heater at the bottom that goes almost the whole way under both the window and the slider. So I was thinking that the window treatment you have in your living room would look good except for I can’t have the window panels to the ground because of the heater? It’s very hard to explain, maybe I could send you a picture.
We can totally picture it, and we would have suggessed one long rod above both the window and the sliders with three panels (one for the side of the window, one to go between the slider and the window and one for the other side of the slider) however your baseboard heaters can make floor length curtains a bit of a fire hazzard. You might want to look around for special heat resistant curtain panels that are made to be safe with baseboard heat, otherwise we would suggest just hanging bamboo blinds or some sort of cream, white or tan roman shade above both the window and the slider at the same height for some polish and softness. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
I have a similar window in my living room. It is approximately 101″ wide. I like the idea of using two blinds next to each other, but what do I do if the sizes don’t work out exactly to the 101″.
By the way – I love your website. I belong to a mom’s group and am going to tell everyone about it. Great tips and advice! Thanks.
Hey Kim,
Ours don’t work out to be the exact width of our window but the beauty is that it doesn’t matter! If you’re flanking them with curtains no one is the wiser if each side hangs over a few inches since the panel will be in front of the extra blind “hangover”, and even if you’re not using curtains we like all of our blinds to be outside mounted a few inches (so just go for whatever measurement is closest but a bit bigger than your window). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Thanks so much for your quick response. I was just reading other comments and noticed that you are able to hide the cord because you leave the blinds up all day/night. My window is in the front of the house, therefore, I will need to close them at night time. Do you have any solution? What do you think – would it be too much of a pain to keep hiding it on a daily basis? Thanks again.
I think you could totally keep the cords down for regular use and tuck them up when company is coming over- that way they’re super functional and easy to use. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Thanks for such a quick response! Great idea, I never thought about “heat resistant panels”. I am definately going to look for that.
Hi again,
Ok I have another window dilemma. (I am the one with the baseboard heaters at the bottom of my windows)*see a couple posts above. So our sliding glass door leads to our balcony which is enclosed with windows. My husband just informed me he would like window coverings on these windows as well as the building next to us is not too far and when they are on their balconies they can see right into our living room. So he thinks that he wants something out their so that we can have the sliding glass door window coverings open for the majority of the time. I would like something that will let in the light still but am definately not a fan of the plastic “vanetian” blinds, which is what was their before we bought the condo. So any suggestions that would go with the bamboo and white panels on the inside slider adn window, since you will see it all at the same time. I was thinking a white sheer panel but I’m not sure I want material out their. Maybe some more roman shades?
Those terrible vertical blinds are actually a great solution because they can be pulled open and can “hide” behind the curtain panels on each side of the sliders when you’re entertaining and letting the light in but they provide great privacy for a slider when they’re drawn. We just love that they can hide behind curtains so it’s usually what we recommend for privacy- especially because it sounds like you already have them. If not you can always go with thicker lined curtain panels that you draw for privacy but again you might have a fire hazard issue with the baseboard heaters. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Another quick question. There is about an inch ledge in front of the windows. If I put the blinds above the window will there be too much of a gap between the wall and the window? I feel like I have to mount them inside the window (but I can’t find the exact size). Let me know what you think. Thanks!
Not at all! We have a window ledge and we outside mounted our blinds a few inches beyond our windows. Just bring one home that’s a few inches wide on each side and hang it up! Of course you can always return it, but it’ll feel nice and balanced with a few inches of overhang, especially if you hang curtain panels on each side. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hey There!!
I love the window combination! I am stumped on what style of IKEA curtains that you used. If you would please let me know, then I can run out and get them for my bedroom.:-)
Also, do you charge a fee for your room makeovers with your room boards?
Your blog has inspired me to change the colors of my house!! I love reading your blog and look forward to your daily posts.
Thanks,
Stephanie
Hey Stephanie,
Just click the Design Advice tab under our header for more info on our services. And as for our curtains, they’re Vivan panels by Ikea. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hi Sherry! I just love reading your blog:) Yall have the cutest house! I just recently did the same thing to my windows in the living room and love it. The only problem is that the bamboo blinds are not the best for privacy…I know they make privacy liners but I was wondering if you knew of a cheaper way to do it? Thanks so much!
We love hiding white roller shades behind bamboo blinds which offer a ton of privacy and can be inside mounted on the top of your window so they’re never in sight behind your bamboo blinds unless you have them pulled down and in use for privacy (and even then you can hide them by lowering the bamboo blinds as well). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hi Sherry and John,
You used outside mounts for the bamboo blinds? I’ve never hung curtains before.. just wondering if you used one long rod with both of the blinds strung on, or if there’s another sort of mount in the middle where the blinds meet? I hope this makes sense! Your window looks great, and we’re trying to model our wide, dining room window after yours. :)
Hey Erin C,
Blinds actually don’t hang on curtain rods, the curtains that flank the blinds do, but the blinds are hung directly on the wall. Therefore you can hang your curtain rods at the height that you want and then take the rod and the curtains down and hang your blinds on the wall right behind the rod so they appear to be hung at the same height. Oh and blinds hang from points on either side of the top part (on each edge if that makes sense) so they are secured to the wall in multiple places to keep them looking level and to help two of them look like they’re all one blind. If you pick up bamboo blinds like ours you’ll see just what we mean. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hi Sherry and John! Do you tire of answering the blinds/Vivan panels queries? I hope not; I’m about to ask mine, and offer a shout-out for a current bamboo blind deal to be had. ;)
I stumbled onto YHL a couple months ago and am now a die-hard regular and have been sharing your bloggy wealth with family and friends. If your stats are up, it’s all me! Just kidding. (Sort of.)
Anyway, we’re moving OUT of our first home — which we ADORE and did so much DIY work to (when we made the offer on the 1927 Dutch Colonial 10 years ago, there was another family living there — a family of raccoons. The house had been vacant 10 years.) Still, we loved its charm, original subway tile bathroom, tile foyer floor, mailslot, fireplace, and more, and decided to bring her back to life. Sadly, it’s time to move on as our little girl is ready for kindergarten, and we can no longer JUST focus on the great old house — we need to think school system, too.
So … we’re on the move. Literally, in 8 weeks. Not long after getting addicted (admission is the first step) to YHL, I knew I wanted to change our “look” in this new house and go with your bamboo blind/Vivan panel breezy approach. (You youngsters rock!) Also, this new house has a bit more open floor plan (we’ve been knocking down walls and opening things up for a fresher approach in a house that’s also from the 1920s, but smaller than we’ve had). I’ve never decorated a space with a living room, dining room and kitchen that are all visible from each other, so bamboo/Vivan makes PERFECT sense since it’s clean and consistent. It’s about flow, right?
While they’re not super expensive, I wanted to address 20-some windows this way so I’ve been watching for sales and coupons to get the best deal. The Christmas Tree Shop has bamboo with seagrass roman shades/blinds — in various brown hue options — for $16.99 each, no matter the size. Plus, I had a 20-percent-off-the-total coupon, so that’s $13.50-ish per blind. Cha-ching!
The downside? They only offer up to 36″ wide. Since budget is the driving force here — I went for it despite the fact I couldn’t do the width overhang on the sides like you folks do b/c I would need larger sizes. Bummer. But! I still can hang them high to accent the 9 foot ceilings (discovered after we found 4 other varied ceilings stacked on top of one another).
So yesterday I bought out two different CTS stores (in two states, thank you very much — NJ and NY with people staring at my overflowing cart) in the dark brown hue of the bamboo roman blind (definitely darker than yours, like a cocoa, but I’m hoping the contrast will still be awesome given our furniture, lightish colors on the walls and the Vivan panels in all the “public” spaces).
Whew. I think I drank too much coffee this evening. So, 1) Thanks for the continuing inspiration! 2) Wanted to share the CST deal and 3) here … finally … are my questions.
(Yeesh — have you gone into labor yet, Sherry? This is longer than I thought it would be. But how can you blame me? You folks have me all fired up!)
I know Vivan has the hem tape, but I can’t seem to find in your posts whether YOU actually use it — Are you fan of pooling them on the floor, have you not needed to “hem” them based on your measurements or do you, in fact, “hem” them — and if so, at what length? Pooling or just barely to the floor or what? I know it’s personal preference, but what’s yours?
And, seriously, is it a deal-breaker that I “can’t” go wider with the blinds due to the size the store offers (and my need for the awesome deal)? Any other hanging tips in this instance?
And finally, I swear — I’m in a bit of a color-conundrum (having to do the entire house at once is unnerving) as I have the furniture (warm chocolate couch with a tiny bit of striping in off light greenish (think Behr’s Contemplation 700E-3), chair in the same greenish hue with brown accent detailing, Pier 1 wicker/rattan-ish natural chair, the dining room is a dark wood farmhouse table style from World Market (thanks craigslist!) and I have two neutral tan drum shades to hang over the 7 ft table (thanks overstock for the Restoration Hardware look at a bargain).
Flooring in the foyer and kitchen is multi-colored slate (not gray!) — deep warm colors, golds, reds, browns, etc. But it’s all sort of visible no matter where you stand. How on earth does one tie it all in with lighter paint shades like you folks do? (Note — the tan we love and have now in our old home living room and up the steps into the hallway upstairs) is BM’s Alexandria Beige, (dark and deep and no pink tones). We love it, but that’s not light and breezy. Right?!?
Using just one color in all these rooms that you can see at the same time seems boring. And what color carries from the foyer up the steps to the upstair hallway that connects the bedrooms? Do I go with the “Contemplation green” on walls — but in all the rooms? Stick with tans instead where I’m safer and understand better? HELP!
I’ve never felt at such a loss to decorate. I think it’s because I’m trying to do the lighter, fresher feel you have going on (I love it!) and it’s so different for me. Can you help at all with a color-nudge in the right direction? If I say pretty-please? If I send your soon-to-arrive beanette some awesome happy hair clippies from my etsy shop chock-full of accessories for little girls and their rooms? Will you youngsters take pity on me?
;) Whew. (Breathing.)
Signed,
Thrilled by the bamboo blind deal I found, unnerved by the color conundrum I’m whirling about in and overcaffeinated too late in the evening.
– AKA Gretchen
Hey Gretchen,
That’s an amazing bamboo blind deal- congrats! As for the hem tape, we do use it, but not Ikea’s (it’s webbed so we spend a few bucks at Michael’s for the iron on hem tape that we love – it’s called Heat N Bond). First wash all your curtains and dry them so you know how much they’ll shrink up (quite a bit usually- follow the washing and drying instructions). Then hang them with the rod as high as possible (of course you want to make sure they touch the ground). If you’re lucky they’ll graze the ground (pooling a bit) and you can make a small 1/2″ hem so they still graze the ground a bit (ours are not hugely pooled but they’re not hemmed right above the floor either so we have a bit of breezy airiness to them. And as for your color conundrum, we would go with the Contemplation Green on the walls in all the rooms since it has some color and won’t be boring. Or you could go with a neutral like Glidden’s Water Chestnut and make one long accent wall with the Contemplation Green. Either way you can’t go wrong so just follow your gut and enjoy your new home!
xo,
s
Hi Sherry and John
We have just discovered your website, and I LOVE IT! You are so talented and I am looking forward to sitting down with a cup of tea and going through it all slowly and hoping that some of your talent seeps through to me! I have one very cheeky question which I hope you won’t mind sharing with me – where did you get the rug from in this room? I love it and have been looking for one for our living room and think that one might be a perfect choice.
Thanks!
Jude
Hi Jude,
It’s the honeycomb rug by Chris Madden for JC Penney. They might not sell it anymore but you can always check out ebay!
xo,
s
I just bought some bamboo blinds from Home Depot, and when I opened them I discovered that they come with screws but not anchors. The directions say to drill pilot holes and then screw the brackets right in, but I think they intend an outside mount into the window frame. I will be outside mounting my bamboo blinds on the wall above my windows, as you did. My 1950s brick ranch has plaster walls, so I thought yours might as well. Did you use anchors when you hung your bamboo blinds, or did you just screw them directly into the wall? Thanks for the help – you can tell my husband and I are not so handy.
Yup, definitely use anchors for your plaster walls! We did and it was super simple (just bring the screws that came with your blinds to the hardware store and find anchors to match). Good luck!
xo,
s
looking for suggestions – i have a half circle window above our tub in the master and i really am not a fan of the way it looks and i loathe those fan window treatments, but that is all i seem to come up with when i search for a solution. i knew you guys would maybe have a creative, unique idea! help!
We usually leave them untouched (we love the light streaming in and agree that those fan treatments can be a bit formal). If you want privacy or for some reason want to cover that window to cut down on the light-factor you can always add frosting film (available at Home Depot) which always looks clean and updated. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hey guys….I just want to say how in love with your site I am! I just bought my first home, and on a limited budget, I am trying to find great ideas that don’t break my small bank!! hehe!! I love all of your rooms and have already decided that I am stealing your bedroom IKEA closets idea but I am dying to know where you guys found your rug for your living room?? All of your accesories are so great and if you could drop a couple names of where you got them I would be even more thankful than I already am to be able to sneak peek all your great, beautiful, resourceful ideas!! Thanks guys!! :0)
C
Sherry,
Our front window is very similar to yours (maybe a tad bigger). We went to 3 different blind stores and everyone said because of the size, verticals were the only thing that would work. We definitely need the privacy at night and everyone we talked to said that if we had one big blind, it would be too much weight and they’d break after not too long from pulling them up and down. Since our front window has no panes, they said 2 of anything wouldn’t look good. Long story short, we ended up ordering verticals. I HATE verticals and swore I’d never have them. I need to make these verticals work. I really want to put up panels like you have, but how do you hide the hideous vertical valance? It sticks out so far .. I’m at a loss. Help me make my verticals look pretty. We got white faux wood w/ crown valances in the rest of the house! :)
Thanks soooo much!!
Erin
Hey Erin,
Our only idea would be to use the curtain panels to tuck the verticals behind when they’re not in use and although the vertical valance sticks out a lot, perhaps you can mount bamboo blinds like we did in our front window to cover that part (mounting them on a 2 x 4 or something else that will set them out from the wall above the valance, allowing them to cover it, might work). Good luck!
xo,
s
Hi Sherry & John,
Live in an apartment with (electric heat) baseboard in both living room and bedroom. What length do I hang curtains; two inches above baseboard or on or about the window ledge?
New to your site ….. lovin it!
Thanks so much,
Jan
We would do roman shades, bamboo blinds, and/or breezy curtains that hang a few inches below the window ledge (just to avoid a fire hazard). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hello! I am a newbie fan of yours, and have been totally inspired by you two. Thank you for all the information you provide for people like me who can’t get enough help! I am definitely going for the white vivian curtain and bamboo blinds on my living room window.
I love the Vivian curtains because they are the right price (I’m on an extremely tight budget) and they have the length I’m going for. Other curtains I have checked out are ten times that price in a longer length.
Here’s my problem: I tried ordering the Vivian curtains on ikea’s website; however, they say that this product is not for sale on their website. I live in Denver and we don’t have an ikea (yet)…yeah one is coming FINALLY!!! I don’t think I can wait for the Denver one to open (Fall of 2011). Do you have any suggestions on how to obtain these curtains since I can’t buy them online and we don’t have a store here yet?
This could be something I just have to accept, but on the off-chance you could help me find those affordable & beloved curtains, I would be so grateful!
Thank you!
Chrissie
Yes- check out eBay! They sell tons of Ikea items (especially small shipable ones). You could also put a “looking for” ad up on Craigslist so anyone in a city with one could get them and ship them to you (you could toss in $10 for their efforts or something). Good luck!
xo,
s
Thank you so much for responding so quickly. I looooooove your site, by the way, and have a hard time leaving it!
I have one more quick question for you (thank you for giving your readers such great advice)! I found these curtains on Ebay, but they are 98.5 inches long. I have 8 foot ceilings. Do you think after washing these curtains that they will be long enough to hang almost to the ceiling and pool a bit on the floor? Or, do you think I should hold out for the longer panels?
Thank you so much! You guys are awesome!!!
Chrissie
We are doing this project right now and have a quick question. Our window are LOW compared to our ceilings. There is 29″ between the top of the window and the bottom of the crown molding.
Is there such a thing as too much bamboo blinds? Should we hang the rod about a foot below the ceiling? Our ceilings are 9.25 feet tall.
Thanks!
Sure, why don’t you hang the rod about 10- 12″ from the ceiling so the bamboo blinds don’t feel top heavy and everything feels proportionate. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hello! I recently stumbled across your page and first off, I am absolutely in love! I am starting my junior year in college and would love to recreate this look in my apartment. However, buying bamboo blinds are pretty much out of the question. I was thinking I would use a bamboo material and curtain clip rings to hang on the curtain rod. The only material i have found close to this is placemats at Target! :/ Do you have any suggestions on how I could bind the placemats together? I would LOVE some guidance! Thanks!
Maybe some fishing wire or heavy duty thread could be used to “sew” them together? Good luck!
xo,
s
Nope, all the same color curtains, so they feel lush and thick on both sides and blend together as one panel (you just won’t be able to use one panel to bridge that gap an cheat things over that far, so tossing a few panels up on each side of all the same color will look luxe and cohesive so they can easily cheat things over while no one else is the wiser. Hope it helps!
xo,
s