Help on Window Treatments?
san...@socrates.berkeley.edu
like a whole new house.
Our next projects: lighting and window treatments.
I have decided that mini-blinds are Devil's Instruments, and want
to banish them from my home. I really love the Hunter-Douglas
products, but they're very pricy.
1) Any good, reliable, discount online places for Hunter-Douglas stuff?
2) Any reasonable imposters?
What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
Sandi
(FN-1) - Done, with the exception of the window frames in
the LR/DR, and the fireplace mantle.
Carrie L Leonard
<san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU> wrote:
>
>1) Any good, reliable, discount online places for Hunter-Douglas stuff?
>2) Any reasonable imposters?
Sandi -
We ordered 3 sets of Hunter-Douglas 2" wood blinds from
www.nobrainerblinds.com. We were very satisfied with price and service.
The bummer for us was that the shipping was extremely high, and we weren't
warned beforehand. I believe shipping in the continental US is free
however.
>
>What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
We have drapes in the living room. I don't like them, but I can't think
of anything else right now,and the sun blazes in there in the afternoon so
we need something at least 3 hours a day. We have bamboo matchstick
blinds in the sunroom. I really like those, but they are too informal for
the living room. We have wood blinds in the kitchen (two big windows) and
the bathroom (one really big window). In the bedrooms we have panel
curtains -- the bedrooms only have curtains to block out the street lights
at night -- no one can see in because of our yard alignment and we
wouldn't have curtains at all in there except for the lights at night.
Our windows are all HUGE. One of the benefits of a 60 year old house.
:-) I wish we didn't need to block out the sun in the afternoon becasue I
woudln't want anything inthe living/dining to block the view, but it's
jsut too darn hot without them...
Carrie
Donna
san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU wrote in message
<9pgd1m$2g00$1...@agate.berkeley.edu>...
>What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
White loose-weave cotton sheers (Umbri, I think) on those fancy mounted
curtain rods -- I don't know what they are called. We can pull the
sheers, and get light, with privacy.
Donna
Robin
>
>What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
Evil miniblinds, and a JC Penney's cataglog that mocks my inability to even open
it to the window treatment section.
Needless to say, I'll be following this thread closely!
Geri Clark
<san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU> wrote in message
news:9pgd1m$2g00$1...@agate.berkeley.edu...
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
Very boring ones, but I plan to remedy that soon... as soon as my vertigo
clears and I can look up at the windows again ;-)
Anywho...in the bedroom we have plain ole' off-white sheers. Let light in,
keep the neighbors out (remember, I live in the Big City. The neighbors are
like right there.) I plan to get a pair of drapes to go over the sheers,
probably in rough silk, probably a shade of purple. I will likely end up
sewing these myself 'cause buying them premade makes them pricey.
Living room -- the bane of my existence. More off-white sheers. I've been
thinking about what to do with these windows for the whole two years we've
lived here :-( I really really really wanted some kind of fabric Roman
shade, but the windows themselves are a little blechy -- they're good
windows, and only three years old, but the sashes are brown and looking at
that with the shades pulled up would be ugly. Plus, we have two sets of
windows -- a pair of basic side-by-side rectangular windows and a bow
window-type configuration with one large center window and two narrow side
windows. Problem with the bow is that it almost abuts the wall on one side
and so leaves no room to hang a proper drape. I think I might get one of
those kinda funky tension cord "rods", mount it inside the window frame, and
hang drapes in there.
Dining room -- still under renovation. I have decided that when it's painted
I'm getting fabric Roman shades that open from the top down. One of the DR
windows has an a/c in it and I'd like to hide that while still letting light
in. I found a place here that does custom shades (oh, did I mention that
*all* of our windows are not off-the-rack sizes?) at a decent price.
Spare room/HFC room/office -- also getting a top-down shade when I get
around to it and can commit to a pattern.
Kitchen -- nothing on the window except the "blue eye" talisman I bought in
Turkey to ward of evil :-) I like that window bare; it's a huge one and we
have no privacy issues on that side, so it might stay bare for a while.
See -- very boring :-(
Kathryn Kula
>
>What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
>
>
Well, I don't have any tips for you on Hunter Douglas, but I will gladly
share
about our window treatments.
In our bedroom, we have curtains that I made from twin sheets to match our
bedding - very simple, and just on cafe' rods. They provide the privacy we
need, but let the light come in throughout the day.
In the nursery, we have cheap pull-down shades (which I'm not thrilled with
-
but they do block out light) and balloon valences.
The other bedrooms and the bathrooms do not have curtains. We don't need
them
on the back of the house (both bathrooms and 1 bedroom face the back), but I
really need some in my craft room (which I often work in at various states
of
undress).
Downstairs, we have drapes in the LR and DR that we bought at Sears. They
were relatively inexpensive, and go nicely with the furniture and our future
painting plans. These also have sheer curtains. We always keep the drapes
open and the sheers closed.
In the family room, we have tab top curtains on a wooden dowel rod. I
really
need to put something heavier in there, because sometimes, there is an awful
glare on the TV.
We don't have anything in the kitchen (window above the sink and a sliding
glass door) which faces the back of the house, the office (faces front), or
the laundry room (also faces front). Since I also sometimes work in the
office or laundry room half dressed - they could probably use some
treatments
too. I may even buy a cheap pull down shade for the laundry room.
--Kathy
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san...@socrates.berkeley.edu
boat. :^)
In article <W%Zu7.1333$kl4.2...@typhoon.nyc.rr.com>,
Geri Clark <gcl...@nyc.rr.com> wrote:
>Anywho...in the bedroom we have plain ole' off-white sheers. Let light in,
>keep the neighbors out (remember, I live in the Big City. The neighbors are
>like right there.) I plan to get a pair of drapes to go over the sheers,
>probably in rough silk, probably a shade of purple. I will likely end up
>sewing these myself 'cause buying them premade makes them pricey.
Ah ha! My DH is not much of a "drape" person, and gets uncomfortable
with only sheers, since he's convinced the urban hoodlums are staring
in at us. He's prefer steel shutters. You can see what I'm working
with, here. :^)
For our bedroom, I am thinking I'll splurge on the H-D Vignette
Blinds, which are liked softly draped folds of fabric, that can
be rolled up into a gently rounded headrail - so no "clunky"
hanging blinds out in sight. And on either side of our large,
non-standard sized windows, I'd like 84" panel drapes, non-tab-topped.
Purple is an option, as is chocolate brown or black. I like raw silk,
too. I saw some nice ones at Bed, Bath and Beyond, and also in the
Spiegel's catalog.
>Living room -- the bane of my existence. More off-white sheers. I've been
>thinking about what to do with these windows for the whole two years we've
>lived here :-( I really really really wanted some kind of fabric Roman
>shade, but the windows themselves are a little blechy -- they're good
>windows, and only three years old, but the sashes are brown and looking at
>that with the shades pulled up would be ugly.
So paint the sashes! If you like the Roman shades, take a look at
the Vignette line. Very nice, and a bit more polished...
>Plus, we have two sets of
>windows -- a pair of basic side-by-side rectangular windows and a bow
>window-type configuration with one large center window and two narrow side
>windows. Problem with the bow is that it almost abuts the wall on one side
>and so leaves no room to hang a proper drape. I think I might get one of
>those kinda funky tension cord "rods", mount it inside the window frame, and
>hang drapes in there.
I helped my cousin do this in her dining nook. Tension rods top
and bottom, with vibrant colored fabric mounted about 12" down
from the window top -- so she got light, and privacy. I think it
cost $10 per window or so.
>Dining room -- still under renovation. I have decided that when it's painted
>I'm getting fabric Roman shades that open from the top down. One of the DR
>windows has an a/c in it and I'd like to hide that while still letting light
>in. I found a place here that does custom shades (oh, did I mention that
>*all* of our windows are not off-the-rack sizes?) at a decent price.
Us too. :^(
>See -- very boring :-(
Not boring -- just something that needs a bit of fine-tuning!
Looking forward to more accounts of others' solutions...
Sandi
Vicky Larmour
Kitchen: nothing. It's at the back of our house and no-one backs onto
us, and any houses that might have side views onto our back garden
are shielded by trees. We've occasionally discussed getting a roller
blind but have never bothered to get round to it.
Living room / dining room: bay window with ugly curtains that came
with the house. Yes, we've lived here 5.5 years and never got round
to new curtains in here - wanna make something of it? :-) We did
remove the horrible vertical blinds that were behind the curtains, at
least.
Hall and study: nothing. They both look out onto the passage down the
side of the house so again, no-one could easily see in so we're not
bothered.
Our bedroom and ensuite: *nice* curtains that match our decor and
bedlinen (the one room in the house where this is true!) - pale
yellow and green background with leafy patterns.
Front bedroom: there were more of the horrible vertical blinds in
here, too, which we replaced with some serviceable but fairly yuckily
patterned charity-shop-curtains until we get around to actually
decorating properly.
Boxroom: just looking for new curtains for this room right now.
Previously it had some horrible pink floral concoction which went
straight to the dump. Unfortunately the window in here is tall and
thin, which means ready-made curtains are either too short and
square, or far too long (floor length) so we might have to plump for
made-to-measure. Don't want to have to do that, though, as the
curtains in here are literally never closed and are really only so
the window doesn't look bare. Sigh. We'll see.
Vicky
--
Ivanova: "Lennier, get us the hell out of here!"
Lennier: "Initiating 'getting the hell out of here' maneuver..."
- Babylon 5: "The Hour of the Wolf"
Susan Behr MacDuffee
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
We have mini-blinds in all of our windows. Including the bathrooms
which don't have any other curtains or window treatment. I would love
to get better blinds in all of the windows. My neighbors just bought
those really expensive wider wooden blinds for their living room and
they look great. In the kitchen we have a flower swag kind of
intertwined on a rod above the window. The living room has deep
purple valances. I am thinking I would like the same color curtains
on at least the side window though. Or maybe the look (can't think of
what it is called) where you just drape fabric over the rods and it
hangs down on either side of the window. Bedrooms have valances.
Master bedroom they match the comforter and lamp shades. One guest
room they are nice cream colored ones with a cut out design in the
center. The other bedroom is some kind of flowered valance.
I have a window treatment question of my own. My mom bought a small
vacation home recently and is in the process of decorating it. The
windows all have crown molding inside and she doesn't want to cover
the tops with curtains. What would the ANCW suggest? I don't think
she can put tension rods inside the frames either because of the type
of windows she has. I suggested the draped fabric thing but I am not
sure she liked the idea.
--Susan
HollyLewis
>thin, which means ready-made curtains are either too short and
>square, or far too long (floor length) so we might have to plump for
>made-to-measure. Don't want to have to do that, though, as the
>curtains in here are literally never closed and are really only so
>the window doesn't look bare. Sigh. We'll see.
>
>Vicky
Do you know anyone at all who can sew a straight seam? Buy the floor length
panels and then shorten them. :-)
Holly
Twinkle Toes
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
>
> Sandi
>
I agree that mini-blinds are the Devil's instrument. We have 2 in our
house--one in the unfinished sided of the basement, and one in the
closet of my sewing room (will probably be a HFC bedroom eventually).
I abolutely refused to slap blinds up on every window in the
house--I'd rather have bare windows and do them "right" (the way we
want them), than do the blind thing (which most of our neighbors seem
to have done, but that's certainly their choice).
Our house is almost exactly one year old, and we're still working on
window treatments (we have a lot of windows, not so much free money,
and seem to have expensive taste :( ). Here's what we have so far:
Living/Dining Room (it has no furniture yet, but will be mostly dining
room)-- 2 72x72 windows--white lace panels hung on antique-brass
finished decorative cafe rods (Martha Stewart Collection from
Kmart)--when we get furniture, we will probably top these with fringed
scarves to add a bit more color & formality.
Family Room--4 36wx72h windows (called a "window wall" on the floor
plan)--beautiful views, and the nearest neighbors are down a 2-3 story
hill--we found white canvas roman shades that lift to reveal our
beautiful views, and close to block out strong East-South sun. I was
actually planning on making these myself, but found exactly what I
wanted for $25 apiece at Lowes. We will eventually add toppers of
some sort, but may wait a bit since we may be buying new couches and
would want them to coordinate
Kitchen--sliding glass door and 48x48" window over the sink: both are
bare :P Niether of us like vertical blinds, so it's taken a year to
decide what to do with the slider. I will be purchasing an
antique-brass decorative traverse rod and white pinch-pleat panels
from the JC Penney catlog on Sunday (got a coupon in the mail good
sunday only, or I'd have ordered them yesterday--going with their
"Supreme" collection in "cream"). This will let us completely uncover
the door, or cover it to block the sun, is nice enough to satisfy DH,
but has nice clean lines that won't look overdone in a kitchen.
Haven't decided on the over-the-sink one yet: most tiered kitchen
curtains really don't appeal to me.
Basement Rec Room (another empty room, destined for a pool table
eventually)--sliding glass door flanked by 36x72h" windows. The
slider is bare (will probably get something similar to the kitchen).
The two side windows have honeycomb shades from Lowes (about $100
each). They will get toppers whenever we get furniture :)
Master bedroom--2 36x72" windows--these have ivory sheers covered by
deep red jacquard pinch-pleat drapes that were re-made from Kmart
(Martha again) drapes we had used in our previous apartment. They're
ok for now, but I have visions of making a new comforter/bedskirt set
and would make new, coordinating curtains then.
Master bath--48" square window over the tub. This is 2 panels of
white crushed voile (sheer) fabric that are hung on a cafe rod by
butterfly curtain rings that match the butterfly accessories in the
rest of the room. The accessories (and curtain rings) were from our
registry, and since we have shower doors instead of a curtain, the
rings were perfect for the window. It looks really cute, if I do say
so myself (I made the curtains myself--hemmed both ends and sewed on
plastic rings to attach to the curtain rings)
Guest Bedroom--2 36x72" windows--This is my most recent project. I
made swags and cascades for each window from a fabric that goes with
the bed-in-a-bag sets I found for the 2 beds in this room (the "swag"
is a sort of gathered half-circle, and the cascades are like long
triangles on either side--I hope this makes sense). The fabric isn't
an exact match, but close enough, and I am working on a table topper
and throw pillows as well. The toppers are hung over voile sheers
from Kmart.
Sewing room--1 72wx63h window: white lace panels from (you guessed
it! Kmart) that were on a clearance rack, topped by blue toppers
(cascades on either end with a straight one in the middle) that we had
used in our last apartment, and that had come from Walmart.
Office--1 36x72h windows: Sort of bare. I was playing around and put
up the pair of blue panels (that match the toppers from the sewing
room), strung on a shower curtain rod--these were also the guest room
curtains (one panel on each of 2 shower curtain rods) before I got the
new ones done, since we needed something to protect the modesty of all
the family members we had staying with us this summer :) This is
really DH's room, so if he wants somethign different we'll change it.
Otherwise, it faces north, and looks directly at the wall of our
neighbor's house, so it's not a big hurry to do anything different.
Ok, I think that's all of them. I know, it's probably more than you
ever wanted to know about our decorating. The windows have been a big
project for me since we moved in, and I've been thinking about them
all week as I've been trying to make a final decision on the kitchen.
--Good luck, and let us know what you decide on!
--twinkle
HollyLewis
>to banish them from my home. I really love the Hunter-Douglas
>products, but they're very pricy.
>
Snort. I dunno about the prices but I do have several catalogs that sell
window treatments of all sorts. The main one I can think of is called Smith +
Noble. Lemme know if I should dig it out and find an address for you.
In the "main rooms" (entry, LR, DR) we have some plain sheer tab-top panels,
some sheer tab-top panels decorated with a leaf design (white on white), and
several pleated cell type shades, semisheer. You know, sort of a cross between
miniblinds and shades. They came with the house and we love them, except that
they're off-white and we need white. Someday we'll get around to springing for
replacements.
We also have plain sheer panels in the dining room. The bedrooms have vinyl
miniblinds, which we actually like; I'd like to put up some sort of simple
valance but DH hates them, and I can live without. The office has roman shades
that came with the house and by pure happy coincidence were (1) in a reasonably
attractive fabric pattern which (2) matched the bright blue color we painted
the trim in that room. The kitchen has greenhouse windows with nothing, though
we really ought to figure out something there -- on winter weekend mornings it
can be blindingly bright in there.
>(FN-1) - Done, with the exception of the window frames in
>the LR/DR, and the fireplace mantle.
>
Did you convince DH to alter those silly quarter-round shelves around the
fireplace? :-)
Holly
Calliaz
>
> Thanks for the replies. It sounds like everyone is in a similar
> boat. :^)
I wish I was in a similar boat! Scott
absolutely loves mini blinds. He
refuses to have curtains or anything
else--so I'm very limited in my options.
Jennifer
Medha
We have those evil miniblinds too - but I am going to admit here that we kind of
like them. They don't completely obstruct the outside view but provide the
needed privacy, and are so easy to clean. I'd like to sew valences for the tops
of the windows though. I've only managed to do that in DS's room. I made a
reversible valence and put it up on a simple curtain rod. I made a few matching
throw pillows to the valence too. Someday I'll be able to do that for all the
other rooms. In the master bedroom, I'm going to bring in some drapes with the
light blocking fabric (I don't remember what it is called - but did see it as
Bed Bath and Beyond).
Medha
Vicky Larmour
holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote:
>>Unfortunately the window in here is tall and
>>thin, which means ready-made curtains are either too short and
>>square, or far too long (floor length) so we might have to plump
>>for made-to-measure. Don't want to have to do that, though, as
>>the curtains in here are literally never closed and are really
>>only so the window doesn't look bare. Sigh. We'll see.
>
> floor length panels and then shorten them. :-)
That is an option. I could try and persuade my Mum to help since she
is the only person I know with a sewing machine :-)
san...@socrates.berkeley.edu
HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote:
>>I have decided that mini-blinds are Devil's Instruments, and want
>>to banish them from my home. I really love the Hunter-Douglas
>>products, but they're very pricy.
>>
>
>Snort.
Holly, how did I know this reply was from you, just by this first
word? <evil grin>
>I dunno about the prices but I do have several catalogs that sell
>window treatments of all sorts. The main one I can think of is called Smith +
>Noble. Lemme know if I should dig it out and find an address for you.
I'll look it up on Google, thanks. Just like the Reggio Registers
you gave me (and from whom I've requested a catalog!).
>In the "main rooms" (entry, LR, DR) we have some plain sheer tab-top panels,
>some sheer tab-top panels decorated with a leaf design (white on white), and
>several pleated cell type shades, semisheer. You know, sort of a cross between
>miniblinds and shades. They came with the house and we love them, except that
>they're off-white and we need white. Someday we'll get around to springing for
>replacements.
There are lots of online blind shops; I took a quick peek at the
NoBrainer Blinds site that Carrie mentioned, and it could be a good
way to go, FWIW. For me personally, I don't like the tab-top, since
they still let in too much light, and are a little on the informal
side. I want panels on a rod without the tab top, which are apparently
hard to find. I saw some this week in the Restoration Hardware
catalog, so maybe there's hope for me yet.
>We also have plain sheer panels in the dining room. The bedrooms have vinyl
>miniblinds, which we actually like; I'd like to put up some sort of simple
>valance but DH hates them, and I can live without.
I had a simple valance in the Brm that I made from a dust ruffle
that went over the existing miniblinds. In general, if it's a
"severe" valance, I can handle it. If it's ruffly or floral, neither
DH nor I will like it much. We also have m-blinds in the bathroom,
which is fine. They may stay in the "study", but I definitely want
something more "drape-y" in the LRm and DRm...
>The office has roman shades
>that came with the house and by pure happy coincidence were (1) in a reasonably
>attractive fabric pattern which (2) matched the bright blue color we painted
>the trim in that room.
We may go with Roman shades in the LRm. The conflict is getting
the light I want in the room, and maintaining the privacy that DH
requires. I also would like something that doesn't bend when the
cats lounge against it, or move it to peer out our window at the
front yard (aka "kitty TV").
>The kitchen has greenhouse windows with nothing, though
>we really ought to figure out something there -- on winter weekend mornings it
>can be blindingly bright in there.
We don't have anything in our kitchen either. I'm more inclined to
get something because it will camoflauge the underside of the metal
awning on the side porch. :^)
>>(FN-1) - Done, with the exception of the window frames in
>>the LR/DR, and the fireplace mantle.
>>
>Did you convince DH to alter those silly quarter-round shelves around the
>fireplace? :-)
:^) Nope. The best I could do was to clear off the mantle, and use
the shelves as decorative display. I'm getting a real library in
the back room, so hopefully I'll have enough bookshelf space without
having to convert the LR fireplace shelves. I've learned over the
years that when he gets that mule-look in his eyes, it's time to find
some other way to get what I want -- and in this case, it's bookshelves.
Sandi
Gretchen Shah
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
>
> Sandi
Not much, at the moment. Most of the windows have the $5 paper accordion
pleated "temporary shades" that we put up when we bought the house a year
and a half ago. But here's what I have in mind...
Kitchen: one 3'x4' (ish) window that faces the hallway and a window over the
sink that can't be seen from the hall. The first has white shutters on the
lower half and will soon have a tab top valence on the top suspended from
cabinet knobs rather than a rod. The other window will have a matching
valence, but no shutters.
Living Room: a five panel bow window and a 2.5'x4' window. The plans are
for crimson red roller shades on each of the panels and the other window.
Maybe some sort of valence, but ATM I can't think of any style that I think
would work. The sticking point on this project is finding the fabric for
the shades. I know I want red, but I'd like it to have some sort of subtle
pattern that doesn't clash with the fine stripes of the new chairs.
Dining Room: Two windows, 2.5'x4', side by side. I plan to make tent-flap
curtains from a gold and red brocade-type fabric I found on a trip to Canada
and a red lining. These are two panels that hang flat with no gathers or
pleats. The edges can be pulled back from the center to the side and tied
back. Very non-fussy.
Bathroom: One smallish window that faces the neighbors. Shutters on the
bottom and a white hemstiched valence (if I ever remember to order it).
Guest Room/Office: Two 2.5'x4' windows. Off white tab-topped, floor length
panels from Target. Soon to be topped with a simple, non-fussy valence made
from a great plaid fabric that coordinates perfectly with our rather unusual
terra-cotta walls.
Master Bedroom: This is where is gets complicated. Right now, the MB is on
the first floor. But as soon as we finish the upstairs bathroom, we will
move up the real MB and our current bedroom will be the family room. To
that end there will be Roman shades, probably in some sort of non-pastel
plaid, but I don't want to do that until we actually change rooms. I'm
having some color scheme issues with that room, ATM. The walls are taupe,
which I like just fine. The floor will be carpeted soon, but we aren't sure
with what. I'd like berber, but they all seem to come in creamy shades and
DH wants dark carpeting in there for dirt reasons. Fair enough, but the
only dark colors seem to be navy or green and I can't commit. I just prefer
neutral carpeting. The furniture in there will be natural maple and
caramel-colored leather couches. So I'm thinking the taupe walls are too
much neutral. Harummph.
Some-day Master Bedroom: Two smallish (2.5'x3'?) windows and one 2.5'x4'
window. Ideally, I'd like to replace the small window on the back of the
house with three windows of the same size. The coverings will be Roman
shades made from the same fabric as the duvet. I got lucky and found the
duvet for 75% off, so I bought three!
Upstairs Bathroom: Dunno. Maybe some Hunter Douglas blinds.
Other Upstairs Bedroom: No clue.
HTH,
Gretchen
HollyLewis
>hard to find. I saw some this week in the Restoration Hardware
>catalog, so maybe there's hope for me yet.
Oh, go to Bed Bath and Beyond. (Brave a brick-and-mortar store? Horrors!)
They have tons of inexpensive panels in all sorts of different styles.
>The conflict is getting
>the light I want in the room, and maintaining the privacy that DH
>requires.
The cellular pleated shades are perfect for that.
Holly
Barbara
sandy wrote:
> We may go with Roman shades in the LRm. The conflict is getting
> the light I want in the room, and maintaining the privacy that DH
> requires. I also would like something that doesn't bend when the
> cats lounge against it, or move it to peer out our window at the
> front yard (aka "kitty TV").
>
In that case, I'd recommend the semi-sheer semi blinds someone else
mentioned. Not sure how to describe them, bui I'll try: they are made
of fabric, which folds over itself like venetian blinds, but there is no
'break' between the folds. When the blinds are fully extended (so, all
the way down), they have a profile like this:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
(Where all those > actually join with the next bit).
They provide a good deal of light through the fabric without
compromising privacy. And, they can be installed to be raised from the
top or the bottom, so that part or all of the window is exposed.
We used these for our large windows (6 foot glass double-patio doors) in
the kitchen/onto the patio, and for the 9 ft (combo 6 ft and 3 ft)
window in the living room/basement....they were the most expensive
window treatments we bought, but also the nicest IMO. Lots of light but
lots of privacy too.
I can look up the 'make' if you're interested....
Barbara
san...@socrates.berkeley.edu
HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote:
>> I want panels on a rod without the tab top, which are apparently
>>hard to find. I saw some this week in the Restoration Hardware
>>catalog, so maybe there's hope for me yet.
>
>Oh, go to Bed Bath and Beyond. (Brave a brick-and-mortar store? Horrors!)
>They have tons of inexpensive panels in all sorts of different styles.
I did, the new one in EC Plaza. They're all pastels. Yech! :^)
I want jewel-tones, in velvet, with no tab tops. Maybe now that we're
officially done with summer, they'll be happening soon.
>>The conflict is getting
>>the light I want in the room, and maintaining the privacy that DH
>>requires.
>
>The cellular pleated shades are perfect for that.
Yup. I think the Duette ones, that go either top-down or bottom-up
will be workable. Whether the depth of our window frame is sufficient
is now the question...
Sandi
Barbara
Gretchen Shah wrote:
>
> <san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU> wrote in message
> news:9pgd1m$2g00$1...@agate.berkeley.edu...
>
> > What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
> >
> > Sandi
>
> Not much, at the moment. Most of the windows have the $5 paper
>accordion pleated "temporary shades" that we put up when we bought the
>house a year and a half ago.
Ooh, where did you get these? Given that we're much more likely to
*want* to spend our window-treatment-budget on travel, I'd love to get
these to start, and see how long we'll "put up" with them (so to
speak)...and find ourselves a cool trip in the meantime.
Are these 'temporary shades' easy to find? The cheapest easy blinds I
know of here, are the el cheapo venetian blinds from the hardware store,
but I haven't done much looking lately....
TIA,
Barbara (who has avoided answering the main question because the answer
is nothing, I don't have a house or any residence of my own/our own
anymore ;-( Not 'til atleast February!)
Sarah M.
> In article news:20011004163410...@mb-fo.aol.com,
> holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote:
>> Do you know anyone at all who can sew a straight seam? Buy the
>> floor length panels and then shorten them. :-)
>
>
> That is an option. I could try and persuade my Mum to help since she
> is the only person I know with a sewing machine :-)
Vicky, Vicky, Vicky. Whatever is wrong with you? A stapler or a good
dose of krazy glue would work just fine! :-)
Sarah
managing to get along just fine without a sewing machine :-)
Vicky Larmour
> Vicky Larmour wrote:
>> That is an option. I could try and persuade my Mum to help since she
>> is the only person I know with a sewing machine :-)
>
> Vicky, Vicky, Vicky. Whatever is wrong with you? A stapler or a good
> dose of krazy glue would work just fine! :-)
>
> Sarah
> managing to get along just fine without a sewing machine :-)
<smacks self upside the head>
Sorry, I was tired when I wrote the earlier post. :-)
Vicky
--
vicky[at]jifvik.org All opinions mine.
The "unofficial offical alt.newlywed page" and a.n FAQ:
http://www.jifvik.org/newlywed/
Gretchen
> Gretchen Shah wrote:
> >
> > <san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU> wrote in message
> > news:9pgd1m$2g00$1...@agate.berkeley.edu...
> >
> > > What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
> > >
> > > Sandi
> >
> > Not much, at the moment. Most of the windows have the $5 paper
> >accordion pleated "temporary shades" that we put up when we bought the
> >house a year and a half ago.
>
> Ooh, where did you get these? Given that we're much more likely to
> *want* to spend our window-treatment-budget on travel, I'd love to get
> these to start, and see how long we'll "put up" with them (so to
> speak)...and find ourselves a cool trip in the meantime.
>
> Are these 'temporary shades' easy to find? The cheapest easy blinds I
> know of here, are the el cheapo venetian blinds from the hardware store,
> but I haven't done much looking lately....
They are called Redi Shades and we got ours from Home Depot. I have
also seen them at Joann Fabrics.
HTH,
Gretchen
Joan Ferguson
I'm in Jennifer's boat! Don doesn't see the "point" in anything other
than mini blinds - I couldn't even convince him that anything but the
*cheapest* mini blinds that Lowe's sold would be okay to use. Sigh. I
did manage to hang some cheap nylon sheer panels in front of the mini
blinds in our living room and bedroom, but he keeps them tied back
because they "get in the way." I keep trying to pull them so we get the
muted light effect, but it doesn't last long.
Of course, we don't have enough money to do anything else right now
(we've been in the house less than 6 months), so I'm hoping that,
someday, I'll be able to convince him that getting something "nice"
would be okay. I'm not betting on it, though. :) Plus, I do have some
other more pressing things I have to convince him of - like, we need to
get one of those pull-down attic stairs kits so we have a bit more
storage than our three tiny closets offer. Its like pulling teeth. Oh,
well.
Joan
(the decoratingly challenged)
Robin
>
>Vicky Larmour wrote:
>
>> That is an option. I could try and persuade my Mum to help since she
>> is the only person I know with a sewing machine :-)
>
>Vicky, Vicky, Vicky. Whatever is wrong with you? A stapler or a good
>dose of krazy glue would work just fine! :-)
>
>Sarah
>managing to get along just fine without a sewing machine :-)
>
>
>
Robin
>
>Ooh, where did you get these? Given that we're much more likely to
>*want* to spend our window-treatment-budget on travel, I'd love to get
>these to start, and see how long we'll "put up" with them (so to
>speak)...and find ourselves a cool trip in the meantime.
>
>Are these 'temporary shades' easy to find? The cheapest easy blinds I
>know of here, are the el cheapo venetian blinds from the hardware store,
>but I haven't done much looking lately....
They had a bin of them at Lowe's in the window treatment aisle.
Susan Behr MacDuffee
On 4 Oct 2001, Medha wrote:
> We have those evil miniblinds too - but I am going to admit here that we kind of
> like them. They don't completely obstruct the outside view but provide the
> needed privacy, and are so easy to clean.
Easy to clean? I have never heard anyone say that mini blinds were easy
to clean. How do you clean them?
--Susan
Leslie Deak
On Thu, 4 Oct 2001 san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU wrote:
> Our next projects: lighting and window treatments.
Mmm, we've just done some lighting "work" in our place, and I really like
the results. There were some nice mission-style lamps on sale at JCPenney,
and I had a GC, so I bought the floor and table lamps. Those replaced the
500-watt halogen (college relic) in the corner. DH thought the place was
then underlit, but I was able to teach him that several strategically
placed smaller lights was far nicer than one, big, overpowering light.
Then, when I painted the bathroom last weekend, I replaced the light
fixture. We ahd one of those standard six-bulb end-to-end covered with a
froted glass pieces that I hated. I went to Lowe's, where I picked out a
long horizontal fixture (one fixture for the double-sink setup). I chose a
four-bulbed model in chrome. Then, I picked out the glass pieces to go on
it. They have about 20 different kinds of glass pieces to put over the
bulbs, and I was pleased with the variety. I mounted and wired the
fixture, and broke one glass piece while putting them up. Grr. Then I
added a dimmer switch and halogen screw-in bulbs (which don't buzz as much
as regular incandescents when dimmed). Looks lovely. I can photo, if you
like.
> I have decided that mini-blinds are Devil's Instruments, and want
[snip]
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
All miniblinds. We replaced the set I pulled out of the wall 1/2 an hour
after closing with a new set. The old one was <cringe> pink. I also
replaced the horrid, ugly, terrible, awful curtain over the sliding glass
door with vertical blinds. Those will probably stay, though I'm thinking
of adding some sort of drapery in the bedroom.
-Leslie
ChatBrat
were rather pricey, others were far more reasonable and equally lovely!
There are places online that are offering the best prices in blinds (I did a
search for you day before yesterday but then my system crashed). I even
found a few that have free shipping and an offer that they'll beat the
lowest advertised price anywhere by an additional 10%. Just search under
Hunter Douglas Discount on any search engine.
Depending on the size of your windows, you can get really NICE Hunter
Douglas blinds for significantly less. We have everything from the
silhouettes to duettes faux wood and roman shades but my favourite are a
see-through type roller blind which stop others from seeing in while we can
still access our view.
To see my them, click on http://www.nexicom.net/~webwiz/renos/ and choose
the diningroom and living room photos. The guestroom shows the Silhouette
blinds (Levelor has a far less expensive version of this blind, btw). If
you wish to see more, I'll advise you when the rest of our renovation
pictures get put online.
Cheers,
Cheryl
<san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU> wrote in message
news:9pgd1m$2g00$1...@agate.berkeley.edu...
> OK, so the painting is *done*! (FN-1) The new carpet is *installed*! It's
> like a whole new house.
>
> Our next projects: lighting and window treatments.
>
> I have decided that mini-blinds are Devil's Instruments, and want
> to banish them from my home. I really love the Hunter-Douglas
> products, but they're very pricy.
>
> 1) Any good, reliable, discount online places for Hunter-Douglas stuff?
> 2) Any reasonable imposters?
>
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
>
> Sandi
Susan Behr MacDuffee
On Fri, 5 Oct 2001, Leslie Deak wrote:
> as regular incandescents when dimmed). Looks lovely. I can photo, if you
> like.
I am not Sandi, but I'd like. I love to get ideas from you all.
--Susan
HollyLewis
>
>>> Do you know anyone at all who can sew a straight seam? Buy the
>>> floor length panels and then shorten them. :-)
>>
>>
>> That is an option. I could try and persuade my Mum to help since she
>> is the only person I know with a sewing machine :-)
>
>Vicky, Vicky, Vicky. Whatever is wrong with you? A stapler or a good
>dose of krazy glue would work just fine! :-)
>
>Sarah
>managing to get along just fine without a sewing machine :-)
>
Well, not on sheers. :-) The staples would show too much.
Stitch Witchery might work okay.
Holly
(who refuses to own a sewing machine because it would make her feel inadequate)
HollyLewis
>I want jewel-tones, in velvet, with no tab tops. Maybe now that we're
>officially done with summer, they'll be happening soon.
Pottery Barn?
The very idea of velvet curtains makes me shudder. :-)
Holly
Sarah Hallum
> Holly
> (who refuses to own a sewing machine because it would make her feel inadequate)
My MIL just got this machine that, I think, does everything itself. You
can hook it up to the computer, download patterns. I guess it does some
embroidery AND it has a CD-ROM drive.
Yikes.
Sarah,
who used scotch tape to emergency hem her pants once :)
--
This address unread - please post or email to sarah at subtlerage dot com
Jenn Bernat
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
Our apartment came with miniblinds, and we've covered those with curtains.
All the rods are double-rails from Pottery Barn. The intent was to hang
either sheers or insulating layers on the inside rail (nearest the window)
and attractive curtains on the outside. 2 years later, and we've still not
got that done.
Bedroom: Yellow pocket-topped curtains Mum made for their bedroom in 1980
from a pair of sheets.
Office: Very cool navy curtains with suns and moons on. I saw something
similar in a catalog that called the pattern "Millenium". They match our
shower curtain, bought when we were very into this pattern. Not so much
anymore, but the curtains are still cool. :)
Living Room: Slate blue curtains with matching tie-backs which fasten with
a big button. When we lived in the corner apartment we had 3 sets of
these, but now just one.
I really like having the curtains for a couple of reasons. It feels warmer
with them up -- we're transplants to the frozen north here. :) Also, our
blinds never completely close. With them angled down, you can see into our
bedroom, but with them angled up the too early morning sun comes in.
Finally, I just feel really insecure indoors in the dark with bare
windows. I can't see out, but people can see in.
Jenn
--
Jenn Bernat
Geri Clark
HollyLewis <holly...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20011005161702...@mb-fo.aol.com...
> The very idea of velvet curtains makes me shudder. :-)
And you don't even have a cat ;-)
I like the idea of velvet curtains, but I have a hairy dog and a hairy cat
who come in colors incompatible with velvet. Eww...
Megan
but then again I might just have mucked up the snipping as usual!
windows!
I'd actually consider one over our front door now - not so much to
keep out drafts, but to keep the noise down. Its kind of annoying
hearing the loud conversations of people waiting for the lift at 3am
(our flat is ground floor and our front door is right next to the
lift).
Megan
ground = US first floor
lift = elevator
--
Megan Farr Montgomery Wolverhampton, England
Lille kat, lille kat, lille kat på vejen
Hvis er du, Hvis er du
Jeg er sgu' min egen
- Piet Hein
Shawn & Joy Pennington
"Geri Clark" <gcl...@nyc.rr.com> wrote in message
news:W%Zu7.1333$kl4.2...@typhoon.nyc.rr.com...
> Anywho...in the bedroom we have plain ole' off-white sheers. Let light in,
> keep the neighbors out (remember, I live in the Big City. The neighbors
are
> like right there.) I plan to get a pair of drapes to go over the sheers,
> probably in rough silk, probably a shade of purple. I will likely end up
> sewing these myself 'cause buying them premade makes them pricey.
By sheers, my amateur mind is assuming you mean that very thin fabric. Do
they really do the job at keeping neighbors out, especially at night when
your lights are on? I think they might look nice in my dining room over the
french doors (which we don't use except for "loading in & out" DH), but I
put the thought aside because I figured the neighbors would still see too
much when we're in there with the light on.
that was a ramble, wasn't it?...
Joy
Shawn & Joy Pennington
> *want* to spend our window-treatment-budget on travel, I'd love to get
> these to start, and see how long we'll "put up" with them (so to
> speak)...and find ourselves a cool trip in the meantime.
I've been refraining from answering this question too, because our
treatments are pitiful at best :-) Like Barbara, we've just not budgeted
for treatments, since we've needed so much else since buying this house!
Our living room is almost fully decorated and has olive-green MS tabtops
from Kmart. We bought these b/c they matched the decor, were relatively
cheap, and it makes the room look more complete.
The office, which is the other finished room, has fabric blinds that DH
picked out, topped by a jabbot (?) MS pattern. This window was a grand pain
b/c it's actually two windows together & we didn't want to spend the money
to have drapes custom made.
The rest of the house has those $5 mini-blinds. The only exception is the
bathroom which has natural colored wood shutters (that look positively
ridiculous) and the laundry room which has white-lacy-jabbot curtains that I
discovered the previous owner bought at Walmart. Not that there's anything
wrong w/ Walmart, but the curtains certainly don't serve a point. We've
just never bothered to take them down, unlike the rest of the terribly tacky
curtains they had hanging.
Joy
Shawn & Joy Pennington
"Leslie Deak" <ld...@me1.egr.duke.edu> wrote in message
news:Pine.LNX.4.10.101100...@me1.egr.duke.edu...
>
> On Thu, 4 Oct 2001 san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU wrote:
> as regular incandescents when dimmed). Looks lovely. I can photo, if you
> like.
>
Joy
Geri Clark
Shawn & Joy Pennington <penni...@thelink.net> wrote in message
news:9po3gm$c6i$1...@newstest.laserlink.net...
>
> "Geri Clark" <gcl...@nyc.rr.com> wrote in message
> news:W%Zu7.1333$kl4.2...@typhoon.nyc.rr.com...
> > Anywho...in the bedroom we have plain ole' off-white sheers. Let light
in,
> > keep the neighbors out (remember, I live in the Big City. The neighbors
> are
> > like right there.) I plan to get a pair of drapes to go over the sheers,
> > probably in rough silk, probably a shade of purple. I will likely end up
> > sewing these myself 'cause buying them premade makes them pricey.
>
> By sheers, my amateur mind is assuming you mean that very thin fabric.
Yes. That's it.
Do
> they really do the job at keeping neighbors out, especially at night when
> your lights are on? I think they might look nice in my dining room over
the
> french doors (which we don't use except for "loading in & out" DH), but I
> put the thought aside because I figured the neighbors would still see too
> much when we're in there with the light on.
We don't have a problem with the neighbors (at least as far as we can tell
;-) I can tell you that several of our neighbors also have sheers on their
windows and we can't see into their places at night, so I assume they can't
see into ours.
JeanneP
> 1) Any good, reliable, discount online places for Hunter-Douglas stuff?
> 2) Any reasonable imposters?
We had Hunter-Douglas blinds in our old house, and miss them. We decided
to do something similar in the new house, but shied away at the price.
Since we have large sash windows and a toddler, it's safer to open them
from the top, so we found relatively cheap top-down bottom-up shades in
the JC Penny Catalog. They were a mistake. The hardware to control the
openings and closings just doesn't work nearly as smoothly as the H-D,
and we have to fight with them every time we use them.
If you do find reasonable imposters, let me know!
> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
In our new house, we only have the mistakes. We have a lot of privacy
where we live, so it hasn't been a big concern, but now that the winter
is coming, we'll probably do something more. In our old house, we had:
Dining Room: one sliding glass door with a sheer and a heavy curtain on
a traverse rod. These were left by the previous owners and they were
non-offensive so we left them.
Living Room: A bay (garden) window and a big bow window. These had the
H-D cellular shades, which were great because they let the[er these, we
put burgundy swags and valances from the JC Penny catalog; mostly just
to frame the windows and give the room a more formal appearance. I'd
point you to some good pictures, but we haven't finished upgrading our
web server yet!
Kitchen: pull down shades with tab-top green-and-offwhite checked
valances. We turned the birch cabinets and the remaining 70's colors
(avacado and goldenrod in the flooring, and a bit in the wallpaper)
into sort of a Mediterranean feel.
[man, I wish our website was up - we took great pictures to sell the
house- ask me later]
Full bath: pull down shade covered with valance and swags that matched
the shower curtain (made by yours truly). Floral pattern with pinks,
yellows, blues, and greens on an almost-white background. Toned down
the yellow tiles on the walls, and allowed me to introduce non-yellow
colors and look put-together; cheerful yellow instead of overpowering.
Half bath and master bedroom: pull down shades topped with valances
and swags that coordinated with the wallpaper in the bathroom. White
background with a light blue lattice pattern and small flowers in
the lattice.
Office bedroom: tab-top curtains that were tan with blue and burgundy
stripes. Oh, these topped the pull-down shades, of course.
Baby's room: light blocking pull-down shades underneath "log cabin
quilted" valances from JC Penny.
Jeanne P, back from vacation (more on that later - I'm fighting a
cold at the moment)
Susan Behr MacDuffee
On 9 Oct 2001, JeanneP wrote:
> Jeanne P, back from vacation (more on that later - I'm fighting a
> cold at the moment)
Glad you made it home safely Jeanne. I hope that you, DH and DS enjoyed
your visit. We enjoyed meeting you guys.
--Susan
Jennifer Angliss
>> What sort of window treatments do *you* have in your home?
I know, I know, I'm late. Bah.
A few of the windows in our soon-to-be-finished house are considered
works in progress. We will have *something* covering every window upon
moving in, which is important from an energy standpoint as it's
getting *cold* here. I'll take some pictures once we're moved in and
the window coverings are up, of course.
Living room: cheap faux wood blinds (white) with sheer panels
decorating over them (green)
Kitchen/dining area: The sliding glass door will have a tab top drape
(blue and green checked fabric, sewn by me). The window over the
kitchen sink will have a tab top valance in the same fabric with
miniblinds on the window itself.
Master bedroom: cream colored sheer under black dupioni silk loop top
drapes. A scarf of the same dupioni will be draped over the rod. I
hope it looks good!
Secondary bedrooms: RediShades!
Jennifer A. from Colorado
Jennifer Angliss
<ld...@me1.egr.duke.edu> wrote:
>
>On Thu, 4 Oct 2001 san...@socrates.Berkeley.EDU wrote:
>
>> Our next projects: lighting and window treatments.
>
>Mmm, we've just done some lighting "work" in our place, and I really like
>the results. There were some nice mission-style lamps on sale at JCPenney,
>and I had a GC, so I bought the floor and table lamps. Those replaced the
>500-watt halogen (college relic) in the corner. DH thought the place was
>then underlit, but I was able to teach him that several strategically
>placed smaller lights was far nicer than one, big, overpowering light.
Heh. I'm working on the lighting lesson with Brian. It seems to be
working okay. Not as good as I'd hoped, but I think I'll be able to
ditch the last of our halogen lamps soon!
Jennifer A. from Colorado