Sometimes, I feel the only bridge between our internal security of the home and the liveliness and freshness of the outside is our window. Whether you wanna land your eyes on the beautiful environment, wait for your loved one, or enjoy a quick breeze while sipping a good hot chocolate, windows are certainly a bridge to our emotions, mental well-being, and physical sensations of course. Not only this, but it also changes your home style, giving it a statement. But in order to choose a window and do its appropriate decor, one has to keep numerous things in mind, like color, harmony, architectural style, choosing fabrics, and more. But when it comes to our already-built homes, we are limited to one choice- the ornamentation of windows. However, it certainly changes the whole vibe of your space. As the festivities are nearer and winter is on its way, I really wanted to give a good makeover to my windows, which I always neglect. But when I searched the internet about it, no read covers every aspect of window decoration. And so, to progress my home improvement and introduce you to the ultimate guide on the internet, I am drafting this article. Before, I start, let me tell you that by the end of the read, you will know the best window decor ideas, and planning, as well as different curtains and blinds perfect for creating a style, all while taking care of your choices and budget. Let’s get started.
Designing Your Windows.
The first thing that becomes really significant in any type of window decor is the coordination between color, pattern, and texture. Windows need to stand out, but they must blend into your space perfectly at the same time. The first step is to take a wooden or cardboard piece, and then coordinate the colors by exploring and experimenting. In my past decor articles, I have explained this technique a couple of times, so of course you have to refer them. After you know this board technique, let me tell you in steps the planning part.
1. Assess Your Style Needs.
A wrong window dressing will only ruin your home space. For instance, if you have a country home or mid-century modern home, then the minimalist decor will be vulnerable to your space. Hence, first, take note of your room’s function. The room’s functions include light control and privacy. How much daylight do you need? Is the space meant to be private, like your bedroom? Answer these two questions in your planning paper first. Then comes establishing the room style. Is your room traditional, or contemporary, or period, or eclectic, or country? This is the most significant thing for your window decoration. Let me tell you how. For instance, in traditional homes, puddled drapery of curtains goes best, and similarly, a cellular shade keeps your English country room looking fresh. But there is one additional note. If you are really good with design and have enough confidence that your choices never make a blunder, you can also mix styles.
Now, you have to also consider the decorating and architectural styles of your home for a better arrangement of window decor. Every room must have a different window dressing, but they all must be coordinated well through a coordinating color. We will talk about this in later sections. For now, I am just brushing up on the facts.
The next point to understand is that you have to make sure that the window is the center stage in the room’s design. For that, you can take strong patterns, vibrant colors, and higher contrasts to grab instant attention. We will focus on the embellishments and objects placed near windows for this purpose. But if, in case, you want to focus on other things, like say, your last month bought exquisite and expensive sofa or artwork, you can always make the windows as a low-key background by using neutral hues and pastels. As a final line of this step, I am summarizing the major points that you will need to analyze based on your requirements:
- Check for your needs for lights.
- Do you need privacy?
- What is your room style?
- Find your home architecture.
- Do you want your windows to be in focus or treated like a low kind of background?
2. Check For the Right Color.
We are not already choosing a color but exploring our options for now. You can always use warm and cool colors to manipulate the way your window must look. But let me tell you what you will get in both cases. If you opt for warm colors, then with the sunny hues, you will end up making your room close, intimate, and cozy. Hence, you can always choose this for your bedrooms. Conversely, cool tones and neutrals show an extensive approach to opening up a space. So, if you have a small space or you wanna keep your room more extensive, then go for cool colors.
For instance, the colors blue and orange have the same impact as the dark color, which reduces the perceived space. For each window in your particular room, you should decide what look you want to convey and choose warm or cool colors accordingly.
3. Planning Out a Refined Pattern and Texture.
The only way to add patterns to your room is through fabrics. So for the window decor, we will take the same lead. You can do so by adding curtains or drapes, seating options, lampshades, and more. But we are not yet on our way to choose. Please keep in mind that the purpose of this area is to help you assess your needs and determine what you need from your windows. If you are keeping a large-scale pattern, then it will feel that the space is inviting you for a moment. If you want to stimulate the atmosphere to make your larger space seem more cozier, then you can go for large-scale patterns. On the other hand, if you have a small space, always go for a small-scale pattern, as it will make your space seem bigger.
Similar to the pattern, you can enhance texture with the different fabric hanging techniques. It is all about the play of light and shadow to make a 3-dimensional texture. For instance, you can combine layers of fabrics and blinds to do so. Brocades and damasks, moires and chenilles, tweeds and chintzes- all conjure up different looks and sensations. Textiles such as tweed, wool, tapestry, and velvet absorb light and sound. From silk to satin to chintz to taffeta, glossy and smooth fabrics reflect light. If you have a fairly big room with an expansive area, but you want to make it more connected and personal, try using wool panels and tapestry draperies to make the space feel snug. Similarly, if you have a small and dark room, you can go for shiny fabrics like silk curtains.
After you know your room and what you need from your windows, let us pull all these factors together to form the best personalised window decoration.
First things first, before we move on to other sections, please understand the board technique because, without it, you will not be able to color coordinate.
Assessing Budgets and Lifestyle.
Decoration should always be sensibly made while taking care of lifestyle and budget. We do not want it for one day or week but more months and days. So when you plan the budget, ideally, the question must be, how much should you spend? We are certainly not scrolling and shopping.
For instance, curtains for rented apartments or seasonal houses can call for a lesser investment comparatively. But for a year-round home, we can extend our budgets. Also, one can always use professional help, but I feel it is better to do it yourself if we are tight on budget.
Calculating a budget is really crucial since it not only shows how much money you are spending but also how much it will cost to maintain. Also, if you have a rented apartment, it is better to choose options, which are flexible enough to take them with you when you leave. If you’ve just bought a home, then you can take good money for the budget. Similarly, if your home is really old and needs a makeover, you can pull out all your stops for something that can last longer.
One thing is sure. You can always rely on the internet scrapping for the costs and services of materials and things, you will need for a budget window decor. But if you are new to these makeovers, it will be better for you to actually visit a showroom. Maybe you will invest a little more time in this scrapping of offline and online, but try getting an option for the best price. Evaluate everything, including fabric, lining, poles, holdbacks, tiebacks, tassels, trimmings, desks, objects, etc. Now, we have not made a final decision on a particular style we want to achieve, so these are just rough estimates. One benefit of this forward budget analysis is if the costs of a particular style don’t fit in your budget, you can make alternative options. In addition to these, if you are not hiring any professional, keep costs for your time also.
The best way to do so is to make a list – like how much silk or cotton or wool curtains cost, how much different artifacts are costing, or any particular plant pots you wish to be near your windows. This way, you will have the possibility of exploring as many options as you can. Remember, we are just checking for costs as choosing a style and then working accordingly is in the next steps.
In addition to all these, always make sure you are adding extra 10-20 percent hidden costs.
3 Steps To Get Fine Window Decor For Your Space.
1. Determine Your Style.
A window treatment is the most crucial part of choosing a particular window style. Once that has been done, you can then proceed with further decorations and items. In this section, I am giving you options to choose curtains for an entire house or a particular room to give a basic idea of your style. The following three basic questions will help you decide your style.
1.1. What to Choose Between Formal Versus Informal Style?
The first thing is to ask yourself the decorating preferences for your space. For instance, imagine a lavish dining room with a bay window. What can you put over your windows for a more formal look? The best one will be a multi-layered floor-length window dressing, but on the other hand, if you are choosing an informal look, you will have cafe curtains with sill-length. Of course, if you want to be a little more intimate and highly informal, you’ll add warm-colored double-layered curtains with angled double-tied curtains. So the question is, which look do you want? To express this even more precisely, let me narrate to you the difference between informal and formal treatments.
A full formal treatment will always include two to three layers. The first one will be a casement curtain (installed inside the window’s trim area), which will be a sheer, solid, or lace panel straight from the top. The second layer will have over draperies, simply covering the window and the trim. And finally, the optional third layer is the valance, running horizontally across the window to cover the curtain heading. Always remember, if you have a lavish mansion, or mid-century modern home, or an extended space, you can go for formal treatment. But it will be expensive as these include luxurious heavy-weight fabrics like damasks, brocades, silks, tapestries, and velvets. Also, these require professional cleaning every year, so it surely demands maintenance.
The informal treatment may have one or two layers or nothing at all. If your location and privacy do not have any concerns, then a bare window without a dressing also looks good. But the best kind of curtains here is cafe curtains or simple blinds. All types of cloth like cotton, chintz, ticking, linen and muslin go with this treatment and are less serviceable as most of them are washable.
1.2. What Is the Kind of Lining You Need?
Once you have decided on the formal or informal treatment, then you can choose between unlined or lined curtains.
An unlined curtain is the easiest kind of window dressing. You can choose among fabrics like voile, lace, muslin, cotton, or silk. You can also go for textured fabrics like wool.
If you are choosing a lined curtain, then it is a good choice for those who want a softer and deeper fold appearance in their room. You can go for them if you want to increase privacy, reduce outside noise, and block dust. But you have to buy the best quality lining fabric for the purpose. Note that these typically come in white or off-white colors.
It is also possible to have a colored lining with interlining, which is a thin layer of material sandwiched between the curtain fabric and the lining. Besides giving you a professional finish, it has properties of increased insulation and light blocking. If you wish to have a darker environment like in the bedroom, you can try blackout lining.
1.3. Which Is the Best Curtain Heading?
Curtain headings come in a variety of styles, from simple castings to complex folds or balloon folds. Many heading styles are casual, such as the tied or dabbled style, but others are formal, such as the goblet pleat and cartridge pleat. To understand these headings, I am adding the following picture.
1.3.1. Rod-Pocket Heading.
Simple design that can be useful for casual styles. Goes with half-length window curtains especially.
1.3.2. Gathered Headings.
Compatible with all styles of curtains, whether long or short, lined or unlined. Creates a more pronounced effect on the windows, which means can be useful for larger windows.
1.3.3. Pleated Headings.
Useful for elegant arrangements of windows. Goes well with French-style decor.
1.3.4. Tabbed and Tied Headings.
The most popular kind of headings. The favored effect of these types of headings is for cafe curtains.
After you jot down the answers to the above questions, you must have a solid idea of the desired design.
I have added a few products which I found suitable on Amazon. Remember, you can always experiment with looks. For instance, try a valance curtain with a sheer piece of curtain, and you will get something nice. These links are affiliates, but if you are probably not a good curtain stitcher like me, then you can buy from them, favoring you and me at the same time.
| Under $20 | Under $50 | Under $100 | Above $100 |
| Maison d’ Hermine Curtains on Amazon | Magic Drapes Blackout Pleated Curtains on Amazon | White Faux Linen Pinch Pleated Sheer Curtains on Amazon | LIYAXUN Gold Blackout Curtains European Style on Amazon |
| Ombre Crushed Chiffon Sheer Curtains on Amazon | Aersas Black Curtains on Amazon | Maison d’ Hermine Curtains 100% Cotton Curtain on Amazon | |
| H.Versailtex Premier Thermal Insulated Blackout Curtain Tie Up on Amazon | Top Finel Faux Linen Blackout Curtains on Amazon | ||
| Boho Tassel Kitchen Valances for Windows Modern Farmhouse Cotton Linen Valance on Amazon | Off White Curtains Boho Drape on Amazon | ||
| Jinchan Tie Up Valance Watercolor Window Shade Floral Valance on Amazon | WONTEX 100% Thermal Blackout Curtains on Amazon | ||
| RoomTalks Modern Farmhouse Kitchen Curtain Window Valance on Amazon | INK+IVY Imani 100% Cotton Single Panel Curtain on Amazon | ||
| Sweet Home Collection Veritcal Kitchen Curtain Sheer Cascading Ruffle on Amazon | Cream White Linen Full Blackout Curtains on Amazon | ||
| White Sheer Curtains on Amazon | SMILETIME Brown Long Velvet Curtains on Amazon | ||
| Curtainworks Flounced Curtain Panel on Amazon | Boho Curtains Sheer Curtains on Amazon | ||
| SFJ-CA Cotton Crochet Kitchen Curtain on Amazon | |||
| Lush Decor, White Sophia Ruffle Curtain on Amazon | |||
| Lush Decor Lace Ruffle Window Curtain on Amazon | |||
| Piper Classics Serenity Ruffled Tier Curtains on Amazon | |||
| Lush Decor Boho Macrame Curtain on Amazon |
2. Using Tassels and Trimmings for a Better Look.
Once your curtain designs are established, it is time to arrange them so that they can have an individuality as unique as your own. There are many types of decorative embellishments, which you can use to do so. What we see in these tassels and trimmings today is a gift from the Victorian era. You can always use tiebacks, borders, rosettes, and choux for further window decor. Trust me, when your plain or printed curtains own a knotted tieback, it will influence the room. But to choose the perfect tassels and trimmings, you have to go through the following steps.
2.1. Choose a Contrasting Color.
Whether you are thinking of tiebacks, ruffles, rosettes or choux, you have to choose a color, which contrasts well with your curtains.
2.2. Check the Craftsmanship of Your Tassels and Trimmings.
Always remember that handmade tassels look better than machine-made ones. The type of thread used for them is also significant. If they are pure silk, linen, viscose, and cotton, they are probably best for your window decoration. Also, make sure you never buy those trimmings which have glue.
2.3. Less Is More.
This is the most significant step that must not be neglected. Remember that the point of decorative embellishments is not to overdo the vibe but to balance it. So please make sure you are creating a sumptuous effect without using excessive things. Tasseled tiebacks on the panels can look good, and silk cording on the valance can also create a statement. I would advise you to do a little DIY of creating your own tassel and trimmings.
I am leaving this point of selecting tiebacks and tassels to you because it’s all about making them by yourself.
3. Making the Perfect Corner.
When you are done with the most significant part of your window treatments, let us look at options to keep near your windows to treat them like a good corner. So the first question is whether the window corner has any utility. Do you want it to be a reading corner, or working corner, or just a coffee space? After you know the answer, let us now move towards exploring good combos.
- Place your favorite plant pot on a well-handcrafted table to make it look elegant. And do not overdo anything if your window doesn’t have a good view.
- Another idea is to place your vase collection on the window. Also, you can make it complete with a good handcrafted fabric seated chair with a small coffee table.
- If you are not good with any of the arrangements but have enough sunlight over them, then you can simply pot money plants and daisies for a delightful corner. Enjoy a book read or coffee glancing outside.
Final Words.
I hope you found this guide helpful and that it covered every aspect of window decoration in a brief yet explanatory manner. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments, and in case you require reading more about this topic, you can refer to the following books I found valuable for the purpose.
Resource.
The New Smart Approach to Window Decor (New Smart Approach Series) by Lisa Lent and Lynn Elliott.
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