How To Renovate

EP76 How To Choose The Right Window Dressings

• Tash South • Season 1 • Episode 76

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In this episode, I cover one of the sometimes overlooked elements of your interior: window dressings. 

Most people leave curtains and blinds until the very end of a renovation, then panic-choose something “good enough” and wonder why the room still doesn’t feel quite right. 

In this episode I walk you through how to think about your windows like a designer: starting with the view outside, privacy, the light you want to invite in (or block out), and the mood you’re trying to create. There really is more than you might think to choosing the right window dressings. 

I’ll go through the curtains vs blinds vs shutters debate, to what on earth to do with radiators under windows, to why short curtains really get my goat. 

Plus lots more - I didn’t realise just how much I had to say about window dressings! If you’ve ever felt stuck on how to dress your windows, this one’s for you. 

So if you have a window that needs some power dressing, I’ll see you inside.

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Hi I'm your host, Tash South I'm an Interior Designer and Renovation Consultant, and I'm here to help you design, renovate and style your home better. Let's create your dream home together.


Each episode of How To Renovate is short, but brimming with practical advice to help you manage your renovation project with confidence and success.

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Tash South:

Hello everybody, welcome back to the podcast. Tash here, and today we're talking about window dressings. Funnily enough, I get asked about window dressings so many times when it comes to the interior design elements part of a home or renovation. I think lots of people really struggle with it because it it actually is quite important. There's so many things that it kind of shapes and forms and effects. And so I think when it comes to choosing a window dressing that's right for a space, people are sometimes a bit baffled because of the options out there, of what they want to achieve, what's the right thing to do, perhaps there's a radiator in the way. And so I thought I'd do this episode about window dressings and hopefully help you be able to choose the right ones for your rooms. So let's get into the episode. So window dressings often get left to last. I find that sometimes people just think, oh, when I get to it, I'll choose something to put on my windows when it comes right to the end of the renovation or the project. But actually, what you choose to put on your windows really affects quite a lot of elements of your room. It affects the privacy, it affects how the light enters the space and how you're going to control that light. It affects the comfort level if it feels cozy, depending on the type of material or the length of curtains you want to put in. It also affects the warmth. If you're putting thicker curtains, you can get a warmer room, so it can affect the temperature, it can also affect the acoustics. Um, if you have softer window coverings that can absorb some of the sound in the room, that can add to much better acoustics in your home. And then, of course, just the overall mood and the overall look as well, the aesthetics of the room and whether it looks good or not. And actually choosing the right window dressing is a really great way to bring personality into your space as well. You know, there's an opportunity there to add pattern, colour, texture, shape, um, decorative elements like edging and tassels. So there's actually a lot to discuss here. There are quite a lot of decisions to make when it comes to your window dressing. It's about, you know, the style of your property, whether it's modern, whether it's a period property. It's about both style and function as well, because of all the elements I just listed. It's not just about what you want it to look like, but it's also got to function well for what you want and what you need in your home. So let's get into a bit more. Let's talk through some specifics of what you can choose, and hopefully, this episode is going to help you make the right decisions for your home. Okay, number one, let's talk about why choosing the right window dressings matter. So, actually, one of the first things I do when I go to see a client's home to take on an interior design project or a renovation project is I actually walk into the room and I look outside. So I look through the window to the view outside, and I love calling this the frame. So it's about what the room looks onto, how that can inspire what happens inside that room, but also the wider aspect of the sense of place, which quite often can determine the direction of design I'll go in for that particular home. So where the house is set, is it by the sea? Does it overlook fields? Is it in the heart of the city? All of those things you can see how that can inspire the interior of the home. And so, because that that view, that frame, can be such an important element within the room itself, I really want to sometimes do it justice and think really carefully about how I'm going to frame it with the window dressings. So the view itself can be a gorgeous element of a room, but then also you layer that with some window dressings that work well with not only the view but also what is happening inside the room. You can see how choosing the right window dressings can make a really big impact in your space. So, like I covered briefly in the previous point, the window dressings you choose form so many different purposes. Number one, it obviously controls the light and the glare coming into the room, so you can choose how you want to control that, whether it's from the top to the bottom with a rollerblind or Roman blind, whether it's from the sides with drapes or curtains, whether it's with horizontal or vertical panels, as in shutters. So there's so many different ways you can control how that light enters the room. So you need to decide how you want to control the light that's actually entering the room, depending, of course, on the orientation of the room as well, and how much light is entering it, how much light you want to enter, how much light you want to block. So those are also considerations you need to take. Because of course, you want to control the light, you want as much light as possible potentially to come into the room, but then also you have your privacy issues. So you need to make sure that those two work really well together with the window dressings or the combination of window dressings that you go to choose. Okay, moving on to number two. Let's look at curtains versus blinds versus shutters. So obviously, depending on the functionality of your space, you would be choosing one of these or perhaps a combination of these to suit your various rooms. So if you're looking at a living room, for example, and you have the opportunity to have some gorgeous curtains, you could go for long drapery, long curtains. But for example, in a bathroom, you want to choose something a bit more practical. Perhaps you go for a Roman blind or a roller blind or some shutters because of the moisture, because of the various uses, and also you need to look at privacy. So this totally depends on the situation of your home. You need to think about where people can see in and where they can't, and where you can be a bit more adventurous with your window dressings, and perhaps just go for curtains or shears where privacy is not an issue, and perhaps you go for some layering or something thicker or blinds where you do have an issue with privacy. So let's look at curtains first. Now I love curtains, they just provide this opportunity to add more texture and warmth and colour and pattern into your interior. And I have to say, I have this bugbear with short curtains that I cannot let go of. I just feel like short curtains that go just to the windowsill are just completely wrong. I mean, they just feel like when someone's walking around and their trousers are just way too short, and for some reason it really, really bugs me when curtains do not go all the way to the floor. Now I do realize that there is a place for shorter curtains. Perhaps it's you know for the very kind of old style cottages where you've got low ceilings and small windows, and the shorter curtains make sense. But other than that, I really prefer when curtains go as close to the ceiling and touching the floor wherever possible. I think it just elongates the room height, it just makes it seem more intentional, it makes it seem like it's more expensive because it's full length, and so I just feel like that feeling is a lot better than just having a short curtain. And now I find here in the UK the problem with this is and why I get asked about short curtains quite a lot, is because of radiators. So here in the UK we have the heating systems, which are the radiators which are often fixed to the wall, and a lot of times they are actually fixed directly underneath windows. Um, I don't know exactly why, but I think there's a reason for that. So as the cold air comes in, perhaps the radiator heats the cold air. I'm not a hundred percent sure on that, but radiators do seem to be underneath windows a lot in properties here in the UK, which then makes people question the window dressings because obviously, if you put a long curtain in front of a radiator, it's going to block the heat coming into the room, which is its sole purpose. So I would say if you're having the opportunity to renovate from scratch and move radiators, do keep this in mind because if you can place your radiator elsewhere, and if you are having double glazing put in and you're not going to have drafty windows and so on, there really isn't a reason why you can't have that radiator elsewhere in the room, that heating elsewhere in the room, and then have the opportunity to choose the window dressings that you do want to have, or just have some more options, really, because having the radiator underneath the window, lots of people just think, well, the only thing I can do then is to put short curtains so it ends just above the radiator so that the heat coming into the room is not affected. But actually, what I love to do in this situation is instead of going for a short curtain, is to go for a combination of window dressings. So, in that situation, I would always still encourage the person to go for the full-length curtain just to add some character and some warmth and the opportunity to bring in some texture into the rooms and some colour, some pattern, whatever you want. But also then combine that with a secondary window dressing, which might be a roller blind, or it might be a very simple Roman blind, so that you can have the best of both worlds, really. You can have the privacy with the blind, but you can also have that feeling of having the curtain, even if you're not closing the curtain in those winter months. Perhaps you're just having it kind of drape off to the sides of the windows, and the blind is the thing that actually gives you the privacy. But the curtain is almost more decorative, more bringing those elements into your interior. So, in that situation with a radiator under the window, that is that is my go-to is to use a combination of what works with your light control, but also then not just having a window with either a short curtain or just a blind, which can sometimes feel a bit minimal or cold, depending obviously on which room it is and your style and a number of different other factors. So that is generally my solution when it comes to radiators under the window with curtains, but curtains are also such an amazing way to bring some personality into your space. And I find that people actually really love just having curtains. There's something kind of cozy, something really lovely about as the evening draws in to go around the home, drawing the curtains, or perhaps dimming the lights, getting everything ready for that changeover from daytime into evening. So that's another reason I really love curtains. And also, if you're having that full-length effect curtain, it can really anchor a space because a well-dressed window has the sense of drama, the sense of height, it can also balance out a room, and it really is one of those things that's a really amazing finishing touch to a room. Sometimes just you think this room needs something still, and quite often it's the window dressing, just getting the window dressings right, just to finish off a space. So curtains are great for that, good for adding drama, softness, height, colour, pattern, movement, even. So the flowing of a curtain in the breeze or a sheer curtain in the breeze, there's something really lovely about that. It brings back kind of holiday vibes almost, doesn't it? So curtains are really great, and then can obviously work really well in your living rooms, in your bedrooms, even in dining areas or dining rooms. So it's always great to have curtains there. And then another thing curtains are absolutely great for is the acoustics. If you're having trouble with acoustics in the room and sound bouncing around and you don't have good curtains in there, it's a great way to actually balance out the acoustics in the room. And if you are having trouble, I would suggest going for a decent thickness of curtain because obviously the thicker, the better, the more sound it's going to absorb, and just make the room feel better and more comfortable to be in if the sound isn't echoey. So go for a thicker curtain, perhaps even consider putting in a lining. So you can get these linings which are very slightly padded, and you can put it between the two layers of your curtains, and that forms a really great acoustic barrier, and not only for acoustics, but this is also what they use for thermal, so for thermal properties. If the room's a bit cold and perhaps you're having more kind of drafty windows, then this solution is great for the colder months, also, because not only is it going to help with sound, but it's going to keep the heat inside the room and generally just keep the room warmer as well. So there are just so many good benefits to having curtains. So when it comes to hanging curtains, I have a few quick tips for you here. So when you're hanging your floor length curtains, take the rail up as close to the ceiling as you can get it because the longer the curtain seems, the more kind of elegant and expensive it looks. So even if there's quite a distance between your ceiling and the top of your window, just ignore that. Just hang your rail as close to the ceiling as possible. The rail doesn't always have to be directly above your window. You take it higher so you get that full length and then take it all the way to the floor. And of course, there's different options when it gets to floor length as well. You can have it kind of just kind of scrape in the floor, really elegant, and maybe you can put some weights in there. That is something that you can use even with cheaper curtains. Get some weighting tape or some weights to hang in. It kind of pulls the curtain down, it accentuates the wave, the kind of drapery of the curtain, and it makes it look so much more expensive than it might be. So adding weights to the bottom is a really great tip for just adding that more kind of luxurious look to your curtains. And then when it comes to light, you of course, when you have your curtains open, you want to have them opening to the sides of the window as much as possible so you get as much light in during the daytime. So think about that in terms of if you have a window and you have some wall space next to each of the window, that's obviously balanced really nicely. You can extend your rail again beyond the width of your window so there's space for the curtains to gather on either side of the window, having your entire window exposed so you get as much light as possible. But if your window's up in a corner perhaps, or you don't have the opportunity of having wall space on either side of your window, what I usually suggest is then think about your curtain fabric because if it's too thick and it's super lined, you won't be able to push it apart as much. It's going to take up more volume on either side of your window. So that way you can choose perhaps a thinner fabric, something that's not as padded, and you can, when it's open, push those open as much as possible so that you can have as much of your window exposed and still get that light coming in. And also, what I love when it comes to curtains, and this is what and this goes back to the point of privacy, is layering the curtains. I love all the options. I love having a shear that just acts as your main curtain where perhaps you've got some more privacy and you don't need a double layer, but I also love the combination of if you need the privacy and you want to have a curtain that's got character and personality, pattern colour, texture, you can use both. So your the shear will give you the privacy, and then of course you have your curtains either side that open and close as you need them, but then also adds that extra element of design and personality to your space. And also, you can get cafe style curtains. And this is where I might have a little bit of an exception to my short curtain rule, is because cafe style curtains that actually start halfway down the window and finish on the windowsill, those can actually be really pretty hung with a really lovely rail. Perhaps it's a brass rail with those pretty little clips that hold the curtain in place, and those can be really pretty for certain areas of the house, perhaps in your kitchen, perhaps in your dining area. Those are a lovely way of just if you need a little bit of privacy, but you don't want to block out all the light, then those cafe style curtains are great for that. So for light, those are great because if you want the most light coming into your room, you don't really want to block the top of your window. So that's why these cafe style curtains are great because it leaves the top of the window completely open, all the light can come in, and then it's just that little shear, that little layer of privacy just halfway down the window and to the bottom of the windowsill. Now let's look at blinds. So there are so many blind variations out there. And you know, blinds can also be great, obviously, depending on the type of blind you choose, if it's a Roman blind or if it's a roller blind that you can have bespoke made, you still have the opportunity of adding colour and texture and pattern into that blind, into that room as well. So keep those in mind for if you want to add some personality into your space. You don't always have to go for the standard colours or plain colours and options. You can go a bit bespoke when it comes to blinds, also, same as you can for curtains. So, of course, there's different kinds of blinds. We have Roman blinds, which are soft and elegant, and you can have some drapery to them and some drama and some pattern. And then you have the roller blinds, which are clean, simple, minimal, and you can have them just roll up and take up a tiny bit of space at the top of the window, so you're not having much light loss. And then you also have Venetian blinds, which those are the ones where you pull the string and they kind of gather up to the top of the window. So you've always got the opportunity when it comes to these types of blinds to still add the colour and the pattern into your room. Just a little bit of extra effort, a bit of extra expense, perhaps, but you know, you still have that option. And the blinds again, depending on your style of home, your sense of style, what you're going for, can work in most rooms in the house, and it's just choosing the right one for the right purpose. So, in a bathroom where moisture is a problem, you might want to go for something that's not fabric, you want something that's a bit more wipable or waterproof. If you're choosing to have a window covering in that room, and then of course, in the other rooms, bedrooms and living rooms, you can go a bit more crazy and you can choose whatever you like. And like I mentioned before, if you want something that's not so clean and minimal, then pair them up with your curtains. I always think that's such a great combination. It layers and it just gives it that sense of it being really considered because if your window is dressed really well, then it really just adds to the design in the rest of the room. And then, of course, we have shutters. So there are various types of shutters as well. Obviously, you have the horizontal ones with the slats that you can move and they can adjust the light. They can completely open to let all the light in, or they can shut and you can control the light with how you turn each shutter. So that's a great way as well for privacy and for light control. And then, of course, you have the traditional shutters which are just gorgeous. I haven't really been fortunate enough to live in a property where I've had those amazing floor-to-ceiling wooden period shutters, but one day maybe. But when I stayed in Barcelona for the summer, our apartment had those shutters and they are just stunning. So I think if you have a period home and perhaps you had shutters before but they were removed, I always think it's such an amazing idea to reinstall them. So if your budget allows you, could have some remade, or perhaps you can source some secondhand, or from an architectural yard, antiques yard. Um, obviously, it might be very difficult to find the exact size of your windows, but even just decoratively sitting on either side of your windows, I think they're just such an incredible thing to have in a period property. And of course, they may not be as functional as the more modern options like curtains and blinds, but you can combine the two so you you can have your shutters and you can have floor-to-ceiling curtains or shears that work really well with the shutters, also. So there are various options when it comes to shutters. Do you find though that the wooden shutters, the ones with the horizontal slats, if you're wanting a lot of light in to your space, I generally tend to move away from those and go for curtains instead or even a blind because even when the shutters are open, they do actually block out quite a lot of the light. So unless you're completely opening the shutters as you would doors to get the full light into the room, then the the light is quite compromised or it can be. So I would always say that if you are wanting lots of light into your space, then you need to really have a look at that and experiment and see how much light a traditional shutter is going to block out, and whether the adjustment of the shutters on their own is going to let enough light in for you. Because depending on the privacy aspect of your room, you might not want to have them completely opened up like doors. You might just still want the horizontal privacy, but then I some I sometimes feel like that just doesn't let enough light in for some people. So you can either choose something else completely different, or you can perhaps go for an option where the shutters are split in half horizontally, where you can completely open up the top two sections as doors and then adjust the slats on the bottom two sections. So there's always a way to do it. You just need to be aware of kind of the different window dressings and what you want, how much light you want to come in, what your style is, all of these things are going to influence your choices when it comes to window dressing. And then lastly, let's quickly talk about number four the style details that make a difference. So I've already talked a lot about the curtain length and how to hang that, so I won't go over that again, but that really does make a difference here. That makes a really big style difference is getting that length right from floor to ceiling. That makes a huge difference as in how it appears and that feeling of luxury or expensiveness that it gives. But another thing to consider here for style is obviously your fabric choice. So your fabric choice can really fit in with the look you're going for or the style you're going for, as well as obviously the practicalities which we've already talked a lot about. But so your fabric choices for your curtains or even your blinds could be something like a linen, which is more for a relaxed light style, it could be a velvet, which is more dramatic, it's more insulating, it's more cozy, it gives that kind of warm feeling. And then, of course, you've got cotton, which is crisp and structured, so you can see how the different fabrics can add into the look you're going for, the style you're going for in your home as well. If you so if you choose those well to fit in with what your particular style is or the style of the room is, and then another thing that's really important is the hardware. So if you're choosing curtains, for example, one of my favourite things to do is choose curtain poles. There's so many gorgeous ones out there. You can go for the different kinds of finials at the end. You have so many different um rings now that you hang your curtain on with so many gorgeous little details on those rings or on the poles themselves. You've got some gorgeous hooks you can put on either side of the window to hook your curtain back if you wish to do that. There are so many things when it comes to the hardware, such gorgeous things out there at the moment that you can choose. So think about the combination of the fabric you're choosing, the style, and also then that will lead you onto your hardware choices as well. And then those little details that just finish a window dressing off beautifully. So if you want to choose some trims, some tassels, some edging, oh my goodness, there are so many beautiful things out there to really give your window dressing that finished look. You can add personality in so many ways through borders and edging and tassels. Then, of course, you have the different kinds of wave you have in the curtain as well, whether you go for a traditional wave in the fabric, a pinch pleat. There are so many different ways of sewing the fabric, of just making your curtain choice feel right for your home as well. So if you're going for something a bit more traditional, you might go for a pinch pleat and a pencil pleat with heavy drapery. If you're going for something more modern and light, you might go for a wave which is just really simple, or rings on the rail that hold the curtain in place. So all of these choices and all of these elements you can make to suit what your interior design style is, and also how you just want to finish that room beautifully. And you know, not every curtain or blind needs to be bespoke to look great. There are some amazing ready-made options out there now, or there are some companies that do bespoke but are still really quite reasonably priced if you choose from their selection of colours or patterns and so on. So there are definitely ways you can kind of get that bespoke feel, but not necessarily pay bespoke prices, and then of course, you can buy something that's perhaps a bit inexpensive and you can dress it yourself. So, for example, like I said, perhaps you can get some curtains that are more on the budget side, but you can hang them on a gorgeous rail, you can add some curtain weights onto them yourself so you get that heaviness to it, that feel that it goes to the floor and it drapes and waves beautifully within the fabric. So there are things you can do to kind of upgrade your off-the-shelf options as well. And then really simple things like buying an off-the-shelf curtain, for example, if it's a little bit too long, just having it hemmed and adding some of those weights in will make it look bespoke. But then again, depending on your style, perhaps it's a shear, perhaps it's a linen, which is more relaxed feel. What I really love and what I actually have in my own home is having the curtain pull onto the floor a little bit, so that's where the curtain looks slightly too long, so it kind of just falls onto the floor ever so slightly in a gentle kind of pull, and I just love the relaxed feeling of that, especially when it comes to linens. So I have a white linen in both my daughter's bedroom, and they are too long, but they just kind of drape onto the floor, they just pull onto the floor really nicely, and I think that just is a really nice, relaxed feel for kids' bedrooms, and it but it also feels really kind of breezy and a little bit elegant at the same time, even though they're in kids' bedrooms. It kind of gives me those holiday vibes. I think that's why I really love it in the kids' bedrooms. But everybody, that is it. That is the end of this episode. I hope you found it valuable. There's lots packed into this one. I've gone a bit over actually. This is longer than I planned to have for this episode on window dressings, but here we are. I hope you enjoyed it. I hope it was helpful. And if you know anyone who's struggling to get their curtains right at the moment, maybe send them this episode. Or if you've enjoyed it and it provided some value for you, I would love if you subscribed wherever you're watching, or you sent me a comment, or just like the episode. It will only take a second, and I read every single review, every single comment. And you know what? It actually helps others find the podcast as well, which is just a little thing to do, but it would really help me out so much if you would do that. It just helps me move ever so slightly up in the rankings as I go through and produce these episodes every week for you. Thank you so much, and I can't wait to see you next week. Bye for now. For more information on my five-pillar process for successful renovation, you can go directly to southplacestudio.com forward slash pillars where you'll find an introduction to the process which covers each of the pillars and what they cover. We also have a number of other free renovation resources. Go now to southplacestudio.com forward slash freebies. I have created some amazing freebies for you there. There is one on the process, like we just said. There is one on um planning permission, there is one on kitchen design, there is another one on lighting planning. Go and check those out. There's so much free information there to help you with your innovation.