Belvedere Velvets by Harlequin
What do you think of your windows?
How concerned are you regarding their look?
Is keeping your privacy important to you?
Do you need to control natural light in some of your rooms?
The answer you give to the first question will determine the level of sophistication, or lack of it, that you will put in choosing the window treatments that allow you to satisfy your requirements expressed in the last three questions.
In the market there are many options for your windows: curtains, venetian blinds, roller blinds, vertical blinds, shutters, panels, etc. And within them you have countless variations and designs.
In future posts we will be discussing the benefits of them, however today I would like to focus on curtains, sharing some very general points about why they need to be considered when thinking of how to dress your windows.
Left: Collection Egeo. Right: Collection Azahara. Both by Lizzo
Curtains, when chosen tastefully, are one of the most wonderful aids for enhancing the beauty of any room.
The reasons why they are still at the top of the list that makes a room look and feel great are:
_Fabrics add that individually that no other material can match.
_Curtains have a bigger impact on our sensory experience in comparison with most other window treatments.
_They can be sumptuous, luxurious, elegant, discreet, serene and practical.
_They are focal points.
_They ground us, they have the gravitas that makes a room and us feel more at ease, more comfortable, more at home.
For these reasons I think it is very important to incorporate curtains in some of your spaces.
Mark Alexander fabrics by Romo
Curtains are not always the ideal solution, for example:
_When a flexible control of light is required
_Short windows or when radiators are present below windows. For me a curtain must be full height (floor to ceiling) if that is not possible, find another option.
_If you need to block the light out 100 %
_The proportions of the window are not right.
Once you decide to have a curtain, choosing the fabric and the kind of curtain are the next steps.
For the fabric, it will depend on the feel and look you want for the room, the colour scheme and the materials you are choosing for the furniture. You can coordinate colours or choose ones that will act as a contrast, offering in this case an interesting balance to the room.
For modern and contemporary interiors I have two suggestions: pleated (not too many pleats) or eyelet curtains.
You are going to reinforce the feel/look of the curtain depending on the track you use: poles, concealed track, electric tracks, etc.
Incorporating pelmets either those that are part of the interior architecture or those made using fabrics will add formality providing a more elegant feel to the room.
The expressiveness that a fabric can achieve is there for you to incorporate in your scheme.
Curtains can be statements by themselves and definitely a statement of your taste and sensibility.
Marlow Fabric by Romo
