Never Too Late to Drape: Tips for Making the Most of Your Windows

As a former interior designer, I’ve learned the little details that make a room work, or flop. Paramount is creating mood through good lighting. This artificial lighting must work in tangent with whatever natural light is in the room. The natural light is then framed by an integral part of any space; the draperies. First, they control the amount of light in the room. If they are heavy and dark, they block the light, while if they are light and thin, the body of the drapery serves as a lampshade would; filtering the light through its color and pattern.  Secondly, the right draperies makes a room feel “rounded” and the fabric itself softens the hard walls and slick, reflective windows. Use solid colors if your furniture is patterned and patterns if your main furniture is solid. I prefer a sheer curtain or drapery in a lush, saturated color. Then, the sunlight does the rest of the work; illuminating the panel and bringing glorious color into the room. Hung from near the ceiling down the skimming the floor, a good, long drapery actually elongates the appearance of the window itself.  You’ll want to hang them also at least 6” above the frame itself, but you can go higher if you have higher ceilings.

Also when hanging a drapery, you want to buy rods that extend at least 6” on each side of your window. I’m always amazed at how many people do this wrong, and measure the window, and buy a rod only slightly longer. You want the entire scrunched-up panel to sit where it will not obscure any part of the window or frame when slid open. (If you use a thinner or sheer panel, they don’t need much space. A heavy, lined drapery will need up to 12” or more, depending on the size of the panel.)  This will keep the full width of your window visible, and actually give the overall impression of wider windows (just as having them run to the floor makes them seem taller). If you don’t have 6” on each side because you have two windows very close together, you may want to consider running one big rod across both. If needed, you can include a third panel to sit between them. This makes your wall look like all window and fabric; a really gorgeous set-up!

You can tip the rods in a finial of some sort; it can be fancy if you like, or you can just leave the rod with the caps that come with it. At many stores, the rods and finials are sold as a set, while some places let you mix and match.

I wanted to highlight a store on our site, Moshell’s, which offers curtains/draperies at a very affordable price. It can be hard to not spend a fortune on draperies, and hard to find good colors. There are few go-to spots for draperies that are affordable, and when you do find them, they always seem to be in funky patterns. Moshells.com has a variety of solid draperies, especially sheers, in many great colors. I particularly have my eye on the lemon yellow (how I wish it matched my apartment!), the chocolate, and the aqua. And check this lovely nugget out: go to 58Coupons.com and grab an exclusive coupon for them before you shop!