Curtains and Window Treatments

According to Wikipedia, window treatments are interior decorating elements placed on, in, around, or over a window. That's according to Wikipedia. But according to me, window treatments are all the things we hang around the windows, to make the room look nicer and keep the eyes of the nosy neighbours out. Of course there are several other functions that make the drapes, curtains and other types of window treatments so necessary to have.

In the hot summer months you can close the drapes, so the sun doesn't shine directly into the room, so you keep it cooler that way. If you use the air-conditioning for cooling, you will save on electricity that way.

Although curtains are a very affordable way of redecorating your home, that does not mean you shouldn't be careful when selecting them. But how to pick the right curtains?

Because curtains are not all that expensive, people usually spend less time selecting them in comparison with some other, more expensive items. We usually buy the ones we remotely like and are happy, knowing we can easily replace them if we get bored with them. But the problem is, we keep our curtains and window treatments for several years and during that time, we live in a home that is not decorated the way we would like it to be.

Although we might not realise, the curtains play a key role in interior decoration. This does not mean they must exactly match the colour if the walls, floor or furniture, but it is important they do not collide with it. Their style should match the style of the rest of the room. Don't be afraid to experiment a bit. The right colour of the curtains can make the room seem larger or simply bring some colour into a dull room.

One of the most common mistakes is, that people tend to buy a single curtain design for the entire house, which is very wrong. Each room has it's own character and it's own purpose, so make sure you choose and buy different curtains and window treatments for each room of your home. Large, floral patterns are suitable for the living room, but not very recommended for children's rooms, where the cartoon curtains will look best. Make sure you select curtains for each room individually. This might be a basic rule, but it never hurts to repeat these rules several times.

Transparent and lace curtains that reach the floor are amongst the most popular items. Unfortunatelly they are as useless as they are beautiful, at least as far as your privacy goes. They are especially useless in the bedrooms and bathrooms, particularly if you have any nosy neighbours, or if the mentioned rooms face a public street and are located in the lower floors.

For instance, you can use heavy curtians if you have a bedroom that is facing east. This way you can block the morning sun that might bother you earlier than you would want it to. On the othere hand, light and transparent curtains and window treatments work best in the rooms, where your privacy is not something you worry about and would like them to receive as much sunlight as possible.

Besides the colour and the patterns, the main curtain buying criteria should be the material. There are countless fabrics available. From natural materials, such as linen, cotton, and silk, to mixed and artificial materials. The quality of your curtains depends mostly on the material you choose. Es%u0161ecially silk curtains are something you must be careful about. Silk is an expensive material and it symbolizes prestige, but the colours will fade quickly and become pale if they will be exposed to direct sunlight. It is best to place the silk curtains into the rooms that are facing west or south.