Dear Joe,
My apartment has floor to ceiling windows in the living room with a great view of the lake and Lake Shore Drive. Privacy is not an issue, but I would like to put in some sort of window treatment. Since I don‚t want to block the view, I was thinking of using sheers, maybe in a color to go with the rest of the room ( the colors are light blue and gray ) What do you think of this idea? Do sheers come in colors other than white?
LSDguy
Dear LSD,
Sounds like a great idea to me!
Sheers will soften the window and help block out some of the damaging sun rays. You make a good point that the draperies would block at least part of the view when they are open.
You said that privacy is not an issue. Remember, however, that sheers will give some privacy during the day, but provide little to no privacy at night. This is because you always see through the fabric to the side where the light source is located.
I am not of fan of sheers in colors. They are available in limited selection at stores. I generally use sheer fabric that is the color of the woodwork. This is usually some shade of white. Sheers in colors often come across as 'old lady' or even tacky.
In rare examples, however, a color can be interesting. Your case could be one of these. You didn‚t give me a wall color, but with the blue/gray scheme, how about a coordinating gray or even black? I have used black sheer fabric in a contemporary interior with great success. It becomes very dramatic at night time, and it would be especially striking with your view of the city lights!
Dear Joe,
I've got odd windows in my condo that are high off the floor and only about 18 inches high. There are several of them together in an eight-foot opening in my living room and bedroom. Draperies seem like a bad idea. What should I do?
Anne
Dear Anne,
You are correct! Drapery of any length on that type of window just looks bad.
The best way to handle this is to keep the window treatments as inconspicuous as possible. Their peculiar size and placement is usually not an architectural detail to be featured. Any treatment should be flat and ideally inside the window box.
One inexpensive way to cover the windows would be miniblinds. They would probably have to be custom made, but there is a tremendous range of colors available. To make the windows fade into the walls, order them in the wall color. If you have contemporary furniture and want to feature the windows, use a specialty finish such as brushed chrome.
There are also a number of pleated shades on the market. I don't care for these, but they are an option for privacy and light control.
Another good treatment is wood blinds. These are also a custom product and come in many different wood finishes and colors. Wood blinds are more expensive, but they area very nice way to cover window in both traditional and contemporary interiors.
If you want to have fabric on the window, Roman shades would be the best option. These are custom made also, and can be done in just about any fabric that works with your interiors. Roman shades add a softness to the windows for any style home.
Roman and roll-up shades in grass cloth and other natural materials are very popular now also. Again, this is a custom-order product. They come in many materials and price ranges, and add an interesting texture to a room.
By the way, window of this type often open with a crank located at the bottom of the frame. Be sure that the shade will clear this handle. I have found that these handles can often be replaced with a small knob that doesn‚t [ protrude as far. Check at a hardware store.
E-mail your questions to jos.riceinterios@att.net . In the subject box, fill in 'WCT Design.'
Joseph Rice offers full decorating services. With 24 years of experience, he specializes in 'hard-to-treat' windows. See www.josephriceinteriors.com, e-mail jos.riceinteriors@att.net or call Joseph Rice Interiors, Inc., at 773-271-2361.
