100 Windows - #17

Have you got the Winter blues?  Me too.  This study in blue should help.

Pretty cute for a model home.  Look at all the opportunities for design and color decisions here. First the hardware, or in this case knobs or drapery finials.  Next the cuff fabric at the top. Then the fabric for the body of the valance. And last, the trim. Thousands and thousands of options to make this work in your own home.

100 Windows - #16

Nothing fancy. Simple style. But pretty fabric and pretty trim.

And especially striking set in a corner.
What a lovely place to wash one's dishes!

100 Windows - #15

This one is pure fun!
And it shows how you can take a traditional, formal style and give it a whimsical twist.

Triple windows were treated with matching over the pole swags, only there was no pole! I designed this to use a rod cover over a 2 1/2" flat rod, since the client wanted to include the black ball fringe on the bottom side of the rod.

Black ball fringe also trimmed the bottom edge of the swag.
I used the same black check from the rod cover as the reverse side of the cascades at the ends.

This is the straight on view from the kitchen:

The hearts, the birdhouses and the touches of pink added to the happy, youthful vibe of this sunroom!

 

100 Windows - #14

Sheer loveliness!

Seen in a model home in the tiniest powder room ever (check out the sloping ceiling - this bath was built beneath the stairs that led to the second floor). I also believe this treatment could be made from some ready-made pieces - or one long sheer panel scooped up in the middle -  but love the casualness of the whole thing. You could change the hardware or the fabric if you wanted to fancy it up, but I do think you wouldn't want anything heavy or lined.
Here's a closer look:

100 Windows - #13

Flat shaped valance pieces, overlapped and attached at the top to a board.  This one wouldn't take much fabric!

100 Windows - #12

Here's a pretty little confection.  It is a ready made curtain panel, meaning you can buy it as is.

This is from a company called Emdee.  While I don't usually suggest you purchase your window coverings ready made, because so many are cheaply made and unlined, in this case you wouldn't want it lined.  I love the sheer extravagance of this curtain, and the way it was installed so the hemline just drips along the floor.

100 Windows - #11

A pretty little valance, in a model home that uses the striped fabric to great effect.

Same model home, same valance, but this time in floral fabric with ties on the corners.

100 Windows - #10

Following the trend of the last post, here is another wall of windows where I treated the insides of the windows instead of the outsides.  It's not exactly 2-story but there are those arched windows again!

 

Now you see what I mean when I said that the fluffy top of the treatment in #9 was more forgiving.  It's very hard to get the board width correct and to match up perfectly with your finished length,.  In this case the drapery panel is separate from the valance, and in the end the client wanted the valance raised a little higher than I had designed it. I like when the board touches the sides of each arch but it really works fine.

 

This treatment was fabricated by Susan at SK Fabric Interiors. This was a really difficult window to photograph, otherwise you could see the fabulous job Susan did matching stripes and applying trim to that valance!



100 Windows - #9

Two story windows can be difficult to decorate.  Two story arched windows even more so.

For a trio of such windows it was decided that we would not treat the outside windows, in typical fashion, but rather just in between windows.  The fluffy top of the drapery was more forgiving when deciding the height of the curtain rod.

On an adjacent wall were matching windows but with the additional challenge of the large entertainment center.  We chose to run the draperies behind it and it had the effect of balancing the large piece of furniture.

The overall look was full, luxurious and slightly feminine.

100 Windows - #8

I took this picture inside a farmhouse at an olive farm in France a couple of years ago.  I loved the drapery hardware.  You can get hardware like this in the U.S.  I know Helser Brothers makes something similar. So much rustic elegance!
If the owners had known I'd be photographing, they probably would have cleaned off the cobwebs!

100 Windows - #7

Another model home.

This design was so interesting to me because it is the ultimate in do-it-yourself.
How I think it was achieved:  There were drapery hold-back rings hung at the top corners of the windows, the kind used for scarf swags.  In the ceiling, centered over the tub is another ring. I think the designer bought ready-made drapery panels and looped and swagged them through the rings. Some panels went side to side and some went corner to center. The effect was quite dramatic! And yet, I think it was probably a very cost effective treatment.

 

Here is another view.  Ignore the creepy mannequin who's standing in the shower!!

100 Windows - #6

Details, details, details:

At the top, besides the gorgeous hardware from Paris, TX Hardware, a contrast corded edge, and a soft 2-prong pleat.

 

And at the bottom, a contrast hem, with a flat welt inserted between the face fabric and the contrast piece. The flat welt is like piping with no cord inside and is the same color and material used in the contrast corded edge at the top.

100 Windows - #5

When is a sheer not so sheer?  When you line it!

This window in a Washington DC condo faced a large, public, interior courtyard.  The owner fell in love with the windowpane sheer.  She liked the airy look at it but wanted to maintain constant privacy. We used a plain sheer for the privacy part and lined the other sheer for the over drapery.

Mounting the drapery hardware into the ceiling maintained the elegant simplicity of the design, and full view when both draperies are pulled open.

100 Windows - #4

I've always loved this valance.  And I've only done it once.

This is another asymmetric design that works well in pairs.  I think the way the checks play out in the design is interesting.
The home was traditionally decorated when I got there.  The husband was French so this checked fabric worked well with some Provencal prints we used in an adjoining room.

Voila!

100 Windows - #3

Photo taken in a model home, so forgive the amateur installation and cheap hardware.  Still the idea for the drapery is interesting.  Goblet pleats with a fold down tab finished with a tassel.  Imagine the design opportunities!

100 Windows - #2

This idea is just an extension of the previous one.  Sometimes you can take the bits and pieces of one treatment and apply them to a totally different window.

Yesterday's window(s) were 2 standard windows, side by side, on one wall of a living room.  This is the side wall of the same room, where the window is a 3 sided bay window.  I used the same open swag, and the same double cascade, but on the ends used a traditional cascade, sometimes called a jabot. The overlap of the swags and the double cascade hide where I mitred the wood rod to fit the angles of the bay.
Here's another view:

To complete the look in the adjoining dining room, we used the open swags again, but this time used drapery panels on the outsides of the window.  This was a triple window, so we needed the length of those panels for balance.

 

Definitely not a great shot but you get the idea. In this treatment the overlapping swags created a nice rhythm at the top.

 

 

100 Windows - #1

I just realized how many pictures I have of different window treatments, which is to be expected since I an interior designer specializing in window treatments.  Twenty five years in the business means I have covered a LOT of windows and keep hundreds of ideas on file. So I thought I'd share a few.

This is one of my favorite styles, so much so that I used it in my previous master bedroom, only I used gold colored silk and trimmed the swag in crystal beads (and hung an antique chandelier crystal from the double cascade!)
Here, I used a pewter colored silk and lined the double cascade in an off-white silk. The finials were a blown glass encased in a metal birdcage style. (sad note: this finial was discontinued a while ago).
This treatment is actually constructed of three pieces: the rod pocket panel, the open swag, and the double cascade. The second two parts can be stapled or velcroed to the wood rod.



The beauty of this treatment is that it can be used in pairs to create symmetry. Note how it draws your eye up and not only frames the view of the furniture below, but also points toward the artwork between the windows.