Big impact with window fashions

I often find that people tend to work on designing and dressing their entire room and leave little or no budget for their window coverings! Think of window covering as 'vertical dressing', it not only functions to provide privacy and frame your windows but it also adds decor to your walls.

Today's windows are dressed in minimal, clean lined looks and straight panels. From pinch pleats, box pleats, grommets or hidden pocket, all of these drapery designs lend themselves to modern, traditional and contemporary looks for drapery panels. Swag draperies, fringes and heavy puddling is no longer the chic looks of today's home dressing.

When it comes to valences, box pleats or banner valences are still cleaned lined and contemporary, although if using a valence is a must, my personal favourite is a clean and straight box valence, either on it's own in a basement window or in combination with drapes or roman shades.

Speaking of roman shades, this sewing technique is a highly popular window covering design that works with just about any decor, it is clean-lined and simple. It is certainly an inexpensive solution for guest rooms, kids rooms and bathrooms!

Drapery doesn't have to cost you a fortune, if you have standard ceiling heights (8' or 9' ceilings) look around for sales on drapery hardware and ready-made drapes at your local home stores, like Bouclair, Home Outfitters, Ikea and even fabric stores. Some big box stores like Wallmart and Zellers will also carry great buys! If your ceiling are very tall, you might have to resort to custom sewing, however, if you source your own inexpensive fabrics you can certainly save a big chunk of the cost!

A good TIP to remember is that placing drapery panels as high as possible will make your ceilings and windows feel taller. Most ready-made drapes come in 84' and 96' standard lengths. When installing your drapes, be sure to measure carefully, you want your drapes to lightly touch the floor or be less than 1/2 an inch off the floor. Hanging drapes too high will look like you are wearing trousers with shrunken pant legs!

When it comes to color selection, if your room is still a work in progress, choose neutrals such as creams and beiges, you can even go for sheer curtains that are versatile for any color scheme. However, if your room just needs a little pick-me-up then go for a dramatic tone, choose a chocolate brown colour, and accessorise with chocolate coloured pillow and accents to tie your shades into the room. For a softer look go for a light gray, silver, or powder blue. For a whimsical look go for interesting patterns that add character to any room. Remember to utilize the same trick when accessorizing by tying in matching colors into your space!

Do You Have a drapery dilemma? Share your questions and comments with Dvira and other reader.