skip to main content
Sign In
Join as a Pro
History of Houzz
PHOTOS
KITCHEN & DININGKitchenDiningOutdoor KitchenKitchen Islands
LIVINGLiving RoomFamily RoomHome TheatreSunroomFireplaceStudy Room
BATHROOMBathroomLaundryPowder RoomSmall Bathroom
BEDROOMBedroomKids BedroomNurseryMaster BedroomStorage & Wardrobe
KERB APPEALExteriorDrivewayCarportGarageEntry
OUTDOORGardenCourtyardBalconyDeckPatioPoolAll Outdoor
MORE IDEASGranny FlatHome OfficeHome GymStaircaseHome BarWine CellarView All
FIND PROFESSIONALS
  • BUILDING & RENOVATION
  • INTERIOR DESIGN
  • GARDEN & OUTDOOR
  • SPECIALISED PRODUCTS & SERVICES
  • Architects
  • Home Builders
  • Building Designers
  • Design & Construction
  • Carpenters
  • Joinery & Cabinet Makers
  • Electricians
  • Plumbers
  • Building Supplies
  • Cladding & Exterior Contractors
  • Roofing & Gutters
  • Blacksmiths & Welders
  • Home Renovating
  • Timber Floor Installation
  • Ceiling Fan Installation
  • Interior Designers & Decorators
  • Home Stylists & Property Staging
  • Home Storage Designers & Professional Organisers
  • Furniture & Home Decor
  • Artists & Artisans
  • Furniture Restoration & Upholstery
  • Lighting
  • Painting & Wallpaper
  • Carpet & Flooring
  • Shutters, Blinds & Curtains
  • Tile, Stone & Benchtops
  • Interior Styling
  • Colour Consulting
  • Furniture Selection
  • Cabinet Refinishing
  • Motorised Blinds
  • Home Gym Design & Construction
  • Sunroom Design & Construction
  • Wine Cellars
  • Landscape Architects & Designers
  • Landscape Contractors
  • Garden & Landscape Supplies
  • Arborists & Tree Services
  • Pools & Spas
  • Decks, Patios & Structures
  • Fencing & Gates
  • Driveways & Paving
  • Stone, Pavers & Concrete
  • Pool House Design & Construction
  • Pond Construction
  • Deck Building
  • Deck Repair
  • Pergola Construction
  • Custom Fire Pits
  • Kitchen Designers & Renovators
  • Bathroom Designers & Renovators
  • Kitchen & Bath Fixtures
  • Custom Bathroom Vanities
  • Heating & Air Conditioning
  • Fireplaces
  • Staircases & Balustrades
  • Windows
  • Doors
  • Garage Doors
View All ProsView All Services
STORIES
STORIES FROM HOUZZ
Houzz ToursKitchensBathroomsMore RoomsRenovatingBuildingArchitecture
Interior DesignGardensEco LivingLifestyleNews StoriesHow to Use Houzz
HOUZZ RESEARCH
HOUZZ TV
ADVICE
HOUZZ DISCUSSIONS
Design DilemmaBefore & AfterPollsKitchensLiving RoomsBathrooms
GardensRenovatingHome DecoratingExteriorFlooringBuilding a home
Windows
Windows
Window Dressing: 10 Cool New Treatments for Fashionable Windows
Top Ideabooks
Window Dressing: 10 Cool New Treatments for Fashionable WindowsThe Secret to Hanging Curtains Beautifully21 Ways to Frame a View27 Great Peeks to the Outdoors
Appears in
Building Components
Building Components
Building Components
Best of the Week: 32 Spaces Where Tapware Steals the Show
Top Ideabooks
Best of the Week: 32 Spaces Where Tapware Steals the Show30 Doors That Lift Your Home Design30 Interiors That Celebrate the Joy of Custom JoineryAn Architect Reveals: How to Read Floor Plans
Appears in
Latest from Houzz
See also
ExteriorsFlooringWindowsCladdingDoorsRoofs and CeilingsFoundationsWalls

Window Dressings That Preserve Your Privacy... and Natural Light

Say goodbye to those dated net curtains and hello to a host of stylish window coverings that let light – not views – in

Lucy Searle
Lucy SearleMarch 9, 2019
Houzz Contributor. Editor in Chief of RealHomes.com. I am an editor, journalist, web and copywriter. I was Editor of the hugely successful www.channel4.com/4homes, taking it from a small site to a leading brand. I was also founding Editor of Channel 4’s 4Homes magazine, was Associate Editor at Ideal Home and have written for MSN, Huffington Post, Homes & Gardens, Country Homes & Interiors, Beautiful Kitchens, House Beautiful, Good Homes, and many women’s titles. I founded www.tailoredcontent.co.uk with a fellow journalist and together we blog, write web content and run social media accounts for (mostly) interiors companies. As a general rule, I write about everything from buying and selling property, self build, DIY, design and consumer issues to gardening but have tackled travel and family issues, too.
More
Print
Facebook
Twitter
Email
No-one could accuse net curtains of not doing their job: to keep out prying eyes. But the traditional designs can be a let down in the style stakes, gather dust and look pretty dated. The good news is there are masses of great – and affordable – ways to replace them with something much more practical (and better-looking). Try these stylish window dressing ideas.
The Window Film Company UK Ltd
Fall for film…
If your room overlooks a street or a neighbour’s home, whole-window coverage might be your best option.

Window film will typically create a sand-blasted look, and you can choose a pattern to suit your scheme.

Once fixed, it’s wipeable and can be teamed with blinds or curtains to make night-time private, too.
The Window Film Company UK Ltd
…or go for a half measure
Back to window film for a moment (because it’s a super-affordable option that’s easy to clean). Why not limit it to the lower half of your windows?

This is a good plan if you have curtains for the evenings or are happy to pull blinds down over the top half of your windows during the day.

Find a pretty design to complement your decorative scheme’s motifs.
California Shutters
Filter the light with shutters
If you’re after kerb appeal at the same time as making your space private, shutters are the way to go.

Larger slats will let in more light and offer more of a view (from inside and out); they also look more contemporary, if that’s what you’re after.

You could even choose a warm colour to bring in sunny daylight, even when the sky is grey.
John Lewis & Partners
Swap for sheers
Net curtains aren’t quite dead – in fact, they’ve been reinvented in the form of sheer, filmy fabric panels.

These are best hung in generous folds and matched with heavier but equally ethereal curtains. Sill-length is not an option for the fashion-conscious – floor-skimming curtains are far more elegant.
Hillarys
Work vertical blinds
Once consigned to offices, these streamlined blinds are now often seen in contemporary homes – and not just in corporate beige.

Apply them with caution, though: unless your home is truly modern, they’ll risk looking out of place anywhere but a home office or bathroom.
Hillarys
Hang almost-there blinds
Roman blinds that hang across the top of windows have a bit of a reputation for blocking out light.

However, choose them in the sheerest of white fabric and they’ll provide all the privacy you need with none of the daylight theft.
Interior Goods Direct
Find flexible fabric panels
The good thing about fabric panels is that, unlike curtains, they sit flat against the window when drawn and the wall when pulled back, saving space both visually and literally – a real boost in a small room, such as a bedroom.

Let Japanese Shoji Screens Slide In
SV Design
Add glamour with beads
Thought bead curtains had been consigned to the annals of history? Nope, they’re still alive, kicking and as groovy as ever.

Choose a white, silver or metallic finish for a window that glimmers rather than glares, and use them sparingly – in one room, tops.
Sigmar
Invest in authentic stained glass
There are certain windows where this really works: in a hallway, cloakroom, bathroom or kitchen. At a push, it’ll suit a dining space, too.

If light quality is important, choose pale-coloured glass that allows lots of daylight through, and let the leading do the talking design-wise, as seen here.


Browse more welcoming entrances
Adolfo Harrison Gardens
Screen outdoors, not in
If you’re binning your net curtains in favour of bare windows but still need screening, consider putting it outdoors instead. This could be in the form of hedging out the front or simple structures in the back garden.

The beauty of the ones here is that they frame different views of the garden, rather than blocking them.


Tell us
How do you ensure privacy at home? Share your tips in the Comments section, like this story, save your favourite images and join the conversation.

More
Need some customised window dressings to save both your privacy and light? Find a decorator or interior designer near you who can measure up your windows and chat through your options
Print
Facebook
Twitter
Email
See 34 comments
Explore Related Topics
WindowsBuilding Components
Read Related Stories
Window Dressing: 10 Cool New Treatments for Fashionable WindowsWindow Dressing: 10 Cool New Treatments for Fashionable Windows
By Julia Fairley·14
Decorating
The Secret to Hanging Curtains BeautifullyThe Secret to Hanging Curtains Beautifully
By Yanic Simard·66
Interior Design
21 Ways to Frame a View21 Ways to Frame a View
By Vanessa Walker·2
Building Ideas
27 Great Peeks to the Outdoors27 Great Peeks to the Outdoors
By Vanessa Walker·5
Picture Perfect
Expert Eye: Everything You Need to Know About Skylights & VoidsExpert Eye: Everything You Need to Know About Skylights & Voids
By Georgia Madden·11
Architectural Details
30 Gorgeous Glazing Ideas30 Gorgeous Glazing Ideas
By Georgia Madden·6
Picture Perfect
So You Want Louvre Shutters and Windows? Here's the LowdownSo You Want Louvre Shutters and Windows? Here's the Lowdown
By Georgia Madden·7
Architecture
32 Ways to Work Glazing Into Your Interior From Around the World32 Ways to Work Glazing Into Your Interior From Around the World
By Kate Burt·24
Picture Perfect
24 Statement-Making Windows and Doors24 Statement-Making Windows and Doors
By Georgia Madden·0
Doors
Pro Panel: How to Choose and Hang Curtains in a Bay WindowPro Panel: How to Choose and Hang Curtains in a Bay Window
By Kate Burt·30
Decorating
So What's New in Window Treatments?So What's New in Window Treatments?
By Georgia Madden·12
Decorating
Best View in the House: 11 New-Look Doors and WindowsBest View in the House: 11 New-Look Doors and Windows
By Georgia Madden·10
Doors
27 Light-Loving Clerestory Windows27 Light-Loving Clerestory Windows
By Georgia Madden·6
Best Of The Week
Paint Makeover: How to Breathe New Life Into Your Window FramesPaint Makeover: How to Breathe New Life Into Your Window Frames
By Eliza Nugent·29
Renovating
Picture Perfect: 30 Chic and Cosy Curtains and BlindsPicture Perfect: 30 Chic and Cosy Curtains and Blinds
By Georgia Madden·7
Popular Houzz Series
People who liked this story also liked
Window Dressing: 10 Cool New Treatments for Fashionable Windows
Window Dressing: 10 Cool New Treatments for Fashionable WindowsFull Story
The Secret to Hanging Curtains Beautifully
The Secret to Hanging Curtains BeautifullyFull Story
21 Ways to Frame a View
21 Ways to Frame a ViewFull Story
27 Great Peeks to the Outdoors
27 Great Peeks to the OutdoorsFull Story
Expert Eye: Everything You Need to Know About Skylights & Voids
Expert Eye: Everything You Need to Know About Skylights & VoidsFull Story
30 Gorgeous Glazing Ideas
30 Gorgeous Glazing IdeasFull Story
So You Want Louvre Shutters and Windows? Here's the Lowdown
So You Want Louvre Shutters and Windows? Here's the LowdownFull Story
32 Ways to Work Glazing Into Your Interior From Around the World
32 Ways to Work Glazing Into Your Interior From Around the WorldFull Story
24 Statement-Making Windows and Doors
24 Statement-Making Windows and DoorsFull Story
Pro Panel: How to Choose and Hang Curtains in a Bay Window
Pro Panel: How to Choose and Hang Curtains in a Bay WindowFull Story
  • Australia
  • ABOUT
  • MOBILE APPS
  • PROFESSIONALS
  • BUTTONS
  • FAQs
  • CAREERS
  • ADVERTISE
  • Terms & Privacy
  • © 2022 Houzz Inc.