14 Unique Ideas for Window Treatments

I love thinking of unique ways to upgrade something basic and turn it into something custom and special. When it comes to window treatments a small customization can go a long way. I've rounded up some of my favorite ideas to take your window treatments to a whole new level! 

photo

1. Another take on the striped curtain is to do it with smaller stripes. I really like how these stripes are spaced far apart and kept really thin. It seems like you could create this look with some Ikea curtains and ribbon. 

photo via Cynthia Brooks Design 

2. I love the way this roman shade is trimmed. It's a fun idea to keep the valance and the trim the same. 

Miles Redd for House Beautiful 

3. I think adding a color block to plain white curtains makes them extra dramatic! 

image via Samantha Pynn

4. This idea takes the bottom banded color look to a new level! By adding a thinner separate band it breaks up the bottom color and the white curtains. 

Life & Home via Little Green Notebook

5. I am so blow away by this scalloped detail in a contrasting color on these window treatments. If you look closer you can see the scallop was even trimmed out in another color. I love attention to detail like that. 

Photo by Laurey W. Glenn for Southern Living magazine

6. Who doesn't love a good grey key trim! You could add it in any color to a pair of white curtains and get a luxe look! 

Traditional Dining Room by Los Angeles Architects & Designers Studio William Hefner

7. This curtain concept is really interesting. It looks like they did a sheer up top and maybe a silk for the rest. 

Modern Living Room by Toronto Interior Designers & Decorators Lisa Ferguson Interior Design

8. I think we've seen that you can add color stripes any which way on curtains and it always looks fabulous! I like this idea of adding the bands of color to the top and bottom. 

image via signed by Tina

9. I think the unique shape of these roman shades makes them so beautiful and I love how they are trimmed out in red to add even more drama! 

image via SF Gate

10. Although you don't often see the lining I think it's a fun idea to add a bright color for a little wow factor. 

Traditional Bedroom by Los Angeles Photographers Erika Bierman Photography

11. We've seen stripes all the way up a panel but this take on the striped curtain is really unique! What a good idea to just do stripes on the lower half of the panels. 

image via Lonny

12. A great pattern can really be enhanced by a dramatic color. The red on these shades totally pops off of that floral fabric. 

photo via Bijou and Boheme

13. I thought the idea of adding a ruffle hem to the bottom of a curtain panel was genius! How sweet would this be in a nursery.  

image via Kate Coughlin Interiors

14. It looks like these sophisticated roman shades got a little dose of fun with a pink ribbon fringe. 

Fore more great window treatment ideas visit my Pinterest page.

New Things at Windows by Melissa

roman shade made by Windows by Melissa for Jane's nursery

If you've been reading my blog for awhile you know how much I love Windows by Melissa. I've used her for my own home many times as well as for clients and she always does a great job. She's great at curtains, pillows and roman shades. The team at Windows by Melissa recently updated their website to make it more user friendly. They have created a login feature so that you can track your order status as well as receive quotes for window treatments that will be kept in your personal account for future use. 

They have also added many new products including the horizontal striped curtains. 

They have a "Melissa's Recommendations" page where people can browse fabric shops with options other than what they carry. 

You can also easily add the greek key trim to any window treatments. After selecting a window treatment type and size you are then taken to an options/upgrades page and you can select to have the greek key ribbon design added to your window treatment!

And, finally, they have added the clearance/and ready to ship section. This section is items that are immediately available for purchase and are not custom work. They are either samples and prototypes of designs and  items that they have created and tested before making them available for custom request orders or they are returned items from customs that didn't work out. There are some great deals in this section so check it out! 

How to Use Window Treatments with Plantation Shutters

Last week I recieved an email from a reader who has plantation shutters throughout her whole home. She wanted to know how to still incoporate some type of window treatments with her shutters. 

This is actually a challenge I run into quite a lot with my own clients. You probably know that I LOVE window treatments so I'm constantly trying to think of ways to get around the plantation shutter issue and still get some pattern and color on the windows! 

One idea is to just do curtains. You can still open your shutters if needed but you still get all the pretty pattern and texture of fabric! 

photo from the Salt Lake Parade of Homes designed by Ivory Homes

photo from the Salt Lake Parade of Homes designed by Ivory Homes

The curtains and shutters are working seamlessly together in the above pictures. 

Another option is to do a roman shade over the shutters. 

This photo is from a space I've been working on a for awhile. My client and I decided to built a custom window bench in her bay window. Because we brought the seat to the base of the windows it made it feel like there was SOOOO much space between the top of the window and the ceiling. So we made extra long window shades and had them mounted about two feet above the window to make the windows appear taller than they actually are. 

You can totally use a roman shade on a window with plantation shutters. Since they really are only for looks and not for function you don't even need to use as much fabric. Just use what you need to create that nice folded shade look. 

photo from the Salt Lake Parade of Homes designed by Ivory Homes

The other thing to keep in mind is that you'll have to do an outside mount. You can't mount the shade inside your window or you won't be able to open your shutters. 

photo from the Salt Lake Parade of Homes designed by Ivory Homes

Window treatments know no bounds! 

Do any of you have plantation shutters and if so how have you addressed this issue? 

Greek Key Roman Shade by Windows by Melissa

Who doesn't love a Greek Key Roman Shade? I love the crisp lines and I feel like you could put one in any room. 

via House Beautiful 

via Caitlin Wilson Designs

via Lonny

Via  Effortless Style 

My sponsor Windows by Melissa has started making custom Greek Key roman shades. Check out her latest work! 

The shade is made custom to order with any choice of ribbon color. Ribbon colors can be found here. 

The price is $165-185 depending on window measurements. That price includes ALL materials.

 

 Melissa is offering a coupon code to get one of these at 20% off if you follow her blog. Go to her blog to get more details.