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ginger25

Bathroom Window Treatments

ginger25
12 years ago

Does anyone know if there is something you can put on your existing bathroom windows, to let you see out, but outsiders can't see in? If not, what kind of window treatments would you put on this type of window?

Should the treatments match the color of the wood cabinets, your granite color or be the same color of the window paint which in this bathroom is white? Thanks for your help.

Comments (2)

  • MongoCT
    12 years ago

    If you want the see-out-but-not-see-in effect, for daytime use look at mirrored window films. If you go that route and that will be the only treatment used, mirrored films give privacy to the side of the film that is darker. Typically in the day time people won't be able to see in, but at night when your bathroom is lit up and it's dark outside, the effect is reversed...you won't be able to see out but people outside can see in.

    So while that type of film is good for daytime, you'll need to couple it with a curtain or blind for night time.

    Or you can go the route of a frosted film. You'll retain some light transmission, but lose the view. There are numerous styles of frosted films, and the amount of light they allow to transmiss does vary. There are stained glass films too if you want to go decorative.

    That aside, for window shades, I like top-down-bottom-up for any actual window shade. If you're not familiar, with those shades you can lower it from the top (usually most effective in a bathroom), or raise it from the bottom, or both.

    If you can lose a little of the view and natural light during the day, then go with just a T-D-B-U shade.

    If you want to preserve the entire view, your best bet will be to use a reflective film. That'll give you privacy in the day. Couple it with a shade for night time use.

    If the view isn't important and you prefer to not have a window shade, than a frosted or semi-opaque film could be used.

    Color recomendations, I'll leave that up to the stylists.

  • treasuretheday
    12 years ago

    I'm certainly not a stylist but I've always heard that it is best to match the shades to the window trim since they are usually not an element that you want to highlight. I'm not sure how dark your cabinetry is but imagine three large brown rectangles over your beautiful windows(!) Your window trim looks like a pretty cool white but your tile is a creamy color so if a bright white shades seems too stark, you could probably go with a warmer shade of white. Be sure to hold up samples to the window to see what the color looks like with light shining through and up against your trim to make sure it doesn't look dingy.

    I second Mongo's suggestion of top down/bottom up shades. I use them on alot of the windows in my house where I want natural light, a view AND privacy. Like you, I have windows over my tub and would have to climb into my tub to access the shades. The TD/BU shades allow me to leave them at an appropriate height 24/7.