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newhomeowner2011a

Master Bathroom window covering -

newhomeowner2011a
12 years ago

We just completed our master bathroom addition in our 1921 home and now I'm having a heck of a time trying to pick out window covering (we've been using poster board in the meantime!).

From the homework I've done, it looks like our best options might be the top down/bottom up honeycomb, top down/bottom up roman shades or shutters. I just called Smith/Noble and they said the roman shades may not provide as much privacy for us given we are wanting it for our bathroom so that is probably not a great option but I'm throwing it out just in case y'all know of a company that sells roman shades with more privacy.

The bathroom is in the front of the house just like our bedroom which is why I've shown you the view from inside the bathroom looking towards our master bedroom where the old shutters in that room currently are located. Because of the way the light reflects off the windows during the day, you can't really tell what the coverings are inside (though you might at night...)

I was told that adding shutters in the bathroom (to match the bedroom) will cost as much as re-doing BOTH the bedroom and bathroom windows with the honeycomb or roman shades(top down/bottom up) option. SO... price is essentially a wash and it is all about what looks best now :-)

Suggestions? Thoughts?

Comments (20)

  • yayagal
    12 years ago

    Google window seals and then you'll have privacy and very little cost. They are really believable when applied. Everyone thinks I bought a frosted window.

  • natal
    12 years ago

    Beautiful room! I'd be tempted to use the same traditional shutters, but they do block a lot of light even when the slats are in an open position.

  • nanny2a
    12 years ago

    I do not have an answer for your window covering dilemma, but just wanted to complement you on your beautiful new bathroom! Love the flooring, counters, hardware and everything! It looks marvelous!!!!

  • Annie Deighnaugh
    12 years ago

    Lovely bathroom.

    I agree the shutters lose a lot of light and I wouldn't want to cover up the beautiful muntins in the upper window.

    A suggestion you may not have thought of. I saw it in a designer showhouse and fell in love with it. You mount 2 small flat rods onto the top and bottom of the lower window and then shirr lace fabric on the top and bottom for privacy. The link below shows this on a door window to give you the idea. By shirring the lace, it retains the light and beauty of the lace but adds more privacy. By mounting it directly onto the lower window, if you raise the window a little, you will get fresh air but still have privacy. This leaves the upper window open to enjoy the light and the view and treat with a valance as you wish. I think the lace treatment will also go with the spirit of a home from the 1920s.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Double shirred curtain

  • mommaseed
    12 years ago

    Is your bathroom at the front of the house? I am thinking about how it will look from the street as well. I am a person who likes the entire house to be uniform. Maybe something to think about.

    May I please ask you about your hardware? Your knobs look like what I am trying to find for our daughters' bathroom.

  • cat_mom
    12 years ago

    No helpful suggestions, but had to say how beautiful your new bathroom looks!

  • User
    12 years ago

    LOVE your bathroom! Every single thing about it is gorgeous. Everything!

  • lazydaisynot
    12 years ago

    Such a pretty bathroom! We like our honeycomb shades in our master bath, similarly situated facing the street. We keep the top portion of the top-down-bottom-up shades dropped to permit a view of the sky and treetops while maintaining privacy.

    I just today ordered similar TDBU shades to replace window coverings in our master bedroom and upstairs tv/study for the same reasons (view and privacy). I hated shopping for shades! Our existing shades are Hunter Douglas but this time I ordered the "house" brand from stevesblindsandwallpaper.com, a company I read about here. Prices were a fraction of the Hunter Douglas prices and there's a satisfaction guarantee. Hope I didn't make a mistake.

  • newhomeowner2011a
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Thank you :-)

    mommaseed - Hardware was purchased from our cabinet person but I've seen them online too - http://www.simplyknobsandpulls.com/hickory-hardware/square-knobs/glass-with-chrome/P3639-GLCH/ (not sure size is the same...)

    yayagal - we did a "frosted" film on our powder downstairs and learned that although it blurs the "image," it is still somewhat see thru - esp at night! You may have something different than what they sell at HD but we now know to duck when turning the lights on at night - ha :-)

    lazydaisynot - pls let me know how the window coverings work out - I will have to check out that company too!

    And yes, the bathroom is at the front of the house - so is the master bedroom. And I did take another look today and you can see the coverings on overcast days but not on sunny days b/c of the way the light reflects off the windows. Do you think it is important to match all the way across the top level or on both the first and second levels of the house? We can't do the shutters on the first floor so were leaning towards the honeycomb there...

    So it looks like there are some mixed opinions - anyone thing I would mess up the look of the bathroom by doing the honeycomb top/down bottom/up or the shutters? (setting aside the light getting thru or blocking the muntins (thanks for the name of them Annie!)?

  • bronwynsmom
    12 years ago

    Your bathroom is lovely. May I come and live with you, please?

    I wouldn't recommend shutters for those windows for a practical reason - the clearance inside your window frames doesn't appear to be sufficient for larger slats, and small ones are a bear to keep clean in a damp environment. That problem is often solved by mounting shutters to their own frame outside the trim, but then your door wouldn't open all the way, and would bang into the shutters unless you put a stop in the floor. Which would destroy the lovely clarity of your design.

    Why not a pair of perfectly simple fabric Roman shades with blackout lining that you could lower when you need the privacy? If you sew, you can make them yourself - precision is important, but it's not hard to do. And you'd get a little bit of softening effect. Here are photos of the shades in a past half bath and kitchen of ours...you wouldn't want ones that have the pleat and the puffiness, but you can see how the fabric softens the functional aspect of the room.

  • les917
    12 years ago

    I guess the first question is do you have room to inside mount anything? It is hard to tell, but the inside depth of the windows doesn't appear to be very great.

    I am a fan of shutters in cases like this, and would think about outside mounts if needed. I think they would give you the clean lines you have esablished in your lovely new bath, and still allow for easy adjustment when needed but not block the light and view.

    Not a fan of top down shades - they remind me of dresses with spaghetti straps. And imo, I think houses that have all the windows appearing the same from the outside are boring - looks like a fake house front from a stage set.

    The other thing I wonder if you would consider would be drapery? I know you don't have much clearance on the left, so they would probably cover the window a bit all the time. But then, so does the bathroom door. You could add similar curtain panels in the bedroom, even stationary ones.

  • natal
    12 years ago

    Do you think it is important to match all the way across the top level or on both the first and second levels of the house?

    Some people will tell you yes, but I say no. If it really concerns you the main thing is to keep the color of the window treatments consistent. You don't have to have the same treatment (shades/shutters/whatever) on every window, just the same color.

  • yayagal
    12 years ago

    Okay so the film is a nono but I used these drapes below, only one panel pulled to the side as there is only one window in my bathroom. I think these would work beautifully in yours. Put them on slide rings and just pull them closed when needed. In person they're really really nice.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Belgian linen drapes.

  • justgotabme
    12 years ago

    I'm with Les when it comes to the outside of the house. If you're not sure about that just think how many times you or others view the windows from the inside as compared to the outside? We live in our homes, so in my opinion that's the most important aspect when deciding on WTs.
    You're bathroom is absolutely lovely and I'd choose window coverings accordingly.

  • newhomeowner2011a
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Wow; lots to think about!

    There isn't a lot of room for doing an inside mount with shutters the way it is BUT we just had these windows put in by our contractor with the addition. Since he was supposed to match our other windows, we could always have him fix it (not sure how but that is what the guy said that came out to give us an estimate on various window treatments should we want shutters).

    I love drapes but am afraid with the clearance so close to the door on the left and to the vanity on the right, it might not be the best choice in this situation (otherwise, I think I'd be brushing up against it when I wash my face).

    I would love to keep them open at times but for practical purposes we need something that has at least the bottom half covered at all times (this is at the front of our house and our house while it isn't on a major street, is a major pedestrian highway!) :-)

    I found this picture online - http://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/decorating/master-bathroom-decorating-design-00417000073793/page18.html (image 16 of 71) or for more on the bathroom, you can view this clipping - http://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/idea-houses/southern-living-georgia-idea-house-master-bathroom-00400000051043/
    They went with a 3/4 cafe curtain in a sheer white linen. Wonder if this offers much privacy or if I should add a (white) black out fabric behind it. I think we might be able to get away with a regular cafe curtain in the space if we didn't mind those walking by to see our heads/shoulders but the 3/4 might be best and maybe even look better - thoughts?

    I don't sew so I'll have to do some searching around for these curtains. Any leads and thoughts on doing something like this?

    If so, would you have them add the wood between the windows and do two separate cafe curtain rods or keep it off and do one bar across the entire window?

    Any tips on where to get chrome cafe curtains? Rejuvenation has some nice ones but they are not offered in chrome?

  • susanka
    12 years ago

    What a lovely bathroom! We did top down honeycombs, which allow us to have some light at the top but preserve our privacy. We got a remote control because our window is over the tub; can't tell if yours is, but if so, that's a nice feature.

  • annzgw
    12 years ago

    Here's another pic I thought I had included in my other post. Very similar to what you found.

    [traditional bathroom design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2107) by san francisco kitchen and bath Julie Williams Design

    CountryCurtain has chrome tension rods and if the end is too large you could always spray paint any tension rod of your choice. CC may also have the curtain you're wanting but the length may have to be adjusted. You can easily do adjustments, or make the curtains, by using fabric glue or fusible tape.

    I would do individual curtains and the window doesn't look like it'll need any wood strips for the tension rod.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Chrome rod

  • Annie Deighnaugh
    12 years ago

    Annz that's very similar to what I was trying to describe...only the one I saw was lace. Very nice and practical.

  • newhomeowner2011a
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I like it a lot as it is attached at the bottom too (no chance of it flowing outward and exposing us) like regular cafe curtains could potentially do.

    I might look into cafe curtains for our powder though - I'm really liking these examples y'all shared!!!

    Also, I know I was trying to find chrome bars but I think with this treatment, white would be just fine as it appears as though the rods are supposed to be 100% covered by the pockets - if I went with regular cafe curtains or had to do an outside mount, it would obviously matter though.

    I have checked out CC and am having a few fabric samples sent my direction - the reviews for their "jane's plain and simple perma-press door panel" has several people saying they used them for half of their windows for privacy so that was encouraging.

    I guess the big question now is what length curtains to buy (how much of the window to be covered up). Any thoughts on that? Show 1/3 of the window so you can see the muntins plus a little more or just cover the lower half? I think we could get away with both options (for privacy sake) - thoughts on what would look best?

    PS - if this option works out, my husband is going to love y'all as y'all will have saved us a few hundred dollars (other options were way more pricey!)

    Again, thanks for all of your suggestions/advice!!!