Curtains: Not Just Window Coverings

By using creativity and imagination, you can use standard curtains for a myriad of uses in and around your home. Not only will you shed new light on existing décor, you will be the envy of friends and family by using draperies to do more than dress up windows. With a variety of color choices and fabrics, curtains will liven up the look of your home.

DIY Projects Using Curtains

• If you have a four-poster bed, you can create a relaxing, tropical feeling, oasis for your bedroom. Using sheer curtain panels in white or other pastel colors, depending on your taste, mount the curtains with rods to your ceiling. Hang the billowy panels surrounding the bed. You can also attach curtains to the ceiling in a loose pattern over the top of the bed. This DIY project is easier than it sounds. 
  
• A curtain wall is a great way to make a dramatic change in a room, without the expense and mess of repainting or papering a wall. Installing a curtain on the wall behind the sofa will produce a soft backdrop. Using a new color scheme to make a room pop has instant results.
• For a provincial patio look, that is stylish and decorative, use rods and billowing curtains to surround a back patio seating area. Breezy curtains are the perfect romantic element.
• If you are trying to create separate space in a small square footage area, hang a drape where you wish a wall were. For instance, if you want a separate office space for your desk in the living room, hang a heavier drape where you wish to divide the space.
• Have limited kitchen cupboards and storage space; make a pantry. Use a shelf, preferably one of wood, which will be sturdier and able to hold weight. Attach a beautiful curtain on the outside to conceal the shelf and its contents.
• If you have a freestanding bathtub, something like a claw foot tub or similar, attach rods to the roof and walls, then hang the curtains of your choice. Sheer curtains give a soft touch, while heavier textiles will make the room look richer.
• If you have a smaller bathroom/powder room, hang curtains around the commode. Close the curtains when not in use. This will make the room appear bigger. Using rich accent colors will also make this look pop.
• Create your own herbal retreat in your kitchen. Use sage green cotton curtains. Hang them on cafe rods over a farmhouse styled sink. Simply add botanic prints of herbs framed in white or neutral wood against a deeper shade of sage painted on the walls.

Get Creative

Let your creativity drive you. If you can envision it, it can be done. Curtains can be used in such diverse ways and can invigorate a room or add the illusion of added space. It is an easy way to play with colors that you might not otherwise try. Since it doesn’t have to be a permanent fixture, curtains allow you to explore all your options. Curtains don’t have to be just for windows, you can use them as room dividers, to make a “fake” looking window, or to cover entire walls. Curtains aren’t just window treatments anymore. So, have fun and imagine the possibilities.