Window Coverings for my Hall Window

 

Whew!  We are in the dog days of summer, and the heat is gaining strength!

I don’t know about you, but I like to stay cool in the summer.  I love being outside in the sun, but there is nothing better than coming into a cool house for some relief.

Since we moved into our new home, we have done very little with window coverings.  Most of our windows are uncovered which allows the summer sun to come shining in, and with it comes extra warmth in our house.

To help keep our house cool and be more energy efficient, I decided to add some blinds and curtains to our windows.

 

For example, here is a window in the hallway leading into our master bedroom.  When the sun is shining on this side of our house, you can feel the heat as you walk into our bedroom.

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So I measured the width of our window and went to Lowe’s to buy a Natural Woven Roman Shade in Pecan.

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The installation is so easy.  If you have never hung a shade before, the directions are very easy to follow.

First you have to install the metal bracket to the window frame.

Since our home is older, the windows are made a little weird, and I had to screw a piece of wood into the top of the window so I could screw the metal bracket to it.

You probably won’t have to do this. Smile

 

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Once I installed a wood piece on each side of the window, I screwed the metal brackets into the wood.

 

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Next, I just slipped the woven shade up into each metal bracket and screwed it on tight with the lock nut provided.

 

 

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That’s it!  Soooo easy!

To dress up the window even more, and provide even more shelter from the sun, I added drapes to my windows.

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You know what those drapes are made of, right?  Those are drop cloths!  Yep, you can get drop cloths from Lowe’s and make curtains from them!  I bought the 6×9 drop cloths and just hemmed them a little at the bottom.

Now my window is ready for the summer heat.  On those blistering days, I can lower my shad, close the drapes, and reduce the heat in my home.

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I love how shades and drapes are both functional and beautiful!

 

What is your favorite way to reduce the heat

from your windows during the summer?

Want some more DIY inspiration? Check out Lowe’s Creative Ideas for free ideas and plans:

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22 Comments

  1. love … love… that look!!! I have those same shades… but with “linen Look” panels from Overstock!!! ( the next project will most certainly be drop cloths!!!) But what I am really loving…. is your bedroom door!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have a thing for old paneled doors!!!! :)

  2. Lookin’ good. You are always so busy, I don’t know how you get everything done. Have you started getting things ready for the boys going back to school? What grades are they in now? Have you recovered from Haven? Take care and get some rest. God Bless

  3. Oh my this is lovely, I will do the same with my attic window, once I have cleared out the attic and semi finished it to use it as a spare bedroom, storage, and exercise room…. this will be though my winter project, too hot these days.
    Love what you did with your hallway window, YOU ARE A GENIUS
    Edith

  4. Wow! It’s hard to believe the space is the same. The shade, drape, stool and plant on stand actually makes it seem bigger!
    I had a sliding glass door that I switched to French doors and got the ones with the little mini blinds inside. They truly make ak difference as the windows face west. Which reminds me, it’s time to close them! What’s nice is that they not only close or tilt but also slide enclosed in the glass, all the way up.

  5. Love the look! We have almost the exact same setup..but our blinds are from overstock, our curtain rods from Ross, and curtains from Ikea. If we ever need more curtains, we’re totally going to borrow your drop cloth idea, great job Traci! It looks gorgeous

  6. That looks wonderful! I have bought drop cloths, ready to hang some drapes that will hopefully look that good! Where did you get the rod and clips? I am having a hard time finding one that looks just right. Thanks for sharing!

  7. I love the roman shade. We have the regular white blinds that everyone and their mom has and they’re okay, but honestly I would prefer to do just curtains if I could! When we bought our house it already had the blinds so we’ll probably just leave them up. I really like your roman shades though and maybe those will go in my forever home… whenever that time comes! =]

  8. Oh my, great minds think alike. My laundry room was turning into a sauna every day so I purchased almost the exact blinds to put up on three east-facing windows. I did this yesterday and the difference this morning was several degrees cooler in that room. I love your blog and I love the updates on the ‘men’ in your life. Beautiful family.

  9. Oh my goodness that is exactly how I dressed most of our windows in our house. We get the afternoon sun and it is brutal and bleaches out everything. I purchased the blinds from Overstock due to the odd shape of all of the windows and am in the process of making more drop cloth curtains.
    I love this look. I also love your bedroom door. Everything looks wonderful.

  10. Hi. I love your drop cloth drapes. I can’t wait to make some. You said in another post that drop cloths from Home Depot don’t have a seam, so are good for curtains. WHAT BRABD of drop cloths do you use? Please let me know!!

  11. That looks nice! You did a great job on that window. Your drop cloth drapes look awesome. Those two are really functional and beautiful. So they don’t only block the sun but they definitely spruce up that area of your house. Great idea!

  12. What did you use for hanging the drop cloth curtains? I’m in the middle of making curtains for my living room.

  13. Do you mind sharing your paint color? I have had the drapes but have been looking for the right color to paint!

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