The Evolution of the Windows

I'm a funny person when it comes to what I put on my windows

I tend to do the same thing for all the windows in the house

(sort of like wall to wall carpet --

you put the same carpet all over the house.

Not different carpet in different rooms)

Linderhof's first curtains

Lace ones

with a valance

I liked them

They were easy to care for --

you washed, hung damp

And they dried perfectly!

Then I decided to go from curtains

to

window treatments

I took down the lace valances

And put up swags (remember those)

and drapes with valances

And different ones for different rooms

(so unlike me!)

But the lace curtains were still at the window!

Then I decided to remove the lace panels

and just have the

window treatments!

I was not a good keeper of the window treatments

I didn't clean them often enough

Dust is not a friend!

Friend Shirley had plantation shutter which she just adored

That I couldn't afford

(old house equals non-standard size windows

non-standard size windows equals costly plantation shutters)

But, I could afford the 2 inch Venetian blinds

And so I took down the

window treatments

And put up blinds

I loved the light that came into the house!

The dining room never did get blinds,

(sometimes one room just has to be a little different!)

I got blue panels for that window

(Just for something different)

which went nicely with the seats of the dining room chairs

Until I replaced the seats with a plain mohair

And then that blue looked out of place.

But, alas, I was not a blind cleaner

They're wonderful when they're new and dustless

But when they're dusty!

I tried, I really did

But it was never a priority

And when I did clean them,

I was always amazed at how bad they were!

I didn't want to do lace curtains

(too old fashioned according to Daughter Sarah)

I definitely did not want to do window treatments

(never to go down that road again!)

So I settled on curtains, linen ones

That are washable

They can be washed and hung right back up

(like the lace curtains)

And they are neutral

which means that they go with everything

(sort of like a neutral wall to wall carpeting!)

And like the blinds they let in lots of light!

I love a light filled house.

Master Bedroom

Living Room

Dining Room

Downstairs Hall

Guest Room

They're from Ikea

And they come in pairs not panels

They were $50 (plus shipping)

per pair

A very reasonable cost for curtains, me thinks.

And each panel is 57 inches wide

And the length is 90 some inches long

Ample for almost every window

(and too ample for mine -- I had to hem them)

I like the simplicity of the curtains

I like the fact that each room's windows are the same

I like that they are washable

The other windows at Linderhof

The sliding doors in the breakfast room

The casement windows in the kitchen, at the top of the stairs and in the sunroom

Go curtain less, although they've not always been that way.

(In fact, the sunroom did have blinds on them for a long time --

dirty blinds on all eight windows!

That should have clued me in as to what kind of blind keeper I was, but it didn't)

But I love the little panes, I love the light that shines through those windows

into those rooms.

Linderhof is definitely a lighter and brighter home

than it once was.

But we do, sometimes, go through "bad" decorating decisions,

don't we?

It's Monday and I'm sharing the evolution of my windows with Susan at Between Naps On the Porch

for Met Monday.