Cafe curtain inspiration for the dining room
I say “dining room” lightly, because as you know, our downstairs is pretty much one big open space!
We are situated VERY close to our neighbors, so window treatments have to be functional as well as aesthetically pleasing. Our house came with nice blinds, and we usually keep them all the way down for privacy reasons. I don’t mind the look of them, but I would love to be able to keep them up to allow more light in! To do that, however, we need to add something into the mix – and that’s where cafe curtains come in. Though I don’t always love the look of them (they can look a little country), I think they are the perfect solution for this spot.
Cafe curtains would allow us to keep the blinds completely rolled up and let lots of sun in through the top half of the windows, but our neighbors would only be able to see the tops of our heads when the curtains were closed. Sounds good! Here are a few images that have been inspiring me…
Better Homes & Gardens, Anne Decker Architects, Proverbs 31 Girl, unknown
I also found this little video, which has some helpful hanging tips! I think the key to making this type of curtain look less country is to use rings instead of a rod-pocket or tab style.
Now, my decisions:
1. Inside mount or outside mount for the hardware? I think this one is made for me – with the way our windows are built, I think it has to be outside mount. I am eying this set, but I might be able to find something similar for less at Home Depot/Lowes.
2. Curtain color? I want something very light and airy, so there are pretty much two options with our house’s palette: white or pale blue. I am not feeling a pattern right next to the table, unless someone would like to try and convince me otherwise :)
The plan is to buy fabric and either use the no-sew iron-on adhesive technique I’ve used before, or ship the fabric to my sister and see if she’ll sew a few hems for me on her sewing machine!
Anyone have any experience with cafe curtains? Or privacy from close neighbors? :)
I like the idea! I would suggest an oatmeal, taupe, or tan color–perhaps like a natural burlap or canvas tone. From the pics in your post, it looks like your room has a lot of white so I think white might not add much (although if you want them to blend in and sort of “disappear” that might work). I noticed that you have a woven basket on your countertop and one next to your bookcase, plus a light tan sofa. So a natural burlap color might tie those together. Or a light greige might look good too. I’m not a designer, though, so take my suggestion with a grain of salt! I personally would try other light tones and consider white as a back-up plan in case nothing else works.
I think those style curtains will be perfect! We only have wooden blinds in our house, I would love to add some patterned curtains though!