To be annoyed with people looking in my window!

[minesapintofwine]

I live in a terraced house without a front yard, so the front door opens straight onto the pavement. Have lived here since 2003 but only now getting a bit pissed off.

Normally during the day I'm up and about until the evening so don't notice it but this week I have ds off school unwell so spending more time sitting down. The amount of people who look into my house is unreal! Now I'll admit when I walk my dog I can't help but glance into warm cosy houses but I promise I don't peer like these people do!

In the last half hour I've had two full on nosy ones and the bin man had a good look too!

Last week ffs I saw a little girl up against the window with her hands cupped watching the tv!

I have got Venetian blinds which are tilted a bit. So what is the answer? I don't like nets, don't want to close blinds against the daylight. Do I need to rearrange my furniture? Stop wearing pyjamas downstairs?

Aibu to be so irritated or should I just accept its human nature to have a look. Does anyone do this? Or have it happen to them?

[Blumkin]

You can buy frosted clear stickers to put on your window (normally look best as a band at eye level height) that will still let in light but give you an added level of privacy.

I come from Holland where its normal to keep curtains open in the evening,and if you go for a walk in the evening you get to sneakily glance look in to the living room.

I keep my blinds up at the front of the house - the reason being that I know people will look in and therefore it's a major incentive to keep that room clean, tidy and presentable am a mucky pup at heart

[ElspethFlashman]

I think you need to tilt your blinds more tbh, and tilt the front edge up for more privacy.

[londonrach]

(Hangs head) if i walk past houses like yours op i find my eyes look in whilst i walk past. They always look so cosy. One house i walk past has amazing rocking horse and the lounge is stunning. Owner has good taste. Suggest getting plantation shutters.

[LizardBreath]

The little girls is rude and I'd probably have gone to tell her off. People gawping in can't be helped though-I do it, especially at night when lights are on! As I do it I feel I can't moan when people do it to me. I think people's eyes are drawn to movement / light a lot of time so it's an involuntary action. (And the fact I love to nose at people's decor )

[SixtiesChildOfWildBlueSkies]

It is human nature to glance in through windows but downright rude to stare. With your window being directly next to the street you are limited. I'm with you on the nets - loathe them - but you can buy rolls of film which are a kind of 2-way surface. It's applied to the window and allows you to look out, but acts as a mirror from the outside, so no one can look in.
I've not used it, but a friend has, and it worked for them.

Have a look at these.......

Silver Reflective Window Film (Solar Control & Privacy ... - Amazon.co.uk
www.amazon.co.uk/Silver-Reflective-Window-Control.../dp/B002QETDXI?tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

Mirror Window Film | eBay
//www.ebay.co.uk/bhp/mirror-window-film

MIRROR SILVER PRIVACY ONE WAY PRO WINDOW TINTING ...
activewindowfilms.co.uk/privacymirroronewaywindowfilmbuyonine/58-mirro...

[ThroughThickAndThin01]

YABU it's impossible not to look through peoples windows when you are walking past.

When we lived in our two houses which were ripe for nosing we had curtains, plus Venetian blinds (the wooden slatted ones, is Venetian the right word?) on the bottom half of the sashes.

[NightWanderer]

I cant help looking either

I have nets up but a few of my neighbours have the stickers.

[JJBlinks]

My mum has the same problem and I fully sympathise. She bought blinds from ikea that let light through but people can't see through them. We were a bit about whether they'd work but they are great. She keeps them 3/4 closed so people can't see in.

[PigletJohn]

venetian blinds are fairly good for this, tilt them towards the sky to let light in. but a determined person can still see in enough to recognise people moving around.

If you windows are large and tall you can use café curtains.

It's possible to put reflective film on the glass, but it only works when brighter outside than in.

Sadly this is exactly what net curtains were invented for.

[Velvetbee]

We had this in our old house, I used to wave at people peering and they were embarrassed into stopping. It's human nature to glance though (and lovely to see cosy rooms lit up at this time of year -unhelpful).

[PigletJohn]

The wooden ones are Plantation Shutters

[MovingOnUpMovingOnOut]

Frosted window film or reflective thermal covering.

Personally I prefer to use www.purlfrost.com/ take your time putting it on and follow the instructions to the letter.

Do NOT use window stickers sold in Lidl or online. They do a terrible job.

[MovingOnUpMovingOnOut]

Window films are so much better than Venetian blinds because they don't block out as much light. I've had both. The thermal reflective stuff works during the day time, the frosted stuff works all the time including the evening (so no need for curtains or blinds) and lets 70% of light in during the day. Ime that is loads more than a Venetian blind blocks out.

If you get the very patterned stuff that works in a similar way to the reflective stuff in terms of day/night effectiveness so you'll need to close your blinds/curtains when you put a light on.

Net curtains are horrible.

[GoEasyPudding]

Google images, Cafe style shutters. They go half way up the window.

Also google 50 50 blinds. These are half opaque on a roller blind.

I think that sometimes people are checking out their own reflection in the glass as they walk along the road!

[minesapintofwine]

See this is where I think I may be unreasonable. It IS human nature to look I wonder if more people do it when my blinds have a certain tilt? I like the idea of waving back at them!

JJ do you know the name of the Ikea blinds? I might look at them.

Also I might look at the window film. I dont know anyone who has it but might be worth a try. Does it look unsightly?

Regarding nets. Are voiles as private? I dont mind them? Does anyone have voiles and curtains. What about voiles and blinds? Though not sure if that would look ok!

[nannybeach]

I would never move into a house so close to a pavement. I personnally manage not to look into folks houses, a lot of my neighbours have huge picture windows and most of us dont bother to draw the curtains the minute it gets dark.

[HolgerDanske]

I would get linen voiles. Not horrid like nets, and they let lots of light in but people can't see through them.

[HarrietSchulenberg]

I have the same problem and have voile panels rather than nets. Next door's kids used to bang on our front window and peer in all the time, which prompted them.
I used to live in a popular tourist area and used to have tourists openly stop and gawp in, even stopping to watch The Chart Show "with" us on Saturday mornings. I found that sticking up two fingers at the window without taking my eyes off the TV worked a treat

[minesapintofwine]

Im definately veering towards voiles I think.

Nanny I live in a town in the south wales valleys and honestly most houses are like this, though not all.
As a result Im sure loads of people have the same issue, nets are poular round here.

[minesapintofwine]

Lol at sticking two fingers up

[MrsMook]

We wanted a roller blind that was thin like a voile, and ended up getting one made. It lets sufficient light through, obstructs the view in unless the lights are on and has clean, uncluttered lines to it. It's neat behind the main curtains. I don't know why it's not in mass production! Even the blinds company was surprised at the request, but it works really well.

[Agiraffeisnotacat]

I find that tilting the venetian blinds in my office so that the outside is lower iyswim works best. Then they would have to look up the gaps to see anything rather than down the gaps which is the automatic way people look.

It does make a considerable difference. Go outside and try it!

[BarbaraofSeville]

I got made to measure voiles off the internet (can't remember where) for not very much because I don't like nets but don't like having nothing either. You only have to walk around at dusk to see how visible people are in houses without anything covering their windows.

[Agiraffeisnotacat]

By outside I mean the edge facing outside, next to the window.

[BlackbirdSingsInTheDeadOfNight]

Afraid I'm guilty of doing this myself. I'd never have a good old gawk, which I agree is really rude, but I do like a crafty glance in as I walk past, especially around Christmas time when everyone has lights, trees etc up and everyone's home looks so pretty and cosy.

Isn't it a bit like going on Rightmove when you see a local house up for sale - that you have no interest whatsoever in buying but do fancy a sneaky look inside? or is it just me who does that?