To think that blackout curtains are a big lie

[miamiamaria]

I've bought two pairs of blackout curtains recently for my baby's nursery to try to keep it as dark as possible and both are just normal curtains that let the light in. The first pair were from Ebay, so fair enough I will take the blame for buying cheap ones. Second pair, went to a high end shop, read all the reviews that said they are great and they are just as shite.

AIBU to think that they are a big con?

Ours were brilliant. DS is nearly 18 now so don't know if they are still around, but we got them from Mothercare - you just attached them to the curtain hooks already hanging the curtain. Still using them now!
Their effectiveness will obviously be affected by things like how close to the window the curtain rail is, so that not too much light can creep in round the edges.

I got some from Dunelm for my DDs room and they are fab, obviously not quite as dark as the dead of night but not far off.

Do they fit your window right? My blackout blind is amazing.

I must have the wrong ones then. Yes the curtains fit the window with no light around edges I think I might purchase a blind rather than curtains.

Ours are good

They are curtains that go behind your existing curtains...if that makes sense

Fairly positive they were from dunelm

ours hang on the back of he normal curtains. They work fully

We got blinds rather than curtains, DCs 18 & 16 now, we all have them in our bedrooms. They are great.

Mine only work if there are no gaps. So I got Velcro stick on blinds instead.

You've just got the wrong ones.

They don’t work that well in my experience but the window lm using it on is huge

I got a black out blind for baby's room and it is lovely. The room isn't pitch black as we have a glass panel above the bedroom door, but it's dark enough.

Try gro blinds. They are brilliant

I bought mine from Amazon- they are brilliant, all sizes and colours, thick, soft fabric, good quality. www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01CNV27PO/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?psc=1&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&ie=UTF8

They cut out almost all light- of course their is a small gap between the curtain and the wall, so still a little light, but I would say a 90% reduction in light even with gaps.

Some sellers on Ebay and elsewhere are selling thermal curtains as blackout ones. That might be why they don't work.

I have blackout linings attached to normal curtains and they are good but not perfect. You need to read about 'pass' for the fabric, some is better than others (Google). Some of mine are very old and better quality than the new ones. You may need to buy the good fabric and sew tape on the top to get the best ones.

Yeah, they need to be totally no gaps. We had these ones - although damp tinfoil also works!

We have blackout blinds and curtains and together they're great. The rooms are as dark as night. We got them from Amazon and Dunelm.

Mine are from Dunelm and they're fine. The light comes in around the edges so you need them to go below the windowsill and wider than the window itself.

If you have tab top curtains they are hopeless as the light comes round them.. ( son ended up putting cardboard in his window). Like others, I bought blackout linings from Dunelm or Mothercare for pleated top curtains and am still using them.

When we holiday in France, the house has shutters. With closed shutters, very little light gets in, and the room is stygian all day.

Proper blackout curtains need to be very thick, and hang close to the wall to prevent stray light. We had them in the war, so they definitely work.

We've got normal curtains with the black out liners in two of the bedrooms and the living room, and the nursery has black out curtains, all from Dunelm and all really effective

It's all in the fitting.
We have huge Victorian windows
We have John Lewis black out ones in DS1s room & the spare they are fab and completely block out the light. Generous size needed when they are on poles, so there is a good overlap.
We have purpose made roman blinds in DS2s room and there ok but the light does creep round the edges (they came with the house so not my choice)
I made the ones in our bedroom and lounge, you can buy blackout lining - ours have thermal blackout lining so our quite heavy weight and even though our bedroom curtains are white and our living room our pale beige silk they all completely dark when drawn. Again they are generously cut to ensure they cover the edges well as they are on poles.

Ours our great, except where there are gaps.

When DD2 was smaller we added Velcro to her window-frames and blackout curtains to make a perfect seal.

We got them from wayfair, they were brilliant and made the room dark. But then again we didn't use to get direct sunlight either so that was enough.

We have blackout blinds and blackout curtains in all the rooms. Pitch black with those babies!

I bought from a baby shop, ££££ and they were rubbish. Then bought from Amazon, about £15 a pair for dc1 and they were great. Bought again for dc2, same brand but different (darker) colour. They seemed to let more light through so I bought a second set and put them both on (ring top curtains). They look great and block everything. For £30 I'm really happy.