To think that people who keep their curtains closed all day must be ill, or hiding something?

[Bluedeblue]

The first thing that I do, when I get up in the morning, is to open the curtains. Possibly a window as well, to let a breeze in. There are a few houses nearby, who never open any curtains. Bedroom and lounge curtains are always firmly closed, even on lovely summer days. The gardens are unkempt and scruffy, all the paintwork is peeling. But someone definitely living there, as in one case, a brand new car on the drive and I've seen pizza delivery to the other. Does anyone else find this really odd, and think that there must be something amiss with these people? It must be so dark inside. I find it almost a bit creepy.

I keep mine shut to keep the house cool and confound nosey people who care about the state of their people’s curtains 🤦‍♀️

@Bluedeblue

The first thing that I do, when I get up in the morning, is to open the curtains. Possibly a window as well, to let a breeze in. There are a few houses nearby, who never open any curtains. Bedroom and lounge curtains are always firmly closed, even on lovely summer days. The gardens are unkempt and scruffy, all the paintwork is peeling. But someone definitely living there, as in one case, a brand new car on the drive and I've seen pizza delivery to the other. Does anyone else find this really odd, and think that there must be something amiss with these people? It must be so dark inside. I find it almost a bit creepy.

We keep the front ones closed as we live close to other houses so want privacy. Also don't want people looking in not because We got anything to hide but just like our privacy. Also having curtains closed keeps room cool in summer. Not dark inside as curtains open at back into garden and also got lights which we can switch on. To put a different slant on this topic:- We always find it strange when people got lights on at night and anyone can see in their houses as that's how stalking etc starts

Also- possible shocker for you- but some people do work night shift- so surprise, surprise, they dare to sleep during the day, therefore the curtains closed.🤷‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

We have shutters (helpful )

We always find it strange when people got lights on at night and anyone can see in their houses as that's how stalking etc starts

On the street I grew up in, there lived a Policeman and his wife. Curtains always open at night, with all the lights on and....he was always stark bollock naked!

"To put a different slant on this topic:-
We always find it strange when people got lights on at night and anyone can see in their houses as that's how stalking etc starts"

I agree - if the light is on in our house the blinds are closed. Hate the thought of people being able to see in when it's dark

Mental health difficulties. Depression, fibromyalgia, chronic illness in general.

We don’t have any curtains

To put a different slant on this topic:-
We always find it strange when people got lights on at night and anyone can see in their houses as that's how stalking etc starts

We usually have them open at night. Nothing very interesting for anyone to see, just us watching TV or reading. As far as I know this has not led to us being stalked (and can't really see why it ever would!).

Just keeping the sun out. That ok with you OP?

@Bythemillpond

We don’t have any curtains

Aw bless.

When I was a young person, I rented a small flat which had no curtains in some areas. I hung a big towel or a duvet cover over the windows :).

I like curtains closed because that is how I like it. I doubt anyone notices and if they do, I care not.

I keep my bedroom curtauns clised because i have a huge window and don't want people seeing me ir my husband in the nude or doing the deed...sometines i forget to open the downstairs curtains but they always get opened later on.

Ooh, you could be talking about us!
Our curtains are often closed during the day as dh had multiple eye operations several years ago that made him very sensitive to light, even on days that seem overcast to us. He is still working from home, so isn't tucked away in his darkened office at work.

If you passed by our house, the garden isn't always immaculate and the paint is definitely peeling. I am the only person in my house that is able to fix it. I am an unpaid carer, so I don't always have the energy to deal with those things on top of everything else. I don't have a big chunk of money to pay someone else to sort it for me. The new car outside is dd's Motability car. Takeaways sometimes arrive here too!

My bedroom curtains are usually shut because I had an unfortunate experience involving eye contact with someone on a double decker bus stuck in traffic when I first moved in and hadn't realised quite how much you could see in

I have my curtains shut for many reasons, first I live on a main road and don't like people looking in. Add to that I suffer awfully with anxiety and depression and I feel less anxious with my curtains shut, with regards to my garden (which is also a bit of a mess and needs doing), the mere thought of being seen an seeing someone while trying to do the garden makes my anxiety sky rocket, and the longer it stays a mess the more scary the thought of going out and facing the people I live next to. Finally I also have a car as I can't do public transport and I also order a lot of take aways in which yes I know they are not good for me but I literally have no energy or motivation to cook and I have to feed my kids and myself as we have to eat. I also have several other health issues that affect day to day life. So please don't judge so easily as people are having a hard time as it is and worry that people think this of them and its a really difficult life to have trust me I'd give anything to be even half more healthy than I am.

My neighbour does this day and night she sits in with lights on, she’s 80 but very bright, and complains I don’t pop round enough, but it’s miserable sitting in there
she lost her husband few years ago and also her adult daughter, wondering if that’s anything to do with it, there’s only three houses here and we have fields two sides then trees, she has a lovely garden too thanks to her gardener but never sees it, we have asked her round but she refuses, then drives herself to her hairdressers once a fortnight… it all seems quite sad to me.

I guess we are all different.
i was brought up with curtains had to be opened in morning and then shut in evening when lights were switched on. (Sunny days different and keeping heat out etc) so thats normal
to me.

I saw someone
else’s comment and I always remember being told when a child (prob because I had not opened the curtains !) that if curtains were closed in front room it meant someone had died. That stuck with me and I love the light anyway.

i don’t think it makes any difference and anything goes, but personally want my curtains opened but i do have blinds I use if I want a little privacy. I can not think of any friends who do not open curtains.

Exactly the same here, my blinds used to be open until I got sick of people looking in and when I stuck 2 fingers up at a person gawping in my lounge for longer than polite and they got affronted by my behaviour.

Honestly, people do not respect privacy. Luckily my house is very light and closing the blinds doesn’t affect us too much.

old thread

ignore my comment above don’t know how that happened

Most people who keep their curtains open have blinds of some description to block some light and give privacy. If you can only afford curtains you don't have this halfway option.

We have a dog who barks at every passerby and a neighbour who hates the dog so if we're out and can't keep dog away from window blinds go down and white noise goes on so the dog chills

Has nobody on MN heard of nets? That way you have priivacy and light rooms. Only need to draw the curtains when it's dark enough to put the inside lights on.

We keep our curtains firmly closed. We were on a “shortcut” to the local secondary school and because our house was on the corner, loads of children would just wander through our front gate, down the garden path at the side of the house and out via the driveway.
We didn’t know about this habit the local children were in (and many many old ladies did the same going to the shop and church) when we moved in, so whilst we fought the landlady, we kept our curtains closed for privacy. As soon as we were allowed to, we changed the gate for a padlocked 6ft thing and a couple of big heavy driveway gates that I shut once DH had left for work, which kept the nosy people at bay.
Due to this, I am paranoid about people staring in my house and despite moving towns, I still feel as if I need to preserve my privacy with keeping my curtains drawn.

I have to have the blinds open and windows open. I can't stand a stuffy house. Even in the winter we have the windows open for a bit in the morning. We have blinds, they are easy to adjust so you can have them open but people can't see straight in. Ive been on some houses on home visits where they have everything closed and it's grim.

And the light on means blinds closed. My family take the pee out of me because as soon as someone turns it on I'm like "close the blinds".

Edit d to add, the garden usually.looka nice but there are times it's a jungle so I'm hit and miss there

I've always quite liked gloom, even as a small child; I find it atmospheric and cosy. My ideal light level is usually "just enough light to see what I'm doing and no more".