Curtain Dilemma

[augustajones]

Have just bought some very nice curtains for our bedroom.

Length is 182cm which will hang halfway down the radiator when closed. DH wants me to buy the 137cm length so they hang above the radiator. Agree with him on the heat issue but am worried they will look naff!

Would appreciate opinions!!!

I've had the same dilemma, and have decided that while I prefer the look of long curtains, I think short ones are ok in the bedroom.

What I have done with long curtains before is tuck them behind the radiator when they are closed so that some of the heat can get into the room.

Or buy a black out blind and don't drew the curtains, have them just for show!

Draw not drew ... don't mind me I'm on a sugar rush!!

Thank you

Have 'curtains brain' so didn't even notice!

I think full length looks best. If heat loss is an issue then why not consider roman blinds instead?

Full length every time. Eg,to the floor. Do they come in a long enough length to make that feasible?

If heat loss is an issue then I too would be tempted to go with blinds for keeping out the prying eyes and leave the curtains for display/ summer use only when the heating's not on.

Uh oh...

This is making it even harder now!

Sorry :) oh dear, should keep my big mouth shut!

PS I am by no means a style doyenne so don't necessarily take my word for it! Altho I am partial to interiors mags.

Short or half mast curtains are a bit naff, sorry!
Why not a roman blind? They cost much less and are just as stylish as curtains and have none of the heat loss issues. If you love curtains then why not combine them with dress curtains for summer only or just for show as narmada suggests?

Have just been looking online and see what you mean about full length curtains. They do look good.

I'm not sure about roman blinds. We live in a 70s house and the bedroom window is quite wide. Curtain pole is about 267cm. Added to that, we have houses opposite so need something for privacy. I hate venetian blinds with a passion as they collect dust (and I have OCD!). Was thinking of nets (sorry I know they're naff!) but was going to cross that hurdle once decided on the curtains.

How hard is it to buy curtains?!

I've preferred floor length curtains for some time, but was recently persuaded to go for shorter, above the radiator curtains for dd's new bedroom so that the room can warm up properly, because they were much cheaper, and it's only a toddler bedroom. They look ok but I think in future I'll dig in my heels and insist on full length. Floor length keep the room darker (despite blackout linings, the light comes in under dd's new shortie curtains) and just look so much nicer.

Haven't mentioned floor length to DH yet. Have a feeling he may have a fit!

Could you have full length and move the radiator? Its not that big a job to alter the pipework.

Take your point about the width, you woudl need to have more than one blind.

If you have privacy issues then there is no difference between a blind and curtains as neither will give privacy in the day. Plain voile panels will though and would look good with long curtains.

SOme pics and ideas here
www.houzz.com/ideabooks/835602

We've just had this problem in our bedroom. We put up a nice wood Venetian blind and got full length curtains from IKEA to go either side. Essentially the long curtains are fake - I mean you could draw them if you wanted to but we don't! Can't cope with short curtains!