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Original poster

Do blackout blinds work for 5.30am wakings?

34 replies

TracyK · 12/05/2005 14:01

ds always has been an early riser. Between 6 and 6.30am - which I can cope with as I'm in bed for 10pm. But he has been waking at 5.30 for the past couple of mornings, coughing and dozing till 6. He doesn't seem bothered as he dozes back off - but then I'm awake!
would blinds help - or is it cos he's a bit poorly with a cold that he wakes earlier.

OP posts:
late · 12/05/2005 14:02

kind of, gaps at bottom and sides can sometimes hinder but they are better than no blackout at all.

natts · 12/05/2005 14:04

my son is also an earliy riser and he did the same thing last summer so we bought some blind, definitly helped a bit.

bossykate · 12/05/2005 14:05

not ime - ds also wakes early during the dark winter mornings.

Chandra · 12/05/2005 14:05

Most definitively, without them DSis awake at half past four...

KateandtheGirls · 12/05/2005 14:07

But if he has a cold that would be my first guess for the reason he's waking early.

kid · 12/05/2005 14:08

certainly work for us. DD has one in her room and DS has one waiting to be put up in his room.

We got cheap ones from addiditons direct, lots of colours to choose from.

Original poster
TracyK · 12/05/2005 14:09

thats what I'm hoping kate!
Tho he has been having an extra long lunchtime nap (again maybe cos of the cold) so reluctant to wake him.

OP posts:
Distel · 12/05/2005 14:10

Don't work for my DS. He is 5 and is awake from 4.30 some mornings, most about 5.30. We have blackout curtains and they make no difference. He has to go to bed about 6.30 as we have tried keeping him up later and he is in such a bad mood he is unbearable, don't know what to do!!!!!!!

Fimbo · 12/05/2005 14:18

My two have black-out blinds as do we!! Definately helps on sunny mornings although you still get a slight gap at the sides.

robin3 · 12/05/2005 14:23

I bought a blind but wish I'd bought a curtain...they slip in behind a patterned curtain as a lining...u can get them at John Lewis I think and will cut out the light at the sides.

nailpolish · 12/05/2005 14:39

i got the blackout linings for curtains from blooming marvellous i think (or was it jojo? cant remember) anyway i think they work a treat

nailpolish · 12/05/2005 14:40

if you decide to get them order them now cos at this time of year they are always sold out (wonder why? )

loulabelle222 · 12/05/2005 20:13

just got back out blinds yesterday, last night ds slept from 7.15 to 7.30 normally its 7 till 5.30! soooo touch wood it has worked!

WideWebWitch · 12/05/2005 20:15

Have blacked out dd's room and it's been 5 bloody 30 since. 2 days and counting. HIDEOUS.

Gobbledigook · 12/05/2005 20:17

I think no because the light still gets in round the sides!

One summer we bought big sheets of black card from an art shop and actually stuck it against all the panes of glass (sellotaped it to the PVC border!!) - now that worked! The room was pitch black at any time of day with the door shut!!

WideWebWitch · 12/05/2005 20:23

That's what we've got, black thick card sellotaped to the windows, there's NO LIGHT in there at all.

loulabelle222 · 13/05/2005 09:16

i spoke to soon , again after two days it was even earlier today 5.15am!

Original poster
TracyK · 13/05/2005 19:32

I think I shall go down the black card route at first - to see if makes any diff as blinds would be £££££ - 4 metre wide windows!

OP posts:
cupcakes · 13/05/2005 19:57

We've found that the cardboard option works brilliantly. Dd was up at 5.15 every morning and would not go back to sleep so in desperation dh cut up a big cardboard box in the size of her window frame and fixed it in place. The first morning she slept in till after 7.45 - I had to wake her so I could take ds to school. The cardboard is starting to sag now and we were thinking about getting some black out fabric and fixing it to the window frame with a few bits of stick on velcro. Not particularly attractive but I am hoping that the light won't get round the edges then.

cupcakes · 13/05/2005 19:58

Traceyk - omg at the size of your windows!

ambrosia · 13/05/2005 20:04

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

lapsedrunner · 13/05/2005 20:32

Blackout blinds/linings definitely help, but then I've always used them so have no comparison! I also have a couple of 2-3 metre strips of blackout lning that I always take on holiday with me for ds (2.8), I either "shut" them in the window if not too hot, or stick it up with masking tape etc...my evenings of peace whilst ds sleeps are essential. Having said all that he is now waking between 6 & 6.30 am.

lapsedrunner · 13/05/2005 20:34

By the way, black card is great. Used it for so long when we first moved house (no curtain) that it took white spirit to remove the masking tape that had been holding it up .

Mosschops30 · 13/05/2005 20:41

Message withdrawn

LGJ · 13/05/2005 20:50

Black out blinds and curtains with blackout lining work most of the time.

A bit like Ambrosia, a couple of weeks ago, DS (4)woke up at 6.00 on a weekend, when told to go back to sleep, he replied, but it is morning in a very earnest voice. I barked back "not morning enough" he scurried back to bed and we didn't hear from him until 7.45a.m

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