Curtains are often overlooked in the decorating process, the importance clearly underestimated…. The functions and benefits terribly underrated. The question ‘how to pick the right curtain style for my home’ deserves some exploring. Colours or neutrals, plains or patterns, heavy or light, curtains will enhance décor and elevate your comfort …. Let me help you to choose the right curtain style ……
Heart Strings – NAUTILUS Australian House of the Year
This is a sunken lounge, in the entertainment level of the Australian House of the Year. The objective here was to create a, cosy enclosure, separated from the vast openness of this large open space. Anna Livia used metallic ‘waterfall’ string curtains. The successful outcome was visually stunning, with a heightened the sense of luxury.
Mellow Moments – Cronulla
Evening sun needed some gentle, management in this, beautiful Manhattan inspired, apartment at Cronulla Beach. The window treatments included bronze, wide blade Venetian blinds, with wide black tapes. Alongside, a gold/black, soft drape sheer. The sheer served to filter the evening sun, casting golden, mellow light throughout the apartment, while the Venetians closed off the glare of the sinking evening sun.
Beauty isn’t everything … unless its Functional too.
At Anna Livia, we love to decorate, but there are guidelines for a successful outcome … #1 The solution must be PRACTICAL #2 it must be BEAUTIFUL. This is always our order of importance, when it comes to designing a window solution, or decorating a room or an entire house. In this example, these hand crafted rods and finials, are a combination of rebated timber rods, with S-Fold tracks. The bulk is reduced, the rods become a beautiful feature in the room. Add to that, hand painted finishes in glorious colours, and wonderful classic fabric colours and design… Functional + Beautiful = PERFECT
“Good things come in small packages”……
Space was the main concern for this clients, baby girl’s bedroom. Insulation and light control were also top priorities. Space, Function and Scale were also very important. This is often the case in children’s rooms, which can be small. With no wall space available to use for a curtain stack back, we chose Roman Blinds. We ticked all the boxes, and we added no visual clutter. The use of the delightful, Sanderson Alphabet fabric, brought fun and colour to the room.
Casual Comfort Reigns
The main concern with this living room, which overlooks a golf course in south Sydney, was functionality and privacy. Our client valued the lovely view, but privacy was sometimes compromised. Our solution was to use a ‘pocket weave’… as the face fabric. Additionally, a separate block out lining was added, to guard against cold weather and importantly, to add an extra layer of privacy. The pocket weave added a sense of casual elegance to the room…. and a little exuberance too. The linings were anonymous, and out of sight until required.
Smooth as Silk – Heathcote NSW
Heat and light control were the issues for this client. Along with outside noise. However, beauty and elegance were not negotiable. We handled both issues 100%, with a ‘beautiful’ visual outcome. Two, contrasting coloured silks, were selected as the face fabrics. With silk, we always add an interlining, this creates a ‘cushion’ for the silk, giving an almost quilted look. The interlining greatly elevates the thermal factor, and also enhanced the acoustic function of these curtains. The WAVE heading allowed us to reduce the amount of fabric we used, as double fullness is all that is required for this heading style. Using the same fabrics, we added pelmets with a ‘stepped’ design. We carried this design through to the bedhead.
These are just a few examples of how curtains can elevate your décor, no matter what your taste. At Anna Livia, there is no ‘one size fits all’…… every situation needs a solution tailored to suit. We often use a combination of treatments together, to get the optimal outcome. Anna Livia will help you to pick the right style of curtain for your home. Suitable to your specific needs, and décor style.
Watch out, for our blog post on the features and benefits, of the many different styles of blinds available in the market. Our favourite blinds, and why they are our favourite.