Whether you want to let sunlight in or watch the world go by, there’s an intimacy that comes with a room with a view. Panoramic sunrooms and tall windows connect indoor and outdoor spaces, yet they can leave you feeling exposed.
The challenge is adding privacy when you need it while maintaining a bright and airy atmosphere.
Yes, the multitude of options can make the decision-making daunting. But if you decide on a price range and goal, half your work is done.
Window treatments are an efficient way to create a visual barrier. A bonus is they add a layer of sound and thermal insulation.
“There are window treatments that will allow you to have privacy when you want privacy,” said Melissa Birdsong, vice president of trend and design for home-improvement retailer Lowe’s Cos.
Blinds and shades
With the pull of a cord or twist of a wand, you can regulate views and light with miniblinds. Styles range from wood and faux wood to aluminum and vinyl. You can buy them off the shelf in standard sizes or have them custom-fitted. Pair blinds with sheers, valances, swags or cafe curtains to frame the view.
If you want unobstructed, sunny exposure during the day but need privacy at night, Birdsong recommends cellular shades, also known as honeycombs. These pleated shades, which stack up neatly, come in soft, lightweight textures that filter in natural light. An option is the bottom-up, top-down feature, allowing you to lower the shade from the top or raise it from the bottom. This would give you privacy while allowing you to see out above the shade.
Roman shades, a fabric window treatment that is raised and lowered in horizontal folds, “go a step further,” said Perrin Stephens, manager of a Home Depot store in Chicago. “These are more typically used for cosmetic reasons, but because they are fabric they allow privacy,” he said. “When they are sheer, you get more of a view than you would with cellular shades.”
Keep in mind ease of use. “Think about what you would have to do on a daily basis,” said Birdsong. “I had a room with 15 windows on three sides with roller shades. If you’re opening one, you get it a certain level. You want to make sure they all look the same. Think about what kind of effort it’s going to take.”
Roller shades drop down for privacy and room darkening or roll all the way up for a full view. This affordable treatment has seen stylish and technological changes in recent years. For starters, the mechanism that makes them snap tight has improved.
In addition to plain white or off-white, you can find an array of colors and styles. “There’s just a range of sheerness and opacity available,” Birdsong said. “There are also things like solar shades that block ultraviolet rays and improve energy efficiency.”
“Roller shades used to be so thick,” said Stephens. “Now you can get light-filtering window shades. The light will penetrate.”
Window films
Another treatment that has seen improvements is window film. If you associate window film with adhesives, wrinkles and bubbles, you need to check out easy-to-install decorative films. Many films resemble etched, frosted or stained glass, which obscure visibility through the window while letting light in. They are ideal for covering unsightly views, too, such as a rooftop or side of a building.
The newer decorative films cling to windows, allowing average do-it-yourselfers to transform windows in minutes. For example, Artscape films trim to fit and come in a standard 24-by-36-inch roll. The sheets tile together like wallpaper, making them perfect for odd-shaped windows. When you get bored with a design, simply lift off the film and try a new motif.
Mirror window films, made with a metallic coating, offer daytime privacy, said David Kaliser, business director for Gila Film Products, a leading maker of window films. The good news is these films are reflective in daylight, giving them a mirror appearance when viewed from the outside. The bad news is they work the opposite at night “so you cannot see out, but everyone else can see in,” Kaliser said. And the window looks like a mirror on the inside at night.
Gila makes a heavily tinted film that is “a removable, reusable film–a static-cling application instead of an adhesive,” said Kaliser. “It makes it more difficult for someone outside to see in. If you’re inside, it obviously cuts down the glare.”
Films also are available with the look of copper and lead caming.
Glass blocks
Glass block is a tried-and-true way to preserve privacy and let in natural light. Acrylic block is a lighter-weight, prefabricated version that serves the same purpose. The drawback with both is you will lose your view. Some glass-block windows conceal the view completely, while others allow those on the outside to see only shadows. Operable models allow you to open the windows for ventilation.
“Glass block is something that has been used for a long time in bathrooms,” said Birdsong. “They’re a great thing to use for replacing an existing window, and they come in lots of different textures and patterns.”
Other options
If you don’t have many windows to deal with, consider Japanese-style shoji screens. The translucent rice-paper panels are ideal for letting soft light into your home and keeping you safe from prying eyes. When you want to look out the window, fold the panels aside. But as Birdsong points out, “A freestanding screen might be a little more cumbersome to move during the day.”
Sometimes, the best way to gain seclusion is to think outside the home.
For Deanna and Wes Baumann of Winnetka, the solution was landscaping to separate their two-story colonial home from property next door.
“The houses where we live are spaced 15 to 20 feet apart,” said Wes Baumann. “Our dining room looks into the dining room of the neighbors.”
Putting up an imposing wall was not a consideration. “We have a strong aversion to fences, particularly the solid, stockade-type fences,” Baumann said. “We’re not big on putting up shades or something that blocks the total view. We want to be able to see the outside.”
Their contractor, Michael Blackwell, senior landscape designer for Chalet landscape company in Wilmette and North Chicago, planted a golden raindrop crabapple tree in 2003 outside their dining-room window as a natural curtain.
“Now, the tree is 15-feet high,” said Baumann. At about 10 feet wide, “the main part of the tree is in line with the windows.”
A dense row of dark-green arborvitae along the couple’s property line defines their boundary and serves as a year-round evergreen screen for their patio. “Our neighbors have privacy, and we have privacy,” said Baumann.
“Certain trees are denser than others, whereas service berries are thinner,” said Blackwell. “We might plant a service berry to break up the view or a golden raindrop crabapple, which has a nice foliage. Japanese maples, which may need more of a sheltered environment, will sometimes work.”
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brichardson@tribune.com
