How high (and wide) should you hang curtains…?
So our new rental has lots of curtain rods hanging everywhere. Like many.
I mean, with all these empty rods, what can a girl do but hang curtains???
I will tell you, however, that if you look at the photo above, you will see TWO PROBLEMS with the placement of the curtain hardware – the rods hang too low and they are too narrow. In the eyes of this decorator, it creaks teeth !
Don't make the same mistakes! It's actually very easy to hang your curtains the right way. There are just two simple rules. Ready?
#1) Hang your rod HIGH HIGH HIGH. The higher your curtain rod, the taller your windows appear.
So where exactly to put it? Well, I'd say 99.99% of the time you want to put that rod JUST below the ceiling. Like, JUST BELOW. Not halfway up the wall.
This is a good example (although I feel like these guys could have gone even higher…!) Via
I know it feels weird! I know it feels so weird hanging the rod all the way up! I'm telling you, do it anyway! Once those curtains are up, I can promise you'll be one “oh that looks amazing”.
Look, if you have a cathedral ceiling, okay, don't mount the rod all the way to the ceiling. If that's the case, I recommend hanging the rod about two feet above the window. But for the rest of us ?Just think, “The higher the stem, the closer to God.??
#2) Extend your curtain rod so that it is AT LEAST 7-10″ beyond the edge of the window.
See in the photo below how the rod continues, well past the window stop? THAT creates the illusion of space and makes your window appear larger than it is.
Going through
In our new rental home, I actually extended the rods 13 inches beyond the window. I really try to go as wide as possible.
You will also see in the photo above that the rods are NOT as tall as they should be. Because it is a rental I was not able to remove the rods and hang them higher...they SHOULD to be at the very top, to touch the ceiling!…
But at least I was able to expand them. That alone makes a huge difference.
Just to illustrate the impact "taller and wider" has on a window, take a look at this graphic:
Going through
Is it amazing? Need I say more?
I'll share with you next time how I DIYed better curtain rods…for less than $20!
