Dear Roman Polanski,
I know you’ve been quite controversial recently, and I’m not going to comment on that. What I will comment on is the fact that you share a name with my favorite type of window covering (Roman Shades). And perhaps that counts for something. Actually, no it doesn’t…
Roman Shades are a great alternative to drapery for a few reasons. Firstly, if you’re a dude (or a butch lesbian), they’re way more masculine in appearance than a flowing drape. Having them in your apartment and/or home will make you look way less ladypants than a house full of girly drapery. Not that there’s anything wrong with looking ladypants. I’m wearing women’s jeans right now. Secondly, Romans are more modern. So if you like rectangles and hard edges, a roman shade is probably much more your style. Finally, I like romans because they are practical for spaces where you can’t allow drapery to fall all the way to the floor (i.e. behind a bench or somewhere you’ll be sitting). I’m not a fan of curtains that don’t go to the floor (often called “cafe curtains”).
The only problem I have with Romans is how expensive they are. Making them custom normally costs $250-$500 per window, which makes them totally cost prohibitive for a lot of people. But Emily turned me on to this great resource that I’d like to share with you. Don’t be scared by the name (believe me, I was). It’s a company called Country Curtains. The name might conjure images of someone named Jeb sitting on the front porch playing a ukulele whilst chewing on a piece of straw, but don’t be scared, they actually have some great stuff. Recently we used their Cordless Roman Shades for a client and I’m super happy with how they turned out. Each window cost around $79.50 (the cost is based on window width) so we did the whole project for less than $600 (which isn’t bad because there were seven windows altogether).
Here are some images of the breakfast nook with newly installed Roman Shades:
In addition to the style we ordered, they have some other great options. I like this Woven Cordless Roman Shade. $86.50 – $116.50.
This Ticking Stripe Rolling Shade is adorable, right? I want to put it in my bedroom. We would have used it for our client but there’s already a lot of pinstripe in the house and that would have taken it over the edge. $46.50 – $54.50.
The Woven Shades also come with a border, which I like for a slightly more formal look. $89.50 – $119.50.
This is another image of the style we used for our client. $69.50 – $199.50.
Now that I’ve discovered how cheap these Romans/Roller shades are I kind of want to put them all over my house and/or my body. I love you Romans! Not you, Roman Polanski; you’re totally a weirdo.
Love,
Orlando
Ohmygosh. I just stumbled onto your blog today and I love it! Hilarious. Plus, I’m learning random stuff about making my house pretty and liveable. Gracias.
I’ve always liked the roman shade too. I’ve used it in several clients homes, but I never know where to end the little flap at the end. I usually wind up ending the shade with at least 4″ bouillon fringe that just drags over the edge of the sill. I see you took the flap all the way past the sill. Is there a rule?
I use them so much and like them so much that i sometimes put Roman shades on top of my Roman shades. Then I watch The Pianist and Rosemary’s Baby once they are closed.
And when are you going to blog? Miss it terribly!
For one of our first apartments I made roman shades for three 8-foot high windows. I love them for the same reasons, crisp, sharp lines, modern-looking, unfussy. I must have sewed 12,746 little round plastic rings on the back of those suckers for the pull ropes. By hand. It was totally worth it, but man, that was quite a job. My only excuse is that I was 9.75 months pregnant at the time and wasn’t thinking clearly. Now that I know where to get them reasonably I won’t have to suffer through either again. jajaja.