Redrawing the View from Your Window
In Chicago, the houses can be REALLY close together. You could reach out of your dining room window and hand a cup of sugar to your neighbor who is leaning out of THEIR dining room window.
This seems to be a common problem in urban areas, whether you live in a house or condo or apartment. Sometimes you get a fabulous view. Sometimes you face a brick wall.
When we were living in a condo, we had dining room windows which faced the brick wall of the apartment building next door. We didn't want to cover the windows with all sorts of curtains because it would have blocked out the light and hidden the woodwork around the windows. (It was a lovely 1929 era building with great details.)
I installed top-down honeycomb shades, which helped with privacy while maintaining light. However, the view was still the same. Bricks. Lots of bricks.
This design feature created by my father-in-law at his house inspired me to do something similar in front of my dining room window.
I strung IKEA lanterns ($6 each!) on varying lengths of slim chains from an iron curtain rod across the top of the window. I didn't take a photo of it at the time. I wish I had.
The chains and S-hooks were from a local hardware store and cost very little as well.
Because I'm going to use this same trick in our current dining room after we've finished with the trim. (Along with the top-down shades.)
Why?
The lanterns fool your eye. You are drawn to looking at the lanterns in the window instead of the view. And when the little candles are lit in the evening? Magically pretty.
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Comments
Neat idea!
Posted by: Kristin | July 10, 2006 10:49 AM
With 6 feet between my house and my neighbor’s decrepit asbestos shingles this could be the perfect idea for my own dining room dilemma here in Seattle. I thought my only option would be some giant Boston ferns, but there's no way they'd get enough light. With what little sunlight we tend to have up here, and how much of that sun might actually find it's way down between the houses and trees, I don't think would be enough to keep them alive. Artificial plants... not an option... but lovely flickering candle lit lanterns definitely are! Thanks guys!
Posted by: molly | July 10, 2006 11:07 AM
Cool idea. But how do you attach/extend the curtain rod outside?
Posted by: Jake | July 10, 2006 11:58 AM
I should have clarified...for my house, I attached the lanterns to the curtain rod INSIDE the house. The lanterns hung just in front of the windows inside.
My father-in-law has his lanterns hung from the ceiling at the end of their porch OUTSIDE of the house.
My idea was inspired by his. :)
Posted by: jm | July 10, 2006 12:04 PM
I thought those lanterns looked familiar! We have one on our mantle. We bought it when we lived in NJ near the IKEA in Elizabeth and did live that close to the neighbors (who were really nice people, btw). Now we live in Florida south of Tampa. Nice place, houses set further apart, but nowhere near any IKEA stores.
Your father-in-law's setup looks really cool and I'm sure what you're planning will be very classy looking, too.
Posted by: Lillian | July 10, 2006 1:13 PM