Country Home Curtain Ideas

Before shopping for curtains and supplies, jot down a few notes (along with window measurements) about the individual rooms that need curtains. Privacy, light, color, and type are a few of the particulars worth noting.

Tips

• Kitchen curtains should be washable, durable and easy to remove because they require washing more frequently than other curtains due to the smoke, grease and cooking odors they’re exposed to.
• Except for bedding, curtains are typically the biggest use of fabric in a room. You can add color to a neutral room by using curtains with a pop of color or pattern, or help tone down a busy room with simple curtains in white, cream or beige.
• Florals, plaids and ginghams are typical patterns used in country-style décor, but you can incorporate many other styles into your country home and stay within the theme. Pastoral toile, lace, soft suede, denim and loom-woven textiles are a few less predictable options that enhance the comfort of country style.

Hardware

One method of adding country décor to your window treatments, even if you use basic store-bought curtains, is to hang them in unusual and creative ways. You can use a tree limb, fishing pole, canoe paddle or an antique shot gun in place of traditional curtain rods. If you’re using curtains with loops, you can line up several antique coat hooks, crystal doorknobs, antlers, bent pieces of vintage silverware, copper cookie cutters or country-themed drawer pulls against the wall at the top of the window and hang the curtains from them. Curtains with grommets or loops are the easiest styles to use with alternative rods, but you can use café clips to adapt almost any type of premade curtain for use with unusual hardware.

In some cases, as with using several individual hooks, the position of your curtains will be fixed, which means you won’t be able to easily adjust them to regulate light or privacy. That’s why it’s important to have a clear understanding of the purpose of the curtains before you purchase or install them. If you like the idea of using creative, but fixed, curtains, you can install wooden blinds or privacy curtains inside the window frame, and use the less traditional ideas as a decorative addition.

Repurposed Curtains

Shopping in places other than the curtain aisle of your neighborhood superstore may inspire some of the best curtain ideas for your country home. Look for tablecloths, towels, blankets, sheets and even shower curtains to fit your color scheme and decor. You can sew loops or pockets or insert grommets into the top of any of these items, but if these simple crafting tasks are still too much trouble, hang them directly on the wall with double-stick hook and loop closure.

In addition to new materials, look for vintage crocheted tablecloths, doilies, embroidered pillow cases, chenille bedspreads, quilts, decorative ladies handkerchiefs or yardage in second-hand stores, flea markets and yard sales. With the magic of double-stick mounting tape and creative hardware, nearly any textile can be made into a casual window covering.

Creating Your Own Curtains

If you still can’t find the right window coverings using these ideas, consider making your own. You don’t need to be a seamstress or even own a sewing machine to make a set of curtains. You can secure hems with iron fusible webbing strips or fabric glue. Attach country-style embellishments like over-sized gingham buttons, simple animal silhouettes cut from felt or silk flowers with hot glue or double-sided hook and loop adhesive tabs.

Decorate a plain sheet, or plain, store bought curtains with stencils for a custom look. One trip to the craft store supplies you with everything you need for an easy stenciling project that will add lots of style to your curtains without a lot of money. If you’ve never stenciled before, practice on a piece of paper before trying it on your curtains, and remember that “homemade” always has a few mistakes and irregularities.