Blinds, Curtain Poles, Curtain Tracks, Interior Design, Net Rails

Kitchen Window Inspirations 5: Retro

Put a little fun into your kitchen with a retro window dressing to compliment your retro style kitchen. Retro designs are very much in-vogue this year as people identify with the past to bring a new look into their homes.

Option 1: Curtains:
Retro kitchens almost always have curtains and it’s here where you can bring the retro look to the forefront of your design. Choose bright colours and retro patterns to make three-quarter length curtains. Simple ribbons to tie over net rails or extendable curtain poles – the type which work on tension so there’s no need for drilling into the window casing. Standard curtain headings can also be used, more especially if you want the curtains to cover the whole height of the window, and standard curtain tracks can be used to hang them. Making your own curtains is part of the retro scene and is easy to accomplish with the use of a sewing machine.

Option 2: Blinds:
Blinds can also be used to get the retro look. Venetian blinds in particular have been around for many decades and offer an easy to fit and no-nonsense approach to window dressings in kitchen. Aluminium Venetian blinds where being used in offices and found their way into people’s homes as an excellent, practical window dressing choice. However, in the post war years the majority of people didn’t have any spare cash to spend on blinds, therefore home-made curtains were the norm for most people, with many opting for curtains made from tea towels until such time came when money for material was easier to find.

Option 3: Valances:
Top valances were also used in the post war years. This type of window dressing gave the look of a window dressing when in reality the valance used the minimum amount of fabric with maximum effect. Today valances are still used, but typically with kitchen blinds rather than as a stand-alone window dressing.

Maybe this is because in today’s world we don’t want people to be able to see inside our homes when artificial lights are turned on – especially when a kitchen is at the front of the house – whereas in the 50’s many kitchens were situated at the back of the house and neighbours kept an eye out for strangers and challenged them if they looked at all suspicious! We also mustn’t forget that many women stayed at home all day, so opportunist thieves weren’t as ‘lucky’ as they may be today – just a thought.