Wow! Amazing the Transformation Curtains/Drapes Can Make in a Room!

Welcome to the 672nd Metamorphosis Monday!

Happy Monday Morning! I hope your weekend was amazing! This past week I’ve been working here in the bedroom.

New Painting for the Master Bedroom

 

After adding this Charles Pinson Giclee painting over the bed recently and seeing the way it really transformed how this room looked and felt, it got me motivated to make another change in this space that I’ve thought about doing for many years–the addition of fabric window treatments. I already have plantation shutters in place, which I do very much love, but I love the cozy softness that curtains or drapes add to a bedroom.

By the way, do you know the difference between curtains and drapery? I didn’t know at all but I found an article online that said the main difference is that drapes are normally lined with a blackout lining–a popular choice for bedrooms. In my mind, I’ve always thought of curtains as being shorter and drapes being curtains that came all the way down to the floor. I would love to hear your take on that!

Bedding for Birders, Chickadee Bedding

 

If you were reading BNOTP last week, you would have seen these drapes I purchased recently for my bedroom. I miraculously caught them during a brief sale when they were 40% off. I say miraculously because when I came across them at the website, it was only these exact drapes in the specifications that I needed (dark green, 96″ length, blackout-lined) that were on sale. Such a strange sale–not sure why the other drapes just like this, without blackout lining and in different colors/lengths, were not on sale. Update: They are doing it again…this time it’s the Alabaster color that’s on sale in the 96″ length with the Blackout Lining. You’ll find those on sale here: Worn Velvet Curtains.

Green velvet curtains, worn velvet style

 

To hang them, I gathered together a few supplies. The ladder I purchased a while back and shared with you was perfect for this job. This handy shelf made a world of difference, especially since I was hanging these by myself. (Ladder is available here: Sturdy Ladder with Shelf.)

Tools for Hanging Drapes

 

So here they are, all hung up!

Draperies Warm Up the Bedroom for Winter

 

These photos were taken at different times and it was nice and sunny out on this particular day.

Velvet Drapes for the Bedroom

 

This photo was taken on a recent rainy day and it may have been closer to nightfall.

Cozy Bedroom in the Evening as Night Falls

 

Adding drapes definitely changed the look of this room, just as the painting did. They really cozied it up and I noticed they have a sound dampening effect, which is really nice. This room wasn’t “loud” before, but I do like how they absorb sound as you walk across the room. I had forgotten how adding drapes to a room can do that. I should probably consider adding a rug back again sometime but I love the look of the open hardwood flooring, too.

New Drapes for the Bedroom, Dark Green Drapes, Worn Velvet

 

A year or so ago, I added this mercury-glass style floor lamp to the corner near the chair, a great spot for reading in the evenings. I love this lamp but it has always felt a touch too “modern” for this space. With the addition of the drapes, I decided to steal a lamp from another room for this spot.

Floor Lamp, Mercury Glass Ball Style

 

I pulled this brass floor lamp from the upstairs living room (bonus room) and I like how it looks here much better. This chair has a matching mate that’s currently stored in my basement. It looks the same, only it’s a bit smaller. It’s covered in a very worn/stained rose-colored velvet. I need to have it recovered because it would be great on the other side of the secretary.

Master Bedroom Updates with Worn Velvet Drapes

 

The worn-velvet drapes and the brass floor lamp have made this room feel all grown up. I think I need a bit of time to get used to that. lol

Brass Floor Lamp, Reading Corner in Bedroom

 

These were the curtain/drapery rods I purchased for this project. I did my old trick again, purchasing rods that were a lot longer than I needed for the width of my window so I wouldn’t end up with a visible “seam” where the rods come together in the middle. (Read more about that in this previous post where I added drapes to the dining room: Dining Room Addition: French-Pleated Check Draperies.)

Worn Velvet Drapes, West Elm

 

These rods are the 72-144 inch length that you see here: Drapery Rods. My windows, counting the molding around them, are around 35 inches wide. I didn’t use the center extension piece that came with this rod, just used the two end pieces, pushing them all the way together which means the seam where they met is hidden behind one of the drapery panels. That accomplished two things: 1. There’s no visible seam–just looks like a solid rod and 2. I think it adds strength and support, which comes in handy when you’re hanging heavy drapes like these.

Worn Velvet Drapes Hanging

 

Another view looking across the bed into the dressing room…

View of Worn Velvet Green Drapes During the Daytime

 

I’m really happy with how these look here and I think they will work great with my summer bedding, as well. We will know the answer to that come spring. There are quite a few more things I would love to do in this room, but for now, it feels much more complete.  If you love the look of these drapes, you’ll find them available in a bunch of different colors here: Worn Velvet Drapes. Drapery Rods are available in various lengths here: Drapery Rods.

Draperies Warm Up the Bedroom for Winter

 

Looking forward to all the great Before and Afters linked for this week’s Metamorphosis Monday!

Pssst: Did you know Between Naps On The Porch is on Instagram? You’ll find me on Instagram here: Between Naps On The Porch.

Like to know when a new blog post is up and available to read? Subscribe for email updates, it’s free and your email will never be shared.

Subscribe for free post updates via email here: Subscribe.

Metamorphosis Monday

Metamorphosis Monday is a party that’s all about Before and Afters. Please link up your Before and After projects like DIY projects, room makeovers, craft projects even recipes. Any Before and After is great! Please do not link up Table Settings, save those for our Tablescape Thursday party on Thursday.

If you are participating in Met Monday, please link up using the “permalink” to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on your post name, then just copy and paste the address that shows up in the address bar at the top of your blog, into the “url” box for InLinkz when prompted.

In order to link up, you’ll need to include a link in your MM post back to the party so the other participants will have an opportunity to receive visits from your wonderful blog readers.

 

This party has ended, click button below for the links to all who participated.

Click here!

 

*If a post is sponsored or a product was provided at no charge, it will be stated in post. Some links may be affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases. *



 Never miss a Between Naps on the Porch post! 

*Subscribe to have updates delivered to your Inbox. 



Comments

  1. I love how your drapes look in the room Susan! So cozy and warm looking. I can imagine the spring bedding will look amazing as well, making the room look fresh and clean. I like the second lamp better too, goes with the room better. I thought drapes were where you had to use the “pins” to hang them and curtains slid onto the rod. Goes to show what I know! lol Glad I know the difference now, drapes are lined, I feel a little dumb now. lol Love how your bedroom looks now Susan, I vote to keep the floor open although rugs are nice, I’m like you and like seeing that beautiful flooring. Hugs, Brenda

    • Thanks so much, Brenda! You could be right, I only checked the first site that popped up in my search so not sure if that’s the “official” definition. I like your take on that!

  2. The drapes are gorgeous and really make the room look finished! And I applaud you for changing out the lamp. The brass one definitely looks more traditional and a better “fit” for the rest of the decor. Love, love, love this bedroom!

    • Thanks so much, Maureen! Appreciate that so much! Yeah, the mercury-glass lamp just didn’t look quite right in this space–I’ve been wanting to change it out for a while. Unfortunately, I now need another floor lamp for the upstairs living room! Ha!

  3. Love the chair. Where did you find it?

    • It (and its sister that’s currently stored in my basement and needs to be recovered) belonged to a family member who inherited it from another family member. Have no idea how old it is but it must be around 60+ years old now.

  4. Your drapes are lovely, and combined with your winter bedding your room looks very cozy! Enjoy! thanks Susan~

  5. franki Parde says

    GOOD MOVE to replace the drapes…very elegant AND cozy!! franki

  6. Therese Comere says

    I love the drapes! I just prefer drapes in a bedroom. I hung silk panels over my plantation shutters. And about the word ‘curtains’…curtains are short, casual window coverings at, say, a kitchen window; drapes are long. I don’t know why designers started referring to drapes as curtains, but between you & me, it drives me nuts. LOVE your bedroom — so beautiful & cozy. Perfect!

    • Ohh, silk panels sounds beautiful! I always think of curtains as being more casual, like something you would have in a kitchen window. Thanks Therese!

  7. The drapes make the room feel complete as well as cozy! Great addition. I like the brass lamp as well. I always appreciate your attention to detail!

  8. I would love a tutorial on how to hang drapes by yourself! Great job and they are beautiful!

    • That could be a good post, thanks for the suggestion, Dee Ann. Every situation is a bit different. For both these and the drapes in the dining room, I ended up mounting the rod support piece right up against the crown molding. I did a lot of the planning and plotting with the drapes on my bed, on the rod.

      When I laid a drapery panel on my bed and bunched it up as tight as it could go on a rod, it took up right at 16 inches of space, so I knew that’s how much wall space they were going to take up on either side of the windows once they were up. The hanging tabs on the back of these drapes are really, really wide so they create a natural spacing for you when you hang them up.

      I also took a rod, with a drape hanging on it, over to the window and climbed the ladder to see how it was going to work and how high I wanted to hang it.

      Since I didn’t want the drapes to block the view out the window, I measured out 16 inches from the inside edge of each shutter panel to know exactly where I wanted to mount the rod support piece.
      I used the plastic wall anchors that came with the rods and I drilled a hole in the sheetrock for each one of those, using a drill bit that was slightly smaller than the anchor itself.
      I started over in the far right corner since I was very limited on how far over I could go at that corner–it was the natural place to start.

      Once I had one set of drapes up and saw that my measurements were working great, I quickly had the second set hanging. The only cumbersome part was putting the second panel onto the rod while standing on the ladder because these panels are quite heavy. I felt really safe on that ladder though, because of how it’s designed with wide steps.

      The initial measuring and planning is a bit intimidating but it’s really not hard. The worse thing that can happen is drilling a hole in the wrong spot and that would be easy to cover up. Fortunately, I didn’t have to do that.

      • Thanks so much! I guess if you measure the height for the drapery brackets correctly, you don’t have to be too concerned about them being level.

        • In my case, I didn’t have to do that because when I held the drapery panel up alongside the window, I could tell that I needed to mount the rod support right up against my crown molding since the drapes were ever so slightly bunching up on the floor. That seems to be the way a lot of them are designed now–to touch the floor. So I just used the crown molding as my guide. If the crown molding had been installed crooked, I would be in trouble, but it appears to have been installed level/straight. You can see how I have the support mounted against the crown molding in the 12th picture down in the post.

  9. I love the drapes you added. The color is gorgeous. It really cozies up the room. Sort of elegant and cozy at the same time. I’ve always thought drapes were long, to the floor, and curtains were short – as in cafe curtain and came to the window sill.
    Love the change of lamp, too. I bet it feels wonderful at night with the glow of lamps on. One can never have too many lamps I always say.
    I’m on the fence about adding a rug. While I love hardwood floors, a rug might be nice. But, I’d hold off and live with this beautiful room for a while and decide later. 🙂

    • Thanks so much, Anne! I so agree, we can never have too many lamps! You and I definitely see eye-to-eye on that! 🙂 I would love to find a small chairside chest to put on the side of the chair that’s on the other side of the room (not visible in this post) for a lamp there. I love having some lamplight all the way around the room. That’s great advice, I’m just going to wait since I don’t mind it without a rug for now.

  10. Your drapes look amazing!! Velvet drapes are one of my favs. So classic. These compliment the room so well & make it so cozy and inviting. Don’t think I’d ever want to get out of bed on cold mornings lol. I think a matching valance over the window in the adjoining dressing room would tie in nicely too.

    I used to make custom drapes and personally referred to floor length as such and ones to the sill as curtains. Custom drapes were always lined & also interlined depending on fabric to give the drapes body and hang nicely.

  11. Your room looks finished! The drapes are the jewelry and they look fantastic! Enjoy your “new” space.

  12. The drapes are a beautiful addition to your lovely bedroom. I love your tip for getting a longer rod so the seam doesn’t show. Thanks. I hope I remember it when the time comes for me to dress some windows (I’m moving next year)
    The lamp substitution is perfect. I just love your blog!

  13. What a pretty room! The drapery really is a beautiful change.

  14. Judy Hubbard says

    I think the drapes are stunning for winter and into spring but may be too dark when you lighten things up for spring and summer. I have winter drapes, which are darker and heavier, and then spring/summer which are lighter both in color and fabric. Think you should consider this!

  15. Sharyn Kimbrough says

    Susan, love those drapes and rods. It adds a richness and a “finishing touch” to your bedroom. Keep on with your wonderful blog.

  16. Such a perturbing question. I remember reading (maybe it is 20 yrs. ago or longer now though) that you were not to say drapes, always say drapery. I’m so relieved that I can finally say drapes but I always thought they were long straight and heavy. I have some long straight lace panels I call curtains, is that wrong? What about those gauzy, ruffled tie backs from the 1940’s ( watch some of those Bettie Davis movies), they can be long, aren’t they curtains? This sort of thing makes me crazy.

  17. I love the addition of the drapes. The color is great. I also love the rod and how you hung them.

  18. Now I will tell you I love your drapes. Draperies? See, I’m still afraid I will be sent to the dunce chair. I think I could use that color in my bedroom. I wish I had a bigger bedroom, I have a secretary desk just like yours that I would love to have in mine. Maybe now that my girls are gone I should switch bedrooms, they had the big room for twin 4 posters. I might have to do some redecorating. I don’t like to think about moving all that furniture, I do have two grown sons, son-in-laws and grandsons though hmm…….

    • lol Maybe I should go back and change the word Drapes to Draperies throughout the post. 🙂 Mary Lou, I just noticed that they have them on sale in the 96″ length (with Blackout Lining) in the Alabaster color, now. https://bit.ly/3ES0e4B So odd what they choose to put on sale. I’m tempted to order a set for my living room downstairs, but that room is really never used except for storage. Great price, though!

      • Susan, that is funny, maybe if you’re expecting your old language teacher to be checking. Speaking of language, how many times was I told, “It’s sons-in-law.” Oh well, forget it. I would love the velvet drapes in alabaster in my living room, I had some that color in a brocade years ago that looked so nice. I’d like to go back to that color scheme again. I have the the old decorative traverse rods in that room, do you think they could be used?

  19. The artwork and drapes warm up the space! Love it! On a past post, you stated you are a fan of James Farmer. I’ll bet he would vote for the rug! Besides on cold mornings, it feels good on your feet. You have inspired me to check out the website for the drapes.

  20. Susan, I LOVE them! Your bedroom looks so much cozier and more polished with the new additions. It’s amazing how a couple of changes make such a big difference. It already looked pretty, but now it looks ‘wow’ pretty! Haha. So glad they worked and you’re happy. AND that you got such a great deal. I bet you’ll find yourself hanging out more in your bedroom. 😀

    Now I can’t wait to see how they look with the Spring / Summer bedding, lol.

  21. Susan, the drapes look great, and really warm the room. It was lovely before, but now its stunning.

  22. I suspect that in the worst of winter, if you closed the shutters and pulled the drapes/drapery, it would up the insulation factor quite a bit. Add in the pre-heated flannel bedding and I say, “bring on hibernation!”

  23. Oh, those velvet curtains are great in your room! I’ve always thought of curtains as made of lightweight fabric (usually, but not always, short), and draperies as being heavyweight and long. I also think of curtains as less formal and draperies as more formal. But, I think all of this is just what I picked up growing up, and I have no idea what the actual definitions are.

  24. I love the new drapes, and the swapped floor lamp looks great. I’m sure you’ll find another to replace it in the other room before long.

  25. Love the new drapes!!!
    Thanks again for hosting this lovely party every week! I know how much time and effort goes into doing so and I want you to know that it is greatly appreciated!! Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
    Hugs,
    Debbie

  26. Bravo, Susan! All your efforts have most assuredly produced a stunning bedroom! It’s so cozy, it might make it hard to get out of bed on cold mornings! I absolutely love all of it.

  27. SO cozy looking! Great color and texture that really adds to the room’s warm appearance and feel. I bet you enjoy the new look so much….love when that happens!

  28. I was always told ‘draperies’ were what hung over the windows , a noun, and drape(s) was a verb! Curtains were less formal window covering.

  29. This bedroom is stunning and the new drapes make such a big difference! It’s perfection. Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy holiday season. Thanks so much for hosting, CoCo

  30. Love your new drapes! I think they do add the finishing touch to your room and drapes are always a more elegant look. Merry Christmas to you, Susan!

Leave a Reply to Susan Cancel reply

*