Windows provide a multitude of wonderful styling opportunities in your home, and in an age where natural light is the best possible interior trend, we all know that more windows are better. Unfortunately, there is one window-based conundrum that continues to cause headaches for homeowners everywhere – the dreaded street-facing window!
Famed for ruining your privacy and driving you up the wall, a street-facing window can ruin even the best rooms in your home. In fact, if you’re fed up with people staring in, you might start avoiding them altogether and letting whole rooms go to waste.
But you don’t need us to tell you that avoiding those rooms simply isn’t necessary. Instead, you could benefit from dressing those street-facing windows in the following crucial ways.
Bring in the Blinds
Blinds should undeniably be your first port of call when thinking about what to do with that street-facing window. As well as looking fantastic from a design angle, blinds offer some of the best window privacy you could hope for.
However, once you start researching, you’ll realise that there are a multitude of blinds to choose from, and they all serve a slightly different purpose. For instance, motorised blinds provide a great option thanks to the ability for easily controllable privacy that doesn’t require significant effort. Equally, wooden slatted blinds allow you to keep your blinds drawn and your slats open, thus saving some of the light you’d lose otherwise.
Equally, you could opt for Roman shades, which consist of one block of fabric that entirely covers your window for guaranteed privacy, albeit at the cost of daylight. Either way, blinds could bring back the privacy you’re so sorely lacking from your street-facing windows right now.
Try a Window Tint
If you’re reluctant to completely cover your windows with an option such as blinds, then it may also be worth considering something like window tinting. Like tinted windows in the back of your car, this ensures that nobody looking through that window will be able to clearly see into your rooms.
What’s more, window tints are another option that’s fully adaptable depending on your preferences. For instance, it’s possible to buy satin frosted windows upfront, and doing so ensures a permanent level of protection with a guaranteed natural finish.
If you don’t want to invest in tinted glass, which does tend to be more expensive, then it’s also possible to invest in high-quality tint films. These are a great DIY option, and can be easily applied to your windows without the need for glue or complicated equipment. There are various options to choose from, including slightly darkened tints, frosted options, and more. Bear in mind that these tints will need replacing semi-regularly to keep them looking fresh. However, this is a fantastic affordable alternative.
Why Not Split Your Window?
If you love your view or value natural light in your home, then you may be reluctant to fully block your street-facing window. After all, you won’t end up using those rooms regardless if they’re constantly dark and uninviting! So, why not consider splitting your window dressings to give you the best of both worlds?
This is easiest to do if you have two separate window panes, one on top of the other. In this instance, you can apply blinds or tint solely to the bottom pane. That way, you can block the view of passersby, while still being able to see outside yourself and invite plenty of light in. You can also achieve much the same effect by carefully applying tint wraps to the bottom half of a single-paned window.
Bear in mind that this option doesn’t provide quite the same privacy as some of the other options discussed. People will technically still be able to see some of your room this way. But blocking the best part of the window can still help you to feel more relaxed and private in general.
Not to Forget Net Curtains
When you’re walking down the street and looking in street-facing windows, you’ll probably see one dressing more often than any other. We are, of course, talking about net curtains.
This is perhaps the most traditional way to gain privacy despite on-street windows, and it’s something that can add a real sense of the country aesthetic to an older or cottage-style home. Net curtains also bring the benefit of ensuring that some light is still able to travel into your rooms, and also that you can still look out yourself if you desire.
The only downside with net curtains is that they do tend to look quite old quite quickly, and crumpled, yellowing nets aren’t going to look great in any home. It’s also fair to say that nets don’t generally suit a more modern or minimalist interior if that’s what you’re aiming for.
Consider Getting Decorative
So far, we’ve considered the different ways you can dress your street-facing windows for privacy, but some homeowners choose to go down a generally more decorative route. As well as being a great way to elevate your room in its own right, adding window dressings like fresh flowers or well-displayed ornaments in place of blinds or nets can help to make your home attractive to passersby, while also keeping their eyes on your window, rather than whatever’s happening behind it.
The key to keeping these decorative elements looking great is to simply clean or refresh them often. You should also ensure that they tie in nicely with the rest of your interiors, to make that windowsill a home addition you can be proud of, and which you won’t feel the need to hide away.
Conclusion
Street-facing windows can be difficult to manage, but we’re here to tell you that they don’t need to be sources of shame. Whether you opt for the total privacy of blinds or the more decorative addition of fresh flowers on your windowsill, you can embrace those on-street rooms in your home once more!
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© Copyright 2025 Antonia, All rights Reserved. Written For: Tidylife
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