apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I have a similar problem...radiators (built into alcoves in the walls with metal covers flush with walls) under all of my windows.

Solved the heat blockage problem by making floor length curtains out of two fabrics -- a popular look these days. I use a heavier fabric from the rod top to just under the sills with a complementary sheer from just under the sill to the floor. I use a band of the heavier fabric at the very bottom of the curtain, to give it an integrated look. Works well, allows some fabric creativity....if you sew or know someone who does....

We have an entire wall of our townhouse that is windows, and after much shopping around found that blinds.com was the way to go for ceiling-mounted roller shades. Though it's not listed on the website you can have them spring-mounted (instead of attaching the pull chain to raise/lower). We had an issue with the quality of one of them, and the customer service couldn't have been better -- they sent a new one without charge almost immediately. Poke around on the internet for discount codes and save money for other projects.

Not sure what style your home is, but the Handwerk Shade Shop makes beautiful vintage-style roller shades to order: http://www.thehandwerkshop.com/

I love my roller shades! I have similar windows and they do give a nice clean look.

You could always make/have them made in a cool modern fabric or get colored ones.

talking of shades - what does everyone think of the shade store?

How about fabric roman shades? Clean and classic.

i have a similar problem. i want window coverings but don't want curtains because i hate having to take everything down to clean - i have bad allergies and my cat likes to hang out in curtains - ones by my bed make my allergies go INSANE (in the membrane). so i thought about geting bamboo shades because i thought they would be easier to wipe clean. but all the ones i've seen are like the regular ugly white blinds that landlords put up in all apartments - at least in alabama they do. the ones currently in our new apartment are the nastiest things i've ever seen and are impossible just to wipe down because of their overlapping eachother. what's a good idea? i like the idea of roman shades but those don't seem to be any easier to clean, either.

i had this same problem and ended up going with a baseboard deflector like so:

http://www.amazon.com/53-Baseboard-Register-Air-Deflector/dp/B00009W3G9

no matter if your baseboard is flush on the floor or angled into the baseboard like mine, this redirects air going behind your curtain or roller blind and into the room which is where you want it. otherwise imho you're just heating up the cold air around your window into room temp.

you can find these in any home depot or lowes.

susan, one last comment - deflectors allow you to keep the curtain look. you just "puddle" the bottoms of your curtains on top of the deflector.

asliee - i've had good experiences with the shade store. they were the only ones who could make shades for me in the enormous size i needed for my windows (over 12 feet tall). i was totally amazed by how quickly the shades came - i think i got them in, like, 3-4 days. the quality was very good, and the shades look great once i found someone to hang them.

i also bought a panel system from them to cover my closet entrance in lieu of doors or a conventional curtain. that also came quickly, was easy to put up, and looks great.

Smith and Noble makes a wide variety of both roman and roller custom shades. I really like their roller shade options. They have a variety of trim and mechanism options including headers that hide the roller mechanism, and wood or metal bottom weights/handles.

If you want to save money, it is very easy to make your own custom roller shades with a kit from a craft store such as this one from Joann's

http://www.joann.com/catalog.jhtml?CATID=82447&PRODID=71954&source=search

What about no shades, and swing arm (aka crane) curtain rods instead?

Take a look at how they're featured recently by West Elm:

http://www.westelm.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?partNumber=WE-PRODr386&storeId=17001&langId=-1&catalogId=17002&viewSetCode=E&parentId=WE-SH1RUGHDW&retainNav=true&cmsrc=WE-SH1RUGHDW

Depending on the material you use, you might get a combination drape/curtain and shade effect without the heaviness of formal-ish drapes. Just a thought. Plus, you can use only singles for across the entire window-to-the-lower pane length rather than floor length (with less heat redirection where you don't want it.)

I have bamboo shades in my living room and absolutely love them. they in no way look like those awful vinyl shades and it's a nice way to get a different material in your home. I've got them paired with curtains that I keep in curtain hold backs about 85% of the time but they look great on their own as well. I have to admit that they do get stuck at the top roller thing once in a while and one of the 2 hasn't kept it's shape perfectly, but they were so cheap that I may just replace that one. it's easy to fix them when they get stuck - just pull at the string a bit from the top and it's good as new. On another note though, I love that swing arm one by West Elm. Don't know where they'd go to in my apartment though - there's no wall space for them to swing open onto. Guess I'll have to stick with my imperfect, but lovely, bamboo.

After shopping around for solar shades at specialty blinds stores (and realized how much they cost), I ended up finding solar shades that fits the dimensions of my window at Bed Bath and Beyond...although a lot cheaper in price, they actually look really clean once put up. These do not give you total privacy though keep in mind...

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=107508&RN=686

If you're looking for a cheap solution, I hate to recommend them, but Wal-Mart does have vinyl roll-up shades that are between $5-$12 a shade depending on size. That might also be a good option if you'd like a test shade to see if you like how it looks before going and buying nice ones elsewhere.

Thanks so much for your great suggestions! I really appreciate your help. I do want to invest in something that will look good and that I will be happy living with. Smith and Noble is currently having a sale---maybe I can catch it!