Why You Should Install Window Valances

Window valances are a great decorating tool that any decorator or homeowner should consider using. Some people may see them as unnecessary because they do not serve any purpose in terms of blocking out light, and there only reason for being seems to be decorative. But that is not true because there are many reasons that you should use window valances and many window valance tips that will make your home more beautiful.

First, window valances are often installed to hide the hardware for hanging curtains. The metal bar that curtains hang from is not usually something that goes with your décor and the valance boxed in around the curtain hardware hides it well. You might think that you would run into a problem with the hardware for hanging the valance, but valances come with something called a header which you rarely see on curtains and also they are shaped around into a box like formation. When the fabric is folded around to make the pocket for the rod the valance manufacturers make two seams to make the pocket rather than just one. As a result you actually get two pockets. The top pocket is destroyed by cutting at the very top of the valance and the resulting fabric at the top is called a header. The header is a good distraction to take the eye away from the rod pocket and it is not as noticeable. Even more important is the fact that valance hardware includes not only a rod that extends the width of the window, but also small rod pieces that turn back towards the wall. The valance looks like a box and you cannot see behind it to look at the hardware.

Another reason that you should use window valances is that they add the necessary color and texture that you lose when you elect to use blinds instead of curtains. Blinds are preferable because they still let in some amount of light even when you have them down to block the harshest of the direct sunlight. Curtains or drapes tend to block out all natural light unless they are sheer curtains. The downside to blinds is that they are plain and unimaginative. The plastic or fabric blinds are almost always some solid color and very rarely an interesting color. Window valances add some spice, color, and texture to the mix and make your windows artful. Since there are not many opportunities for color in a room almost entirely filled by kitchen furniture, it is important to take advantage when you can.

Finally, the window valance can be a way to help tie the breakfast nook together with the kitchen, two rooms that are separate, but should flow together. It helps make two rooms fell like one when there are lines that the eye can follow seamlessly from one room to the next. If you install a window valance box at the same height as the top of your kitchen cabinets so there is a continuous line, it will be easy to move from one room to the next without feeling any interruption has been made.