Thank you msjay2u for the link to the vent extender and deflector which I know will be helpful in some rooms. I think as long as I do not put heavy curtains on my two windows in my bedroom and I treat them separately, I will not have the worry I thought since I will not need the 4.75" clearance I thought I did and 2.75" will just work. If I find that I need 3" and the sheers are too close to the vents, I love the deflector idea so the sheers will not be touching the metal heating vents. I guess no one knows what is best for my door since I have the links above. This post has helped me greatly since now I do not have to find a curtain rod a little bigger than 120" long and if I ever sell my home, I really did not want to block the balcony door but I could not see it any other way until all of you opened my eyes and I know one of the treatments will work. I still would like to open and close my sheers so I am thinking that 3/8th white rod with the cute pineapples on the end may be nice or the clear ones but the I am not sure if I will be able to open and close the sheers or lace. Does anyone on this list have the Shari or the Emma Lace and/or anyone can tell me which they like better since the Shari sheers I would have to order online and their white says "cool white" while the Emma Lace panels says only "white". I also still like the crinkled sheers in a less bright white but I am waiting to see if there are any other people who read this post who would like to vote. I got so much done today and that has made me realize to take my time and I will love whatever I do to my windows. Thank you. P.S. Did you see my link above to what my heating vents/registers look like? You seemed to have gotten it right with the deflectors.

Thanks everyone. I have been busy trying to clean the sawmill that doubles as my bedroom but now I'm back to curtains. It's a serious issue because the bathroom is more than ready to be used (at least the toilet and sink). Yes, I saw those country curtain viol panels. Thought about a shade (my DD votes for that one too.) I *hate* the thought of driving for 45 minutes to be able to find something I can look at in person. Frosted windows was the original plan but DH nixed that idea because the doors are antiques and he wants the beveled lights. (Really, I think he was intimidated by the frosting process). I'll look for shades but am wondering if I'd be able to take the time to pull them down every time and still make the toilet. :+" Thanks everyone.

"now do you have an opinion as to whether there is such a thing as drapes that are too long" Um, heck yeah? ;-) I detest the puddled thing, to me it looks sloppy, like someone was too lazy to hem their curtains to the proper length, although other people think it's a very luxurious look. ajsmama is also 100% right about the dust bunnies! Pets have also been known to "nest" in the fabric that's on the floor. I've seen dense, heavy laces (the cotton laces do tend to be weightier than the polyesters) puddled, and it does look rather better than the really lightweight sort, but I still don't think it's practical or attractive. Me, I like long WTs to stop about half an inch to an inch from the floor so they don't catch as many dust bunnies and you can vacuum without fussing with the curtains, but I'm also willing to compromise aesthetics a bit for practicality. With the very complex laces with a lot of bottom detailing, an inside-mounted sill length, which many people think of as being an informal style, can still look quite formal because the lace is so intricate. Just for pity's sake don't use tension rods. Use an inside-mount barrel-bracket rod instead. Here's a picture of one style and of another. The visible-screw ones are cheaper from annwallace.com, just the pics on that site kinda stink. IMO inside mounting something longer than sill length looks sloppy where it flops over the sill. If you want to go long, whether you go 84" or 95" depends on where you want to put your rods. If you want to do a casing mount or wall mount parallel to the top of the casing, measure from the top of the casing to the floor to get the correct length. I don't like to see a lot of wall between the rod and the window casing, so IMO the "put rod up near ceiling to emphasize room height" routine only really works with a WT that's going to conceal that area, and lace usually isn't dense enough to do so. I'd rather have curtains hemmed to the right length than place my rods based only on a stock WT size. (Remember that most laces are hemmed from the TOP by removing the stitches creating the preexisting rod pocket and sewing either a new pocket or a hem for hanging from rings. Sewn-on rings look MUCH better in a formal setting than clip-on!) I also don't like those clear plastic "lace curtain" rods, I think they look tacky. Use a good quality brass or wooden rod (very traditional) or a finish that matches lighting fixtures, door hardware and suchlike other metals in the room.

They remind me of panels from the Rue de France catalog, which sadly is no longer in business. However, you can still occasionally find their curtains on Ebay and Esty. I have come across similar panels at a website called Olde Worlde Lace, but I've not ordered anything from there. Here is a link that might be useful: Olde Worlde Lace This post was edited by sweet-tea on Tue, Aug 5, 14 at 17:32