Mount your rod up near the top of the wall so the valances will reveal more of your window. It will also make your ceilings appear higher. (Are you putting up crown molding? If so take that into consideration about where to mount the rod.)

You can definitely thread 2 poles together to get a longer width, but it is more difficult with the twisted rods to get them to look continuous. Ideally you would like to have a support bracket under the join. So perhaps buy 2 - 6 ft rods (or 5 ft if available) and have a center support under the join. You will need a doubled sided screw to make it work.

As far as the treatments themselves go - do you like them? If so, use them!

If you are ready for a change - perhaps use panels alone and still hang the rod up high. You could do 2 seperate poles (avoiding the join) and use the twist poles - which look really nice! Try to look for a heavier weight drapery - something more substantial. If I were doing custom on that window - I would have 2 width panels for fullness.

Downsy - Yes we do want to do crown in the near future. Forgot to mention that.

6 ft. would make sense. I know they made that size.

I don't know what I think of the current drapes. I like them in person but on pictures i think they look like a different color and horrible.

Believe it or not there are two panels on each side! That just goes to show how not full they are. There's definitely something missing/wrong with the window.

Sheesharee,
Your paint looks WONDERFUL!! Wow - it really pulled your sofa & wood tones together!! I love it! How did I miss it?

To be honest, I do think the current drapes are a little wimpy. I would wait until after Christmas to get any....I bet there will be great sales. I think you need something with some weight to it - pleated on rings. I do like the rod you have chosen very much.

Smiles:)

I've noticed in decorating magazines that valances, especially fancy ones, are very rarely used any more. A more modern look would be panels alone. Besides, you have nice windows and the valance takes attention away from that.

We bought nice curtain rods from Home Depot and did have to use extenders on some of our windows. They're really not that noticeable but can be a pain if you have full panels that you have to open and close over the extenders. Fortunately we rarely close those curtains since we have no neighors who are close enough to look in and live on a hill with a very long driveway, far above the road.

Johnatemp - Thank you! I really like it and agree it helped pull everything together. It matches the color in the furniture pretty darn exact.
Heeh, wimpy drapes. :) Deep down I knew that.

Ingrid - I know they're not really in. I normally don't care for them but something about these struck me. I think it's the tassels. What are extenders? Is that threading two sections together?

Since the window is so wide I guess I thought it looked goofy/unbalanced when I just had panels on the side. Like wide window, puny little drapes. It may be because there's not a lot of weight to them.

I'll probably just got with the rod the whole way across. Did consider using the short ones for the ends but not sure if I'd forever want them to be stationary.

So now if I get two 6' (72") for a total of 144" above my 100" window... I'd imagine I need to saw part of the end off? There would be 22" on each side beyond the window trim. That's most of the wall. (wall length is 18') I consider this rod to be an expensive purchase so before I go buying and sawing I need to get it right. :)

Sheesharee,
Did you see Polkadots room she posted last nite? Her drapes would look wonderful in your room. They are neutral but appear to have enough weight to balance out your sofa & ET.

If you don't plan on opening & closing these drapes all the time....you could get plastic paint over a larger diameter PVC & put it over your exsisting rod!! Then you would just have to buy nice looking finials & rings. I love being thrifty - have to be:)

2 panels on each side with rings in a textured fabric - maybe slightly darker than your walls. If the tassels attracted you to your valances - you can go & get some fun fringe in the colors of your sofa & put it on the inside of the drapes - you can pin this on or hot glue it!!

Smiles:)

Johna - I did just check out Polkadots room. I really like it. Asked her how wide her window was. Looks like it could be close to mine? I don't think hers looks dumb at all. It has to be my current curtains I have up.

Never thought about the PVC thing. Has anyone done this? Hahah I can see DH's look on his face when I tell him I'm buying PVC as a curtain rod! I am kind of shocked at the cost of the rod(s), brackets,finials, and rings. There's only 4 or 5 rings in a pack so I'd need a bunch. I'm not worried about being able to twist the two rods together and making them fit. I'm very picky about that type of thing.

Back to what length rods should I buy for the window? If it were attached in the middle, under the support bracket that wouldn't hurt it? I guess not if it's screwed together right?

How far past the windows should the rod go?

I feel another thread coming on for the drape color//texture.

You can buy wood closet rods in different diameters and lightly sand it then stain and varnish it. My bay window is ll feet and that was the only way we could get a rod up there that wouldn,t sag after a few months.I think my kids were pulling down on the panels which bent the brackets down in the center with the wood its thick enough to be self supporting so they cann,t bend anything.

I think you are on the right track, but really need to think seriously about whether or not you want operable drapes or not as based on that choice I have two different recommendations for your rod.

If you want operable drapes then I would definitely get 2 6' rods and screw together with a center support bracket.

If you are OK with stationary panels then I would prefer to see two decorative support brackets placed at the divisions between the windows. The support brackets can provide a dual function of supporting the rod and breaking up the long horizontal line of the rod. As the WTs cannot cross over the support brakets this would not be a good choice if you need the treatments to close.

My LR window is also 100" wide. I had custom WTs made and a professional measure through Calico Corners. For some reason I cannot find my paperwork right now or I'd give you exact measurements, but my rod looks to be 12' long which has 22" for each side for the drapes to stack back behind the window--which is how I'd requested it. Keep in mind my drapes are VERY full, operable, pinch pleat so your stack may not be as thick when open. For your case, I think I'd guestimate about 18" per side for the drapes to stack back so they don't obscure the sides of the window--though you could probably just screw the two 6' rods together without even trimming them--depening on how full you want your drapes to be.

We were in similar situation to you as we had the measure done before the crown was installed then had the crown done before the drapes were hung. Hanging crown can be a tad messy so I wanted that to go up first. In your case, I would keep things as they were until you are ready to do the crown and then change it all at once as once the crown is up you may prefer a different placement. I had requested a gap between the rod and crown and drapes were custom made to allow for that, but when it was hung there really was no gap. They were going to shorten the drapes and lower the rod when I decided I preferred it that way after all--so it does bear thinking about carefully.

Here is a picture of mine:
{{!gwi}}

I also just thought that another concern is whether or not your walls are square or not as when hanging a long rod like this plus installing crown if anything is out of square adjustments need to be taken into account so that the line between the crown and rod does not look crooked. Hope that makes sense.

Madeyna  IÂll look for some closet rods this weekend out of curiosity. I donÂt know that IÂve seen them that long or big in diameter. Than again, IÂve never been on a hunt. :)

Val  Well thatÂs a lot more info to think about. So if I were going to have them stationary youÂre saying to use two brackets between but NOT on the ends? Sorry if that sounds like a really dumb question. I like that idea. How do your drapes close? You have one of those rods that the hooks slide in the rod? CanÂt think of what itÂs called. I guess I wouldnÂt mind having them closed at night. Since the couch is there IÂm not sure how much of a pita it would be everyday to be opening and closing.

Your drapes start at the very edge of the window right? I think it looks good! It must just be me. I look at my window and thought it would look odd to place them that far out. What diameter is your rod? I can guarantee you the walls arenÂt square. My kitchen ones arenÂt so IÂm sure the LR isnÂt any different. Never thought about the two lines for crown and curtain rod. I am very picky about that sort of thing. A little off will really bug me. What the heck do you do there? Adjust the curtain rod? Ahhh I didnÂt want to do the crown before the rod. I guess I need to call and get some pricing. IÂm assuming I would want to order crown to be the length of the wall right? WouldnÂt want to be piecing sections together?

Also wanted to mention did anyone noticed I moved the flower lamp that didn't go? . . . :) It's in my bedroom. I don't think my sister noticed yet. Besides the fact that it doesn't go, there's not really any room for it. Once my office is finished I'll move it there. That'll be awhile though.

Sheesharee, wanted to let you know that I did answer your questions back on my post. Hope the info is of some help. I also wanted to let you know that your paint looks awesome - I continue to be amazed at the difference paint can make in a room. Great choice!

shesharee: I was at Lowes this AM where the Allen & Roth rods were on display. They looked very nice and substantial. I think the scale is right for the size window. My only concern is how the rings will move back/forth over the barley twist rod. What I meant by putting the brackets where the division is between the windows would be for the added brackets--so in the scenario you'd have 4 brackets and decorative panels. If you want to leave your options open though it would seem better to do two 6' rods with three decorative brackets which is similar to how I did it in my bedroom with an 8' slider--my bedroom rod is also from Lowes, but different brand. My LR rods are very $$$ custom rods from Kirsh--don't ask how much I paid as I cringe to think about it now. I was so overwhelmed with it all, I just went with a expensive custom solution. They are traverse rods with "fake" rings and were made to fit. I think they are about 2" thick and the rings adds to the thickness as well. Though they are very simple to open/close since we have the pull down the left side whereas the ones in my bedroom I have a fling rod on each side and I need to pull each side to the center. The fling rods do really help open and close and you can get different lengths so you would not need to scramble over the sofa to open/close. In hindsight doing the rods similar to what you are describing would've been just fine and I would've save a lot of money. Let me know if you want to see a picture of the setup.

sheesharee: I don't know how I missed your post?!?! I love the color of the walls and YES I noticed the flower lamp was not in the pictures. I've just scanned over the replies so excuse me if I'm asking a redundant question. I agree that a thicker curtain rod is needed but do you need the drapes for privacy or are they just decorative? I'm sure you've told me before, so again I apologize for my ditzy ness.

Val  So whatÂs a fling rod? Ha again excuse me for my ignorance! IÂm assuming some type of pole thing that would allow me to pull the rings over without standing on the couch. I actually just looked this up but IÂm only seeing curtain rods? Or is it one of those long rods that are attached to the rod somehow? I wouldnÂt HAVE to close them. I really like the look of the twisted rod. Plus I think the other ones they had were only 1 ¾" diameter. It would be a nice option to be able to close them I guess. Really donÂt know that I would. IÂd hate to buy the rod and new curtains only to decide later that I want to close them at night and they donÂt reach across!
The more pictures the merrier if itÂs not too big of a pain for ya.

LetÂs pretend I donÂt want to close them. . . what size rods should I put together? Still the two 6Â? I need to head out there this weekend and look at that stuff again for the 100th time.

Mldao  Hi! Did you get the last email I send you with the links of my paint etc? Thanks! I REALLY like the wall color. IÂm amazed at what paint can do to a room.

My front yard is pretty big. There is a road across from it but no houses right around that area. I live out in the sticks so thereÂs not that many people that drive by. Ha I guess the short answer would be decorative. IÂm still not thrilled at night with it being dark and I canÂt see out but people could see in. Getting used to it.

bump

Shee: If it were my window, I'd get the 2 6' rods and screw together with a center bracket at the join and two end brackets. It will allow you to keep your options open. I keep thinking people must be tired of seeing my house because it's not near as nice as others' but anyway here are some closeups of my bedroom drapes where I used the Lowe's rod with rings. I took off all the clips and fed the drapery hooks into the backs of the little loops. I just love the looks, it works well for opening/closing and was fairly inexpensive.

These are a layered treatment with 2 rods. The white inner rod is for the sheers which are kept close 99% of the time for privacy. For your project, I'm talking about just the outer decorative rod which is the one I bought at Lowes--not as thick as the one you are considering, but this is for an 8' sliding door with a 1' stack back per side for total length of 10' span.

fling rod is the white rod in the pics. I attached it to center rings along with the last hook:

Back side of my drapes which shows how I attached the hooks to the rings:

I was at Lowes yesterday and checked the length on the closed rods and the banister railings they carry up to 12 foot lengths in each and if you have a handy husband he could it on the fancy end peices for you .The banister railing is the thickist of the two. I have a heavily scrowled curtain rod in one of my rooms that is wood but it came with the house so I don,t know where it came from.Now I am thinking it was probly origenally a curtain rod.

Val - First off, what are you talking about? Your house is really nice!
Thank you for posting/explaining that. I know it takes time to take the pics, load the pics, upload the pics, post... I like the look without the clips too. Actually the rings they have that go with this rod don't have the clips attached. I couldn't figure out how the heck you were suppose to attach it! :)
I'm going to head out this weekend and look again. DH is going to be the one buying this stuff for me. Real surprise Christmas gift. :) Should I buy the rings now or wait until after I get drapes? They've had the rod for like a year, that would be horrible if they discontinued it and I had to find rings somewhere else.
I think the rod might be painted... it's dark with some highlights going on. Using one of those fling rods to opening and close, do you think would wear the paint funny?

So glad I came across this post... I also have a 10' living room window that I have just ordered drapes for but I need to buy a rod and accesories very soon. The drapes will not cover the entire window but just be panels at each end and come a few inches over the moulding on each window..The woman making the drapes told me to get 2 6'rods, 3 brackets, 2 finials and 18 rings..(and a partridge in a pear tree lol) And the rods should be substantial and be 1 7/8" or 2" wide, so the rod you chose is perfect at 2". She also suggested if I wanted instead of a center bracket to get a holdback instead for a bit of interest in the center of the rods.. I'm not sure how she intends to join the 2 6' rods but they will be installed on 12/22 so I can let you know thereafter... I will be heading off to Lowe's to check out the rods for my windows thanks to you.. Your room is lovely, the paint looks great... good luck with your drapes!

Val: your window treatments look great.. and thanks for the tip about the "fling rod".. I will look for them for my dining room drapes!!

Am I going to need to saw part of the rod off? The window is 8.3'. I might just have to see when I get it.

Val - Your drapery hooks are pretty short? Where did you get them?

mom2girls -Thanks! The holdback is an interesting idea. I'm not sure how I'm going to join2 6' rods either. :) Like I said I'm pretty sure I saw a bag with a screw thing there that was called a threader. I'm concerned about each side not matching up. Yeah, please post a pic once yours is up. Look forward to seeing them!

If anyone has any other suggestions about where to get a 2" + diameter rod that's not over $200 (w/ accessories) let me know!

Shee, here is a link to someone that used pvc rods for her drapes like I was talking about earlier. My MIL did it, but hers were covered in fabric for valances. This person above sprayed hers dark brown...just buy nice finials & glue to the ends. Very reasonable!

Smiles:)

Here is a link that might be useful: pvc rod!!

You are getting so much good advice here--wish I'd known of all these options when I was out searching. Just buy everything you think you'll need and a little bit more. There are different finishes and you want the rod and rings to all be the same style and finish. The purpose of the fling rod is just to open and close your drapes without touching the drapes with your hand--like they have in hotels. It does nothing to the rod itself which would not happen from the rings going back and forth over time on the rod. Rubbing off the finish could happen with any rod, though I would not worry about it. If it did, I'd just touch up with a rust-o-leum product. You may be over thinking it--saying from someone who over thinks everything. The rod I liked was not in stock and so I had to wait about a week for it to come in and then they only had limited qualtities of the rings. The quantity of rings you need is dependent on your drapes. As mine are pinch pleats I needed one per pleat plus 2 more for each end. Drapery hooks I bought at JC Pennies, though could probably get at Lowes as well. End treatment was the most difficult but chelone, a poster here who I believe makes drapery for a living, told me what to do at that time.

Hmm... well I should probably figure out my drapes huh.

New thread!

Val - "For your case, I think I'd guestimate about 18" per side for the drapes to stack back so they don't obscure the sides of the window--though you could probably just screw the two 6' rods together without even trimming them--depening on how full you want your drapes to be"

So I actually can cut the rod on each end if I attach to the middle and the ends should still go on? I want full, thick curtains but I don't know if I want 22" on each side full.

I just want to tell you how much better your room looks now that you've painted it. The wall color really helps to pull all of the furniture together and warms the room up. Good job!

Thanks Terriks! I really like it and am amazed at what paint can do!