by Leslie Francis
If you have a set of French doors, then you have probably gone through the dilemma that many people do-cover them or not? Eventually the question may become what to cover them with, since traditional drapes don't work well. The typical French café curtains are sometimes the solution many people come up with. I'm sure you have seen them- a curtain rod at the top and bottom of the window portion of the door and a piece of material that is gathered on each rod.
With a little imagination, you can come up with ideas that will make your French doors more energy efficient or a room unique. You can still use the same curtain rods, if some cases, but newer ideas incorporate different ideas such as bamboo rods or wooden rods that look like driftwood, as an example. Loosely draped muslin, cheesecloth or silk drapes are a few artistic approaches that people have made into curtains for French Doors, but interesting rods can lead to a host of different ideas.
Marriage accustomed one to the good things, so one came to take them for granted, but magnified the bad things, so they came to feel as painful as a grain in one’s eye. An open window, a forgotten quart of milk, a TV set left blaring, socks on the bathroom floor could become occasions for incredible rage. And something happened sexually in marriage—the swearing to forsake all others, despite its slight observance, had a profound effect. Some people felt trapped by it, impelled to assert what they called freedom. Some accepted it like a rein, and in the effort to avoid pain in the form of hopeless desire, cut off occasions of desire, avoided having long talks at parties with attractive members of the opposite sex. In time, all feeling for the opposite sex was cut off, and intercourse limited to the barest politenesses.... But something happened to you when you did that, a kind of death seeped up from the genitals to the rest of the body, till it showed in the eyes, the gestures, in a certain lifelessness.
—Marilyn French (b. 1929)
Instead of curtains for French doors, you might want to consider brightly colored beaded drapes, using your original curtain rods. These are especially pretty if the sun shines through and can throw brightly colored light around the room, like a kaleidoscope. They are making a come-back from a few decades ago.
Another idea is roll-up bamboo blinds. For a room with a "green theme", they are a natural element that is being used in a variety of applications. There are a lot more styles of bamboo curtains, than the traditional toothpick width that most people think of. They are very classy and add elegance, or you can also find some that are brightly colored or feature designs and patterns. They should definitely be considered as an option when you are considering curtains for French doors.
There are insulated drapes that can make your French doors more energy efficient and give you privacy, too. Of course, you can use blackout drapes if they are letting in too much light, but many people don't like these kinds of curtains for French doors because they don't showcase the multiple paned windows that make French doors unique. What about a drapery wall?
The french are a logical people, which is one reason the English dislike them so intensely. The other is that they own France, a country which we have always judged to be much too good for them.
—Robert Morley (b. 1908)
Many people are getting an extra long curtain rod or drapery rod that runs over the French doors, with some extra rod on each side and installing insulated drapes that you can pull across at night or when it gets chilly, for better energy efficiency. This eliminates the need for the traditional curtains for French doors, so that the light can come in during the day when you want it, but you still gain the benefit of better energy efficiency and privacy at night when you want it, by pulling the extra long drapes closed.
When it comes to curtains for French doors, you may have to use a little creativity but there are all kinds of different window treatments you can consider, depending on where the French doors are and how much you use them. Since they do have so much window space, insulated drapes can make a difference in heating bills during winter months. Curtains for French doors don't have to be plain or French, so use some creativity, and consider energy efficiency, if you can incorporate it.