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How to DIY a Lace Privacy Window Covering
by Annabel Vita
This was the quickest, easiest, cheapest project ever but it turned out better than I ever imagined. Not only was it super pretty, but it added some much need privacy to a very overlooked bedroom window.
Our old flat in a stately 1745 townhouse was packed with period features. The bedroom had delectable shutters, which I adored, but they made window treatments kind of hard. You either had to hang curtains in front of the whole alcove (we can tell by the holes in the trim that this is what our predecessors did) or not at all. For the last year and a bit, we’ve opted for the latter option, except for the tension rod light blocking curtain above the shutters. The shutters are great at blocking all natural light, which was great for lie-ins. But, the room got crazy beautiful morning light and it always seemed a shame to be getting dressed in artificial light just for the sake of privacy.
One day, with the help of this post from Manhattan Nest, I had a brainwave and added lace frosting to the window with a pantry staple and some £1.50 lace from Ikea. Here’s how you can do the same.
1) Prepare your lace. I made a template of my window panes, but for a larger surface you could just measure it. Iron your lace if you can and trim it to size.
2) Make up a starch jelly. First mix two tablespoons cornflour (also known as cornstarch) and two tablespoons cold water until it forms a paste, then dissolve this in about a cup and a half boiling water. You should end up with a nice gloopy liquid.
3) Apply the cornflour jelly to the window. Use a brush to paint a thick layer of gloop on to the window pane.
4) Stick lace in the window. Lay your fabric onto the pre-applied gloop and then brush another layer on top. Brush from the centre to the corners but try to make sure your strokes are slightly random so they don’t show too much. It’s easy to reposition at this stage so don’t worry if it goes a little skew-whiff! The best thing about using lace (with holes in) is that there are automatically no air pockets so you don’t have to bother squeegeeing them out.
5) And you’re done! The cornflour mixture will take a while to fully dry out and it won’t be clear until it’s fully dry, so don’t panic if it looks a little white to begin with!
Q: Just how opaque is it? I am curious how much privacy this actually allows.
A: I’d say it totally depends on your fabric. If you’d be happy with getting changed behind the fabric as curtains then the fabric will be opaque enough for this window treatment too. I actually have lace curtains in this same fabric, and in both instances I feel happy getting changed behind them if it’s light outside, but I wouldn’t hang out without my clothes on with the light on if it was dark outside. So if privacy is really important, just pick a lace that is more opaque than sheer.
It also depends how directly other people can look into your window! Our bedroom window isn’t super overlooked, although there’s lots of windows out the back, most of the angles are indirect and/or the other window is frosted.
Here’s a picture of my hand through the lace…
…and held out as far away as it could go.
Q: What about mod podge? Would that work instead of cornflour?
A: We don’t really have modge podge here so I don’t know! It would be a bit more permanent I imagine. If it’s anything like PVA glue (I think it is) then I wouldn’t want to use it on wooden painted windows like we have, but it could work great on more modern windows. It would also be much more expensive. (The “glue” made out of cornstarch is essentially free!)
Q: If I used colored lace would the cornstarch show?
A: No, it dries totally clear (but goes on gloopy and white-ish, don’t panic!) It will probably go clear overnight.
Q: How do I clean it?
I would say it’s probably not great for a window that would get dirty a lot because you can dust or brush it but can’t wipe it down. I’d probably remove all the sheets of lace and run them through the machine in a lingerie bag every now and again and then put them back up. It’s that easy to apply.
Q: How do I remove the lace?
When it came to be time to move out, I sprayed the lace down with water and just pulled it away. There was a lot of residue on the window, but it soon came off with a scrubby sponge and VERY HOT water.
Thanks for reading! If you have any questions I will try and pop in to the comments here to answer them, or you may find the answer in the comments to this post.
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We just LOVE this, Annabel! Thanks for being our guest today!
Visit her blog to see more cute and creative projects.
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I’d love to try this on shower doors, but I’m afraid it would not hold up to the steam/humidity; has anyone tried this with success?
Hi Wanda! I am sure if you apply the lace on the outside of the shower doors it would be fine!
I live in Manitoba Canada, and our winters are ridiculously frigid (currently-45c with windchill🥶).
If I applied this cornstarch & lace treatment to the interior side of my window, any opinion on whether it would hold up with the outside being exposed to such cold and in the summer, to +30c?
Brrr, that is so cold! Since I haven’t tried this in my home (this is from a guest) I can’t say for sure how it holds up, but I imagine that the starch would be more durable to the changes in temperature than something like a windo film. If you try it, we’d love to hear how it works for you!
I’ve used this on my bathroom window and a kitchen door window for years; both are outside windows. We live in New England, and have some brutal winters and one or two hot, humid months in summers. I’ve never seen weather or temperature affect this recipe, and I’ve had my original bathroom window application on for three years now, and it’s still perfect.
This is the BEST recipe – thank you, Cass!
PS: My bathroom is tiny, and my husband rarely uses the fan when showering. Even the bathroom humidity in a tiny bathroom hasn’t affected this a bit.
This project saved me money and aggravation! We moved back into an old Victorian that we had rented for 8 years. One of our large picture windows had an argon leak that left the window foggy and dirty looking 😕 I covered the window with curtains and kept them closed so I wouldn’t have to look at it. Then I came across this project! Hallelujah! I bought a lace panel from amazon for $5.99 and got to work! Just finished and the cornstarch is drying as we speak! Brilliant! I can have light and you can’t tell that the window is foggy. Before I covered this window I tried this on a cabinet in our upstairs hallway that holds towels and toiletries. That also bothered me that I could see that mess through the glass doors. Voila! It looks beautiful! Next I’ll be covering the bottom portion of windows on the third floor where my daughter lives. If I can figure out how to post pictures, I will later. Thanks so much for posting this project!
Just made the mixture. Super disappointed. It is not a gooey paste. It is thinner than milk and runs all down the glass. I will need to adjust your measurements.
I’m wondering if this would work in very cold temps or would it freeze as I am applying it?
That idea could be also good for the shower’s dior od that could hołd up to the Stefan or humidity.