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There’s no right or wrong here, and the answer usually comes down to personal choice. If you prefer the appearance of curtains, that’s probably the best choice for you; that said, there are some functions and finishes that can only be achieved with blinds for the bedroom, which is worth bearing in mind as well.
So, should bedrooms have curtains or blinds? Blinds of some sort will support any era or design theme, whilst curtains can be a little more restrictive and tend to suit traditional, conventional themes best; but you could actually have both blinds and curtains together… Which is less weird-looking than it sounds and can actually look awesome. Bear with me and I’ll explain why!
Should bedrooms have curtains or blinds if you want to achieve a full blackout?
You can get both curtains and certain types of blinds made out of blackout fabrics, and if you’re lucky and hang them in the right way, either option can theoretically achieve a virtually full blackout. However, you do stand a better chance with blinds, not least because getting a full blackout depends not just on how you hang your curtains/blinds, but in the case of curtains, also how you close them.
If you manage to leave a little gap in the middle or at one side of your curtains, you probably won’t realise this when you go to bed in the dark, but you will if the 5am sunrise highlights the severity of your mistake! This is a non-issue with blinds, as once they’re closed, you don’t need to give them a second check-over for gaps.
Should bedrooms have curtains or blinds if you’re on a budget?
You can get very fancy curtains and very cheap ones too, and the same goes for blinds; but overall, blinds tend to work out less costly than curtains, plus give you more bang for your buck/a more premium finish like for like for the same sort of money.
Good quality made-to-measure window blinds will invariably cost less than equivalent quality made-to-measure curtains, plus blinds give you more options for the style, finish, functionality, and so on too.
Should bedrooms have curtains or blinds if your main criteria is insulating the window?
Any window covering will insulate the window it is used on to an extent, and either thick curtains or a thick blind will make a noticeable impact on cutting draughts and supporting a stable ambient room temperature.
Setting aside for a moment the potential for curtains to move in a breeze and let draughts in, curtains and blinds are both potentially useful; but blinds or curtains with a thermally insulating lining will always make more of a difference than blinds or curtains without.
Should bedrooms have curtains or blinds, or can you have both?
Most people find the idea of having more than one type or colour of blinds or curtains in the same room weird, so won’t mixing blinds with curtains look like a bit of a dog’s breakfast too? Not if they’re all on the same window!
Now, I appreciate that this sounds a bit hare-brained, but what I mean in this respect is to have the blind (usually a fabric blind like a roller blind or a Roman blind) inside of the window recess, paired with complementary curtains that go with the blind on the outside of the recess.
This achieves a number of things, like ensuring a full blackout in the room (assuming that the blind is a blackout blind) and insulating it really well too, as well as making your window look really fancy!
