covering the high window

There will be lots of flash photography in this post.

The high window in the dining room, while contributing to the light and airy feel on our first floor, lets in just a bit too much light.  The light streaming into the dining room bounces off the glass table top from about 10 am to 3 pm, searing our retinas with the glare.

that window up there on the right corner

My requirements for this project that it be extremely cheap, and that it not put any more holes in the wall.  Although I am not exactly following the terms of my lease and the "no screws in the wall" clause (ahem), I am trying to keep the holes to a minimum.

My budget for this project was $5.  I immediately blew the budget by renting a ten foot ladder, which cost $22 for twenty-four hours from Home Depot.  In order to get the ladder home on top of my minivan, I had to buy racheting tie-downs, which cost $17.  (Bungees were not strong enough to hold the ladder securely to the top of the car.)

First up, we tried a tension rod (another $1.97!) with a curtain we already owned.

I did not like this at all.  I didn't expect to, honestly, because I knew that the tension rod wouldn't work with the angled part of the window.  That small open strip still let light in onto the table.  Plus it looked stupid.

I brought that down, hunted around for some spray glue, and raided the garage until I found a sheer curtain from Ikea that used to reside in our living room two houses ago.  I was loath to cut up this curtain, because Ikea doesn't make this pattern anymore.  However, since I was already so far over budget, I decided to suck it up and use what I had.

I measured the window and cut the fabric to the appropriate measurements.  I sprayed the back of the fabric with glue, then started smoothing the fabric out with my hands.  This is sort of like putting contact paper down--you will always get bubbles.  I kept pulling up, respraying, and smoothing out the bubbles.  By the end of ten minutes my hands were covered in glue, much like in second grade when you smear Elmer's all over your hand and peel it off like a second skin.  Good thing I wasn't lighting matches.

And the finished product:

The fabric is very sheer, so while it blocks the direct, glaring sunlight, it still lets in a fair amount of light.