The other perk to tapestries is that they make a space echo less.
I’m surprised that you’ve omitted window treatments. Maybe they’re just less of a thing that people think about in the spaces that you’re documenting here?
tl;dr which I’d be happy to expand into a real post if it’s news to anyone:
fabric curtains are great for adding color/pattern/texture, and/or reducing echoes, and work well in conjunction with shades for light and heat management. Also surprisingly cheap secondhand, washable, easy to swap up the look of a room. (this assumes you can mount a curtain rod or tension rod where you need it)
Blackout curtains in sleep spaces can be a huge quality of life improvement for folks who care about sleeping in the dark. The cheapest option is roller blinds.
Window treatments can have a huge impact on the thermal performance of a space, especially if it gets sunlight or wind on the exterior of the windows. Comfortable temperatures with less noise and ongoing energy use from heating/cooling are usually a win.
If you find yourself leaving the blinds shut because you don’t want people seeing in through a window, there are lots of privacy film options. Many apply with soapy water and peel off when you pick at them, but not before. It’s often sufficient to put privacy film on only the bottom half of a window, so you can still have some view to the outside.
When I travel outside the US, I’m baffled by how many regions missed the cultural memo about the importance of window screens. The outdoors has lots of great stuff like leaves, insects, and small birds that are good to have outside your house but annoying to have inside, and screens keep them where they belong. Screens do not impede emergency egress because the frame of the screen is held in place with relatively weak springs, and the screen itself can be torn if necessary.
It’s possible to build impressively convincing false windows and false skylights out of old screens, but the analog version is even easier if you already have it available
I think when we talk about building our own sun with a lumenator, it can be easy to forget that actually there’s also a perfectly good sun outside that many spaces can use for part of the day.
I’m surprised that you’ve omitted window treatments. Maybe they’re just less of a thing that people think about in the spaces that you’re documenting here?
Yeah, I’d actually have a ton more to say about making a space good as it applies to your home, but it didn’t all seem relevant here — e.g. the Lightcone offices were in a WeWork with windows that didn’t open. (ETA: Like I said at the top of the post, this isn’t a guide to what I think is optimal; that would look pretty different.)
But totally agree with everything you said about windows! I especially love privacy film:
Also, California (at least the Bay Area) is one of the regions that’s missed the memo about window screens – maybe because there aren’t many insects? But it’s indeed still super annoying to not have them, so I installed my own using this size-customizable product, which was necessary because window dimensions here appear to be completely random and not at all standardized.
That’s such pretty privacy film! Seeing it in a work space makes me wonder: Do you notice it cutting back on monitor glare from light coming in the window?
Fun fact: according to the top comment in this ask science thread, widespread window-screen installation in the US was done for the sake of malaria eradication, to slow the spread by preventing mosquitos from getting to bed-ridden people infected by the virus. This is also how bed nets work. I have not checked this at all but it sounds true.
The other perk to tapestries is that they make a space echo less.
I’m surprised that you’ve omitted window treatments. Maybe they’re just less of a thing that people think about in the spaces that you’re documenting here?
tl;dr which I’d be happy to expand into a real post if it’s news to anyone:
fabric curtains are great for adding color/pattern/texture, and/or reducing echoes, and work well in conjunction with shades for light and heat management. Also surprisingly cheap secondhand, washable, easy to swap up the look of a room. (this assumes you can mount a curtain rod or tension rod where you need it)
Blackout curtains in sleep spaces can be a huge quality of life improvement for folks who care about sleeping in the dark. The cheapest option is roller blinds.
Window treatments can have a huge impact on the thermal performance of a space, especially if it gets sunlight or wind on the exterior of the windows. Comfortable temperatures with less noise and ongoing energy use from heating/cooling are usually a win.
If you find yourself leaving the blinds shut because you don’t want people seeing in through a window, there are lots of privacy film options. Many apply with soapy water and peel off when you pick at them, but not before. It’s often sufficient to put privacy film on only the bottom half of a window, so you can still have some view to the outside.
When I travel outside the US, I’m baffled by how many regions missed the cultural memo about the importance of window screens. The outdoors has lots of great stuff like leaves, insects, and small birds that are good to have outside your house but annoying to have inside, and screens keep them where they belong. Screens do not impede emergency egress because the frame of the screen is held in place with relatively weak springs, and the screen itself can be torn if necessary.
It’s possible to build impressively convincing false windows and false skylights out of old screens, but the analog version is even easier if you already have it available
I think when we talk about building our own sun with a lumenator, it can be easy to forget that actually there’s also a perfectly good sun outside that many spaces can use for part of the day.
Yeah, I’d actually have a ton more to say about making a space good as it applies to your home, but it didn’t all seem relevant here — e.g. the Lightcone offices were in a WeWork with windows that didn’t open. (ETA: Like I said at the top of the post, this isn’t a guide to what I think is optimal; that would look pretty different.)
But totally agree with everything you said about windows! I especially love privacy film:
Also, California (at least the Bay Area) is one of the regions that’s missed the memo about window screens – maybe because there aren’t many insects? But it’s indeed still super annoying to not have them, so I installed my own using this size-customizable product, which was necessary because window dimensions here appear to be completely random and not at all standardized.
Thanks for all the info you added! 💖
So… when can we get the optimal guide, if this isn’t it? :)
That’s such pretty privacy film! Seeing it in a work space makes me wonder: Do you notice it cutting back on monitor glare from light coming in the window?
Fun fact: according to the top comment in this ask science thread, widespread window-screen installation in the US was done for the sake of malaria eradication, to slow the spread by preventing mosquitos from getting to bed-ridden people infected by the virus. This is also how bed nets work. I have not checked this at all but it sounds true.
I love learning new Smallpox Eradication Lore.