8 Ways to Decorate a Bathroom Window

luxury bathroom with large window treatments

Bathroom windows are notoriously difficult to deal with. For privacy reasons, most bathroom windows utilize frosted glass, which limits the amount of light that is going to crack through the window. You’ll need a treatment that maximizes the natural light of your frosted window while still allowing for privacy. Here’s 10 great ways to decorate a bathroom window.

1. Shades

Solar shades will allow a little bit of light to get through the bathroom window while allowing for privacy. Plus, solar shades look really cool when they are light up on the other side of frosted glass. They also give you privacy and illumination if you choose to open the window and drop the shade. 

Solar shades are usually in sheerer, lighter colors. If you have a bathroom color scheme that utilizes a lot of lighter colors, the lighter solar shade might not be the best design choice. If the function of the solar shade is ideal, then you can compensate by putting some pictures around the shades. Art will bring out the color contrast in the shades better.

Shades that are not solar are ideal for windows that might be in the shower itself. Some bathrooms have windows in the shower, which provide beautiful natural light. But you’ll also want a good bit of privacy. You can obtain this through fabric shades.

2. Valance

Valences are excellent choices to add a pop of color to the bathroom. But valances really don’t add any privacy. However, if the window is already frosted to prevent people from seeing in, then a valance might be perfect. 

If you have a bathroom that is predominately lighter colors, a pastel or royal color can bring out a great bit of color. Remember that when you put up a valance, it will be underlit by the frosted windows and the light coming in. That color that you put up is going to be even stronger. But since bathrooms usually have strong lights right above the mirror, this can help balance out the color and design of the room.

3. Wooden Blinds

Wood is a great color for the bathroom. It’s personal, natural, and earthy. The darker tones can really make things luxurious and can bring together the colors in the bathroom. The brown goes really well with any greens and yellows that you bring, specifically through plants. Also keep in mind that wooden blinds will give you a great amount of privacy.

4. Lattice Valance

This solution won’t work for every bathroom. Depending on your design, however, you can feel free to get a bit creative with the window treatments. Latice is patterned material, often in a sort of paisley or herringbone, that can change the dynamics of light coming through the room. If you have other mid century modern designs in the bathroom, a lattice valance can feel sophisticated and edgy.

5. Shades

A simple shade, like a Roman shade, can remove natural light from the bathroom and focus things in on the designs that are going on. If you have frosted or unfrosted windows, either of those will work well with a shade. Shades easily pull down over the window and add a block of color to the room. You can either go with a shade that is analogous to your walls, so that the color blends in, or you can choose a color with more contrast, so that the space pops out a bit more. 

Textures will be critical here. Bathroom designs are really easy to mess up with a single object that is out of place, because bathrooms are often smaller rooms. For your shade, pick something that is a smoother texture. This will help the shade cohere more to the walls and you’ll need less from the other pieces to balance things out.

6. Plants

If you want your bathroom to have a more earthy, natural feel, plants are an excellent choice for a window treatment. It all depends on the windows in your bathroom. If there are only a couple of windows and the windows are smaller, you can always hang plants in front of them to soak up the sunlight and purify the air. 

If you have more windows than just a couple, or if the windows are much bigger, then you may need to combine plants with another method. You could curl a single curtain on one side of the window and then use a hanging plant on the other side. Our you could put up a shade that stays at the top, like a valance, and put a plant beneath that.

Additionally, plants are a great way to provide privacy from the outside. By planting trees or putting up ivy that shades the window, you can minimize the direct sunlight while still opening your windows to the world.

7. Shelves

Shelves are a great solution for smaller bathroom windows. Having shelves, basically allow you to put up objects that block the light, toning down the light in the bathroom and providing some accent colors. On the shelves, you can place plants, vases, and a variety of other objects. The backlight from the frosted windows–or open windows–of the bathroom will illuminate the objects, casting an additional point of vision for the room. Bathrooms tend to centralize colors around the mirror and mirror lighting, which eats up the visible space. Putting strong colors on shelving in front of a mirror can help balance the room.

8. Curtains

Curtains will not be for everyone in the bathroom. While plants and shelves work great in smaller spaces and situations, curtains tend to require more space so that they don’t eat up the whole design. If you have a larger bathroom, then curtains will be great for closing space off from the world. Blackout curtains can help provide the maximum amount of privacy. White and lighter colors are great choices for keeping the room open, but darker colors will make the space feel more luxurious and intimate.

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