To stay cool in summer, use blackout curtains as well. They will do more for you than you can imagine!

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Over the years, I’ve become quite a fan of blackout curtains

The first I got, I installed outside. Not the intended way to use, I’ll admit. But on our small South facing balcony they added a certain charm and had an impressive effect on the temperature, inside our home.

We had double pane windows but I guess these were too old to be energy efficient. The fact that the sun was not hitting those, when the curtains were on, made a huge difference. I was taking them down in winter but not at every storm and they lasted about 3-4 years before breaking down.

It was taking some dedication to open and close them in a timely manner, to follow the sun rotation while not living in the dark. But as I was working from home, I was motivated to stay cool!

Our apartment was under the roof and these type of apartments are often much hotter in summer and much cooler in winter compare to other apartments. But these curtains made a huge difference. Our downstair neighbour once came home, in the middle of a heat wave, and realised that it was cooler in our place than his!

Blackout curtains to insulate your windows

When we moved into our new apartment, I bought new ones for we had different windows of different sizes. We now have triple pane windows and yet, when the sun hits, you can still feel the heat. Not too much, but the curtains are a welcome addition anyway.

Blackout curtains are just really good at keeping the heat or cold out. But not just that.

Blackout curtains are really good at blocking noises too

Blackout curtains are really good at blocking sounds too and I just had not realised it!

While we now have better windows, we are also closer to a road with quite a bit of traffic in the early morning, just when I’m starting to work. And I hate noise! As this winter came, I have kept my curtains closed longer in the morning and therefore only recently realised the difference they make. Noises are not cancelled, but they are muffled.

However, such ‘discovery’ came with another curtain I recently installed and the below added bonus!

3 layers blackout curtain

Blackout curtains block odours!

The fact that blackout curtains block odours is a weird added bonus, so let me expend!

This ‘discovery’ came when I installed such a curtain in our hallway. I wasn’t please to do so, I hesitated for a long time. It was confusing and looked weird at first. Now? OMG I’m so happy! I don’t care if it looks weird.

The noise cancellation was what I was hoping for. The odours insulation was a bonus!

If you have been around this little corner of the web, you may know some of our neighbours are savages. Their abilities to find ways to be a nuisance is unparalleled. I’ve installed sound proofing panels in the hallway to reduce their impact and these have dampened the noise. But what has had an even more impressive impact is the curtain I installed in our hallway, in front of our door.

It blew my mind!

Soon after installing how effective such a curtain is at noise reduction, I also realised it was also blocking odours! Honestly, I don’t know what they cook sometimes or if they ever clean their place, but the smell in the hallway can be terrible at time and I could often smell it inside our apartment too.

Now? The smells are blocked by the curtain. It isn’t an ideal solution because, we quite literally have a space between the entrance door and the curtain which at times smells as bad as the hallway! I am not kidding you here. It is a bit difficult to make such a smell go away because if the hallway is still stinky, I have no way to air this space. But on our side of the curtain, there is no smell so it’s a big win.

In any case, I’m incredibly happy about this particular curtain and how it has changed our apartment.

To go a little woohoo, I was slightly worried how it would affect the Fengshui of our apartment at first. Will it block the good energy from coming in? I’m not entirely sure really but since we feel so much better with such a curtain in place, I’m no longer worried about this.

Summary pros of blackout curtains

Blackout curtains do exactly what they are supposed to do. Block the light. Darker curtains in my experience, are more effective on that front, than lighter ones.

They do very much help with insulation. I didn’t mention it above but our hallway is a lot less chill since I installed the curtain.

Blackout curtains are also effective at muffling sounds. A big bonus in my view.

And blackout curtains block odours and that has been a game changer for us!

They come in different width and length which means you probably won’t have to trim them.

They are machine washable in cold water.

They are different styles to adapt to which ever type of rods you may have. And different colours.

Yes they need to be ironed which I don’t see as a problem, even if I don’t like ironing. When in use, they do not wrinkle easily.

The ones I bought are 100% polyester fabric. Not ideal but they are Oeko-Tex certified and at least they are not a mixed of fabric so they can be recycled – in an ideal world.

Opened and closed. I think the difference is impressive. Bear in mind there is another window on the left which still brings some light in this room. And yes, because there are 2 rods, there is a bit of space left on the top and sides where the light still comes in. If you have a single rod, then there is even less light.

Cons of blackout curtains

When blackout curtains are well made and closed, they really do block the light. It’s not always ideal to live in the dark!

They come in lots of different colours, but not necessarily lots of designs. All the ones I got are plain, solid colour. I don’t mind as we have plenty of colours from art pieces, but I’m guessing some people would like to have the same effectiveness with some design.

They can be heavy. Which can be an issue depending on the rod you are using. Not an issue for us and in fact, something I appreciate as they drape nicely.

They are soft but it is the sort of softness you get from synthetic fabric. Sometimes it fells weird, hopefully you know what I mean.

In short

At the risk of repeating myself, I’m incredibly happy with my latest curtain, the one I installed in our hallway, in front of our door. The others I had for a long time have been doing a superb job, but this one is a miracle worker!

Most of my blackout curtains are from a brand called Pony Dance. Since the first pair bought, I remained faithful. Until I found the one from NiceTown which is the one I got for my hallway. I got a 3 layers one but would have gotten a 4 layers one if they had it in the length required. As you read above, 3 layers already does a marvel job.

If you are sensitive to noise, if you need to insulate your windows or door, if you want some privacy… don’t hesitate. And be creative with how you use them!