Replacing Old Window Treatments for Comfort and Beauty

Revisiting a One-of-a-Kind Project

There’s a certain kind of joy that comes from walking back into a home we worked on nearly two decades before. That’s exactly what happened when one of our longtime clients called us up in 2025, and the whole experience reminded me of why I created The Shady Lady in the first place.

It Started with a Deadline

Back in 2008, a local boutique homebuilder was preparing a beautiful Bellaire home to be featured in the Parade of Homes. That means everything had to be just right, and it had to get that way fast. We were tasked with outfitting the entire home with drapery and top treatments and given a three-week time frame to get it done.

Three weeks. Whole house of custom window treatments. No pressure, right?

We found a workroom that was able to accommodate this turnaround time, which was amazing then and almost unheard of now! They absolutely delivered. While we have expanded our resources considerably since 2008, we still partner with this workroom on some projects.

Seventeen Years Later…

Fast forward to 2025. The homeowners decided it was time to refresh a couple of their spaces and called us about the window treatments. Being remembered after so long feels VERY good, I can tell you that! They wanted us to help them update the dining room and library.

The dining room drapery was still in great shape; it just felt dated. Rather than toss it, the homeowners asked us to help them find a home for it. We listed the entire treatment on Facebook Marketplace, where it found a new life in a new home.

The library curtain told a different story. The flowing sheer in there had been, let’s say, enthusiastically redecorated by some puppies over the years. Beyond the sheer’s shredded bottom, the room had taken on a second job as an overflow guest room, so our original treatment was insufficient for the room’s new task. They had also changed a window in the same room, so the shade we installed back in 2008 no longer fit. Side note, the puppies are still in the home, and definitely not puppies anymore!

The 2025 Custom Drapery Refresh * Designing the New Layered Window Treatments

For the new installations, we had a few must-haves: add a second layer in the dining room for multiple privacy and light control options. When the drapes were opened, the homeowner felt as though she were on display during her dinner parties! For the library we wanted to ensure the new shade and drapery coordinated well. Everything needed to look updated without being too modern, because this is a traditionally styled home.

In the dining room, the layered window treatment consisted of traversing sheers and drapery. I had a few criteria in mind for the drapery fabric: I wanted movement and pattern in colors that built upon the other room finishes, and I wanted a sheen without it being overwhelming. A lovely jacquard fabric hit all the notes! The sheer I selected looks like many strips of ribbon stitched together. I think it is so pretty that I’m adding a close-up:

The library got a full transformation: traversing sheers and drapery, plus a Roman shade for the new window. We found a textured solid in the same color as the embroidered leaves of the drapery fabric and used that for the Roman shade. My favorite detail that makes it feel really considered is that we used the fabric from the Roman shade as a leading-edge band on the drapery. It’s a small thing that ties the whole room together and feels intentional in a way that only custom window treatments can accomplish.

The Part That Sticks with Us

As beautiful as the new installations are, what struck me most about this project was walking through the rest of the home and seeing the other window treatments we installed way back in 2008. My child was less than a year old when we completed this project, and she is in college now! And here they are, still loved and doing their job beautifully.

This is our goal for every client. Not a quick fix or chasing a fad, but a real investment in the comfort and beauty of your home. An investment that you will be happy with years down the road. And if something ever does need attention, we’ll be here.

We were here in 2008. We were here in 2025. We will be here for whatever comes next.