11 Creative Window Covering Hacks That Aren't Curtains Or Shades

One of the key ways to making a room feel fully designed and curated is with window coverings, but the traditional curtains and blinds systems might not be in the cards. Perhaps you're a renter who can't make permanent changes to your home, traditional window covers are out of your budget, or they simply don't work with your personal interior design style. But you may still want some sort of shade or covering for a number of reasons, such as privacy and lighting. Even if you don't want curtains or blinds, you don't have to leave your windows bare, as there are still plenty of creative ways to dress them up. 

We compiled a list of 11 creative ways to cover your windows. We looked for options that could fit a variety of budgets, skill levels, and scenarios. Love the look of stained glass, but can't afford to commission a custom piece, because, well, who can? Try a piece of stained glass window film instead. Find a gorgeous lace tablecloth at the thrift shop? This can easily be repurposed to hang over your windows. Let's take a look at some of our favorite window covering hacks.

We're obsessed with stained glass window film, especially because there's such a wide variety of options with endless colors and designs available. These add a decorative element to boring windows and provide some privacy, all without completely shutting light out. Film clings will typically adhere to flat surfaces, so these won't be a good fit for textured glass. Instructions vary slightly from manufacturer to manufacturer, but in general, this a renter-friendly hack and can be easily removed without causing damage. Some options claim to be reusable, so you can pack these along for future moves as well! Check out the above option, which retails on Amazon starting at $19.

Head to your local thrift store and pick up a few vintage silk scarves for a unique and wonderfully bohemian window covering. You'll simply sew the scarves together, either by hand sewing or using a sewing machine. Then, you can hang these from a curtain rod or drape them using curtain clips. This is a great way to show off a silk scarf collection as well. Depending on how sheer the scarves are, this is more a decorative touch than anything else, but it will still provide limited privacy and light filtering. 

If your grandmother left you a collection of doilies or you spot a pile of them in the antique store, consider using them as a gorgeous window covering. You can sew doilies together to create beautiful, intricately-designed panels and hang them from a rod, or dangle them individually over the window at varying heights. You even adhere them directly to the window pane with a corn starch paste (made with equal parts corn starch and water), which is totally renter friendly — you just need to clean the windows after removing the lace with soap and water to remove the corn starch residue. 

If you've ever wished you could have a disco ball in every room, refracting the light into a million little rainbows, then you should definitely try rainbow cling film. This works basically like any other window film, but usually has an abstract pattern that casts rainbows all around the room when light hits it. This wouldn't be great for blocking out light, but generally, the patterns are fragmented and opaque enough to offer a decent amount of privacy. We love the idea of this in any room that gets plenty of natural light for maximum rainbow effect. This option on Amazon starts at $7.

Instead of investing in synthetic materials for window coverings that will inevitably end up in a landfill, why not try growing climbing plants on your property, such as ivy or wisteria? These add an authentic old world touch to home exteriors, making this a perfect option for historical builds. Of course, growing them can take time, so in the meantime, you can station window box planters, hanging planters, and tall house plants in front of the windows as all-natural window coverings. Just be sure to be aware of how much sunlight the window receives, and choose your plants accordingly.

Window shutters have become less popular over the years, which is why you'll often find them discarded in antique stores. Even though these were historically used on home exteriors, there's no reason you can't take a set home and lean it against the interior of your windows for a whimsical, charming window covering. Most shutters include moving slats on them, so you can adjust them to allow more or less light in throughout the day. As they are solid pieces of material, they also offer privacy. Antique shutters would be perfect for the cottagecore enthusiast.  

Macrame is a stunning, woven art form that requires using a variety of knots to create beautiful patterns. It's also a great way to create a unique window covering using little more than your hands and thick yarn. The patterns you choose can be as simple as three braided strands of yarn, and as complex as you like. Macrame hangings won't provide total blackout abilities, of course, but they do add some privacy and hand-crafted charm to the space. Plus, there are countless ways to incorporate macrame into your home with any leftover yarn! 

If you find that privacy film tends to bubble and peel up, but still want a bit of coverage, try using frosted glass paint for windows ($7 on Amazon). This is usually rolled or sprayed on, and gives a light diffusing filter for privacy. If you don't want the whole window covered or want to leave a few lines exposed, just use painters tape, apply as desired, then remove the tape once fully dried. We love that you still get tons of natural light with this option, and that it can be washed off if you want to try something else. 

Folding room dividers make excellent window coverings. And because they were designed to, well, divide rooms, they are typically quite tall and wide. That makes them perfect for floor to ceiling windows, which can be astronomically expensive to outfit with drapes, curtains, and blinds. Plus, they're mobile and often quite lightweight, so you can leave them in front of one window, or move it around the home as necessary. For more coverage, unfold the screen to its full span, and for less, just fold the panels closer together. 

If the more vibrant colored and patterned windows screen don't appeal to you, and you don't want to deal with frosted glass spray, there are plenty of neutral window films out there that have distorting, blurring visual effects, usually achieved with a scratched or bubbled texture. These make it difficult to see through the window, granting plenty of privacy, without blocking any natural light, which is great news for houseplants. These are ideal for those with a minimalist design aesthetic or who prefer neutral, modern touches. 

Have zero sewing skills to make your own curtains, but still want fabric window coverings? Try this genius idea and repurpose tablecloths instead! Unlike using raw fabric, these will already come hemmed, so all you need to do to turn them into curtains is use clip hooks, like these ones found on Amazon for $17. Try big box discount stores like Home Goods to find matching sets of tablecloths, clip them, slide them onto any curtain rod, and you have unique curtains for a fraction of the cost of traditional drapes.