By Dave and Mary
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Outdoor Curtains

What's Nicer for Shade and Privacy?

Outdoor curtains provide instant curb appeal along with helping you create a stylish porch.

After all, who doesn't love the look of wispy curtains blowing softly on a summer afternoon?

With so many colors, patterns, and styles, finding curtains for your porch should be nice and easy. Porch shades and outdoor curtains have become quite popular for creating shade, blocking the wind and adding a bit of privacy.

No matter where you live or the size of your porch, curtains can add immense appeal while offering some protection from the elements.

Wispy outdoor porch curtains blowing in the breeze! Porch curtains provide ambiance as well as privacy - and these sure do! Lovely porch swing, too. Front Porch Ideas and More

Wispy outdoor porch curtains blowing in the breeze! Porch curtains provide ambiance as well as privacy - and these sure do! Lovely porch swing, too. Front Porch Ideas and More

We love Siobhan's wispy porch curtains and lovely porch swing
Photo courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

Outdoor curtain panels soften the lines of your porch. They provide gentle touches of privacy or cooler, shady spaces depending upon the curtains you choose.

wispy outdoor porch curtains blowing in the breeze

wispy outdoor porch curtains blowing in the breeze

Her porch curtains sway in the breeze
Photo courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

May 2019 update: Our friend, Siobhan, has new front door lights and a ceiling light, which keeps in character with their original fishing village of Swampscott. She changed their pillows and hung some pretty plants.

We love her porch curtains. Do you?

wispy outdoor porch curtains blowing in the breeze

See how cozy her porch looks from the street
Photo courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

Notice how these porch curtains are more formal
Photo courtesy of Robin Seidel

We found these popular outdoor curtains at Amazon.com:

Exclusive Home Cabana Solid Light Filtering Curtain Panel (referral link)

or

White Outdoor Curtain Top Sheer Voile (referral link)

So Why Have Porch Curtains?

To Gain Privacy and Shade

Hang curtains to create a privacy nook on your porch. Instead of creating a permanent barrier, porch curtains can be used whenever you need them.

For complete privacy choose a material like canvas for total seclusion. We even show you how to make them below.

In addition to giving you a bit of privacy, curtains provide much-needed shade on hot summer days.

striped outdoor curtains on front porch

Porch curtains add privacy and shade

To Up the Curb Appeal

Just having curtains on your porch is appealing but you can go a step further. Don't be afraid of using curtains for color. You can match the seasons or use them as part of your overall decorating scheme.

Kelly Ann's porch curtains add a delightful and whimsical dimension to her front porch

Photo courtesy of Kelly Ann Stern Azzara

Kelly Ann's porch curtains add such ambiance and delight to her front porch. Her porch is such a wonderful outdoor room, perfectly inviting.

For Special Occasions - Like Porch Parties

Donna hangs porch curtains for her porch parties. She hangs them from teacup hooks.

Photo courtesy of Donna McCabe McGaughy

For special occasions, like a porch party, Donna uses sheers or bed sheets as outdoor curtains and hangs them from teacup hooks. She cuts slits in the sheets to make the holes for hanging.

To Add a Punch of Color

Outdoor curtains come in so many awesome colors and prints. Look at these blue porch curtains - they are super eye-catching. We like them.

porch curtains on large front porch

We like how these blue porch curtains add vibrant color to this pretty porch

porch curtains on large front porch - close-up

And a close-up of these striped outdoor curtains

For a Weather and Insect Barrier

Block the wind or sun with outdoor curtains. You can even help block mosquitos with mosquito curtains (and no-see-ums too)!

To Create Decorative Displays

You can create decorative displays by integrating outdoor curtains with other objects. The easiest perhaps, is to hang curtains on either side of an old window frame and hang it on your porch. Or, hang curtains over lattice for a different effect like Jeanie does below.

porch curtains as decoration on Jeanie's porch

porch curtains as decoration on Jeanie's porch

Photo courtesy of Jeanie Jacobson Turner

Jeanie uses her curtains as part of a decorative display on her screened porch.

Enjoy Our Porch Curtains, Blinds, and Shades Slideshow

Oh, How They Soften Your Porch

"I love the way they gently blow in the breeze."

Photo courtesy of Peg Reynolds

Peg hangs sheers on her porch to allow for nice air flow. They dramatically soften the porch and provide whimsical privacy and shade, too.

Wouldn't this be a wonderful place for coffee in the morning?

Photo courtesy of Jill Ann Siegel

These whimsical porch curtains soften the lines of the porch.

wispy outdoor porch curtains blowing in the breeze

Thanks to The Porch Company for this photo.

Add whimsy with porch curtains

Make Your Porch Extra Special

Porch curtains and outdoor drapes are a great idea for creating a porch enclosure or just to soften the look of your porch. Drapes and silky sheer curtains add immense ambiance and elegance to your porch.

Courtesy of Perfect Porches

This photo was taken at Brown Woods Farm in Lexington, KY and is included in the beautiful book, Perfect Porches.

Notice the wispy curtains. I love how they make you just want to sit down and enjoy this wonderful outdoor space. The pretty summer flowers and basket of apples - oh, so nice.

Enjoy the Outdoor Grommet Drape Video

You can find these outdoor grommet curtains here.

So, Why Not Try Curtains on Your Porch?

There are so many reasons for curtains on the porch.

Sheer porch curtains on expansive front porch

photo courtesy of Decorating Den

"These curtains are light and breezy. They make me feel like I live at the beach.

They add a touch of soft, billowy elegance to your porch.
Give you lots of flexibility - you simply slide them out of the way and even remove them when not needed.
Less expensive than permanent porch blinds or shades.
Fun to decorate with them. You can even hide areas with them.
Create a privacy nook on your porch while leaving the rest of your porch open.
Filter the bright sun light and heat.

About Outdoor Fabric

"Outdoor curtains add a soft touch to my porch and take the summer heat down a notch."

Outdoor fabrics tend to be fade resistant and mildew resistant. Also, since outdoor fabrics flap in the wind, you want fabric that is durable and resistant to tearing and fraying. So, here are some ideas for you.

To protect your porch furniture use all-weather knit fabric that blocks up to 90% of the sun?s UV rays yet allows air to flow through. This "breathing? effect reduces temperatures behind the shades up to 32% when compared with direct sunlight.
Use rip nylon - like the kind you find in outdoor banners and flags.
Use muslin or other sheer fabrics that dry quickly.
Use Sunbrella fabrics for durability, mildew-resistance and best of all a bunch of beautiful, vivid solid colors and patterns.
You can sometimes find outdoor fabric on the "cheap tables" at Walmart - for those stores that still carry fabric.
Another suggestion is to use bed sheets. Yes, they dry quickly and you can find pretty patterns and colors. If you need them to be longer, you can add borders from a coordinating sheet.
I have heard of some porches having chic shower curtains (the fabric kind). At first that might seem odd, but think about how many patterns they come in now. For example, a shower curtain with palm trees could be very attractive on a tropical porch.
Colors should be color fast as they will fade in the sun.

Beautiful outdoor curtain panels take your porch or outdoor room from ordinary to extraordinary. UV resistant, water repellant, porch curtains resist fading and staining.

Pair outdoor drapes with sheers for a great look.

How to Hang Outdoor Porch Curtains

There are many styles and attachment methods available. You can actually affix the curtains directly to your porch, use Velcro tabs, grommets, or rods and tracks to easily move them out of the way when not needed.

Hang porch curtains and outdoor drapes quickly with versatile tension rods. Snap into place between porch beams or walls with no hardware making installation a snap.

Porch curtains only in the corner of Denise's porch (The Painted Home)

Porch curtains only in the corner of Denise's porch (The Painted Home)

Photo courtesy of Denise from The Painted Home

Denise hung porch curtains in the corner only of her back porch. See more of her spring porch here.

Denise used galvanized pipe to hang her porch curtains (The Painted Home)

Denise used galvanized pipe to hang her porch curtains (The Painted Home)

Denise cleverly used galvanized pipe to hang her corner curtains.
Photo courtesy of Denise from The Painted Home

How to Make Your Own Outdoor Curtain Panels

Handmade outdoor curtain panels pulled back on porch corner with a tieback

Learn to make curtains like these

If you're the do-it-yourself kind of person who enjoys making your own stuff, then we think you will love this tutorial we have for you about making your own outdoor curtain panels from regular canvas drop cloths you buy at home improvement stores.

They are super easy, attractive and affordable. We learned this idea from Traci, who is the author of Beneath My Heart. You can see her pictures and curtain tutorial here. ***z-affiliate disclosure-snippet.shtml***

Mary and Dave, Founders of Front Porch Ideas and More

Hi! We're Mary and Dave, lifelong DIYers, high school sweethearts, and we both love porches. You've come to the right place for thousands of porch ideas.

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Outdoor Curtains

What's Nicer for Shade and Privacy?

We love Siobhan's wispy porch curtains and lovely porch swingPhoto courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

Her porch curtains sway in the breezePhoto courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

See how cozy her porch looks from the streetPhoto courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

Notice how these porch curtains are more formalPhoto courtesy of Robin Seidel

So Why Have Porch Curtains?

To Gain Privacy and Shade

Porch curtains add privacy and shade

To Up the Curb Appeal

Photo courtesy of Kelly Ann Stern Azzara

For Special Occasions - Like Porch Parties

Photo courtesy of Donna McCabe McGaughy

To Add a Punch of Color

We like how these blue porch curtains add vibrant color to this pretty porch

And a close-up of these striped outdoor curtains

For a Weather and Insect Barrier

To Create Decorative Displays

Photo courtesy of Jeanie Jacobson Turner

Enjoy Our Porch Curtains, Blinds, and Shades Slideshow

Oh, How They Soften Your Porch

"I love the way they gently blow in the breeze."

Photo courtesy of Peg Reynolds

Photo courtesy of Jill Ann Siegel

Thanks to The Porch Company for this photo.

Add whimsy with porch curtains

Make Your Porch Extra Special

Courtesy of Perfect Porches

Enjoy the Outdoor Grommet Drape Video

So, Why Not Try Curtains on Your Porch?

photo courtesy of Decorating Den

About Outdoor Fabric

How to Hang Outdoor Porch Curtains

Photo courtesy of Denise from The Painted Home

Denise cleverly used galvanized pipe to hang her corner curtains. Photo courtesy of Denise from The Painted Home

How to Make Your Own Outdoor Curtain Panels

Learn to make curtains like these

More Porch Shade Options

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Please Join Us Here Also

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Our Newsletter, Front Porch Appeal

We love Siobhan's wispy porch curtains and lovely porch swing
Photo courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

Her porch curtains sway in the breeze
Photo courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

See how cozy her porch looks from the street
Photo courtesy of Siobhan Giantis

Notice how these porch curtains are more formal
Photo courtesy of Robin Seidel

Denise cleverly used galvanized pipe to hang her corner curtains.
Photo courtesy of Denise from The Painted Home