Dress every window in a room

Plan, measure and fit curtain poles, blinds, safety cleats and restrictors across a room's windows over a long weekend.

Guides in this project

01Put up a curtain pole 02Fit a roller blind inside the window recess 03Fit a roman blind 04Fit a child-safe cord cleat to a blind 05Fit window restrictors

DW-01Plan the room and buy everything firstWalk round the room and decide which treatment goes where, for example a curtain pole on the main window, a roller blind inside a recessed window, and a roman blind on another. Measure every window's width and height, and the recess depth for any inside-fit blind, before you buy anything. Buy all poles, blinds, brackets, fixings and curtains up front so you're not stopping mid-job to order parts. Set aside a full weekend plus one evening for a typical room, and expect a total spend of roughly £150 to £400 depending on sizes and fabric.

1 each · Tape measure

Buy:Tooled UpB&QAmazon

1 each · Notebook for measurements

Buy:B&QAmazon

DW-02Fit the curtain pole on the main windowStart with the window that's taking a curtain pole, usually the largest or most looked-at window in the room. Follow the HomeGraft guide "Put up a curtain pole" to mark, check for cables and pipes with a detector, and fix the brackets. Hang the curtains loosely on the pole but don't style them yet, you'll come back to that at the end. This phase typically takes half a day including hanging the curtains.

1 each · Curtain pole kit with brackets

Buy:B&QAmazon

1 pack · Wall plugs and screws

Buy:Travis PerkinsB&QAmazon

1 pair · Curtains

Buy:B&QAmazon

DW-03Fit the roller blind inside its recessMove on to the window taking a roller blind inside the recess, often a kitchen or bathroom window. Follow "Fit a roller blind inside the window recess" to get the brackets square and the blind sitting flush. Check for cables and pipes with a detector before drilling into the recess, even though it looks like bare plaster or wood. A recess that's slightly out of square is the most common snag here, so double check with a spirit level before you commit to fixing.

1 each · Roller blind, cut to recess width

Buy:B&QAmazon

1 pair · Recess fixing brackets

Buy:Travis PerkinsB&QAmazon

DW-04Fit the roman blind on the remaining windowFollow "Fit a roman blind" for the last window in the room. This is usually the fiddliest fit of the project because the headrail needs to sit perfectly level for the fabric to fold evenly. Check for cables and pipes before drilling, and get a second pair of hands to hold the headrail while you mark fixing points. Allow a full morning or afternoon for this phase.

1 each · Roman blind kit

Buy:B&QAmazon

1 pair · Headrail fixing brackets

Buy:Travis PerkinsB&QAmazon

DW-05Fit child-safe cord cleats to both blindsOnce the roller blind and roman blind are both up, follow "Fit a child-safe cord cleat to a blind" on each one. Cords left loose are a strangulation risk, so don't skip this even if there are no children living in the house right now. Fix each cleat high enough that the cord can be wound right up out of reach. This is a quick phase, usually under an hour for both blinds.

2 each · Child-safe cord cleats

Buy:B&QAmazon

DW-06Fit restrictors to any window that opensFollow "Fit window restrictors" on every window in the room that opens, including the ones you've just dressed. This matters most upstairs or above ground floor, where an open window is a fall risk. Check for cables and pipes before drilling into the frame or surround, and if the window also doubles as a fire escape, choose a restrictor that can be released quickly from inside without a key or tool. If you're not sure a window is safe as an escape route, get a professional glazier or window fitter to check it.

2 each · Window restrictor kits

Buy:B&QAmazon

DW-07Final check and style the roomGo round every window, open and close each blind, and test every restrictor by trying to push the window fully open. Check cord cleats are fixed where a child can't reach the cord even by climbing on furniture. Dress the curtains properly now, pleating or tying them back, and stand back to check poles and headrails all sit level with each other across the room. Keep leftover screws, bracket parts and instructions together in case you need to adjust anything later.

2 each · Curtain tiebacks (optional)

Buy:B&QAmazon

Travis Perkins and Tooled Up links are affiliate links: if you buy after clicking, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. B&Q and Amazon links are plain searches and earn us nothing.

Save this as a project

Back to all guides

Guides in this project

Related guides