People often comment on the great light we get in our house. A lot of that has to do with the good fortune of big windows and a bright western exposure. But wherever you live, there are some tricks you can use to make the most of your windows and bring more light into your home.

This is the first of a series of posts on my top tips for brightening your home:

1. Window frosting to allow you to keep your curtains open

2. Strategic furniture placement to allow you to keep your curtains open

3. Mirrors placed opposite your windows to reflect the light

4. Adding windows in unexpected places during a renovation

Here are some details about how we have used these tips around our house, with bright, sunny results!

1. Window frosting to allow you to keep your curtains open

If you live in an urban area, it can be hard to leave your curtains or blinds open, because your neighbors are right there. I added easy static cling window frosting in a few of our rooms, and this creates enough privacy that we can leave our curtains open and let in the sunlight. I have used both plain frosted window film and this bamboo print window film. It really helps to clean your windows well and add some dish soap to your spray bottle when you are applying the frosting. Some of ours have stayed up for years without any problem, yet the frosting also peels off easily with no sticky residue. I did get what seemed to be a dud roll, and I ended up mixing a bit of kids’ washable glue into the water to keep the film up. It still came off easily.

I’ve got some more bright ideas coming up!

“Jewels”